and Pal(ContoIo(jy of Victoria. 195 



succeeded by a warmer modern one^ but that there has been a 

 regular and gradual falling of the temperature to the present day. 



The most abundant living shell in almost every locality of our 

 Victorian Miocene or Oligocene beds is the Pectunculus lati- 

 costatus of the vi'arm seas of North New Zealand, found in 

 thousands, and perfectly identical with the living one, though 

 having no relation to any found in the seas of Australia. The 

 Cuculhca concamerata and granulosa (Reeve), living in the 

 warmer seas of southern China, but not found living south of 

 the equator, is not uncommon in the fossil state in our Victorian 

 Miocene beds. One of the commonest fossils in the same beds 

 is the Limopsis Belcheri, previously only known as a very rare 

 living species dredged from deep water off the Cape of Good 

 Hope, where the Mozambique current heats the sea more than 

 the latitude would account for. Almost equally common, how- 

 ever, and mixed with it, is the Limojms aurita (Sassi), perfectly 

 undistinguishable, on a minute comparison of specimens, from 

 examples from the Coralline Crag of Suffolk and the Miocene 

 Fahluns of Flonheim, llheiuhessen, or from living specimens 

 from the seas of the northern hemisphere. The only other 

 excessively common living species of shell in our Miocene or 

 Oligocene beds is the Corbula sulcata (Lam.), of the tropical 

 seas of the west coast of Africa, whence I have procured living- 

 specimens, so that, as in the other cases of identity of species 

 spoken of, I might not run the chance of misleading my readers 

 by erroneous identifications based on comparisons with figures 

 or descriptions only. 



The Brachiopoda, although not very abundant, present many 

 representative and peculiar forms, with one doubtful recent spe- 

 cies, and another certainly identical with the very rare Rhyncho- 

 nella lucida (Gould), found living in the Sea of Japan. The 

 Echinodermata are all extinct, and closely related to Maltese 

 species. The corals are few and all extinct, and peculiar to 

 the locality. 



MESOZOIC PERIOD. 



It is generally supposed that no marine Mesozoic strata occur 

 in Australia. The announcement will therefore have some in- 

 terest, that I have lately determined clearly the existence of the 

 lower cretaceous rocks in nearly the centre of Australia, with the 

 characteristic genera and closely representative species of the 

 corresponding beds in Europe. 



CRETACEOUS PERIOD. 



From the head of the Flinders River Messrs. Carson and 

 Sutherland have forwarded me specimens of an olive-coloured 



