Crassicauda crassicauda [Crepl.) audits Hosts. 147 



rond qui pent etre iin Nematode ou un Echinorliynque ; Je 

 premier est un Phylloholhrium agame, que le professeur 

 Haeckel a trouve dans I'opaisseui- de la peau. Le second est 

 un ver trfes long, log^ dans Testomac d*an Z/^V^z'ws eclioue sur 

 les c6tes de Su^de en avril 1867 (Malm). Le professeur Sir 

 Turner suppose que c^est un ^^chinoriijnque ; un nouvel 

 examen est indispensable. Nous ne savons si cet animal a 

 ete conserve," It is, of course, impossible to be certain of 

 the point from this brief notice, but it is not unreasonable to 

 suspect that this latter worm was another example of Crassi- 

 caiid'i. Its occurrence in the stomach finds a parallel in the 

 case of the 'Terra Nova' material. 



Van Beneden also states that Filaria crassicauda occurs 

 in "Bahvnoptera rostrata." He does not mention his authority 

 for this statement, and it is not improbable that the reference 

 is again to the 1825 whale, which, as has been seen, has 

 appeared in the literature under a variety of names. 



The present specimen from Ziphiiis (1915) consists of an 

 anterior end only, the tail, which might have served as a 

 guide to the sex of the individual, having unfortunately been 

 lost. The fragment is twisted in a spiral fashion, and 

 measures, when stretclied as far as tlie twisting will permit, 

 about 30 cm. The anterior part of the body is thick, but 

 tapers otf rather suddenly in the first quarter of an inch to 

 the very narrow oral extremity. I have been unable, ou 

 clearing in creosote, to make out any genital organs. 



The ' Terra Nova ^ specimens did not include any heads, 

 the material consisting entirely of posterior portions. No 

 description of the anterior end, therefore, was possible. 

 Creplin.'s original material did include complete individuals, 

 and a figure of the oral extremity of one of thera is given by 

 that author*, but the features of the head are very vaguely 

 indicated, and tlie figure does not appear to agree very closely 

 with the description given. Crepiin's description of the 

 mouth is as follows :— " Oi terminale, subrotundum, aufc 

 potius subtransversum, subellipticum, minimum, margini 

 insigni, tumido, nodulis experte, cinctum." 



Supposing that the determination of the present specimen 

 is correct, I^ am now able to give what is, I hope, a more 

 precise description of the head of tiiis species, together with 

 a figure. According to my findings, the mouth is a narrow 

 slit-like aperture whose long axis runs not in a transverse 

 but in a dorso-ventral direction. Its margin is certainly 

 conspicuous, but hardly tumid. It is lined vvith a very thick 

 cuticle, which is an invagination of the external cuticle of 



* L. c. pi. Hi, fig. 5. 



