138 PROCKEDINGS OF HUE MALACOLOGICAL SOCIKTY. 



Essington (Deshayes for meretricifonnis), Port Curtis (Brit. Mus. for 

 meretriciformis). 



The locality " Port Jackson " given by Lamarck is doubtful, or at 

 all events requires confirmation. Without the aid of the description 

 of 31. abhreviata given by M. Mabille it was quite impossible to 

 recognize the species. I believe that Lamarck's types are merely 

 lialf- grown exam])les of the species named M. ohesa by Deshayes. 

 The form, " obtuse trigoua, transversim abbreviata," the colour, 

 " alba," and the character of the dorsal areas, " ano vulvaque eleganter 

 plicatis," are quite features of obesa. The proportion of height to 

 length corresponds to the measurements given by Mabille. I agree 

 witli Weinkauff's suggestion (p. 49) that J/, obesa and M. meretriciformis 

 are merely varieties of one and the same species. They agree in every 

 detail, excepting that the latter is bluish towards the umbones, and 

 purplish within the valves. 



The shell figured by Hedley (Proc. Linn. Soc. N.S. Wales, 

 vol. xxvii, pi. xxix, figs, 1-3) certainh* cannot be the true abbreviata, 

 and I am inclined to think that it belongs to M. pura as suggested by 

 Pritchard & GratlifE (Proc. 11. Soc. Victoria, vol. xii, p. 106, 1900). 



M. abbreviata, Lamarck, is quoted by Menke ^ from West Australia, 

 and by Gray in P. P .King's Narrative of a Siirveij of the Coasts of 

 Australia, vol. ii, Appendix, p. 474, but it is impossible to say what 

 species those authors had before them. 



Since the foregoing was written I sent a valve of this species to 

 Dr. E. Lamy, of the Paris Museum, and he has most kindly confirmed 

 m}' identification. He writes: "II n'y a pas de doute possible: la 

 valve est bien conforme aux deux types de M. abbreviata, Lk. Votre 

 valve par ses caracteres de forme, de sculpture (ano vulvaque plicatis), 

 de dent cardinale, de sinus pallial me parait absolument conforme aux 

 types de M. abbreviata. ^^ 



2. Mactea acuatina, Chemnitz. B.M. 

 Mactra achatina, Chemnitz, Conch. Cab., vol. xi, p. 218, pi. cc, figs. 

 1957-8; Keeve, fig. 51; Weinkauff, p. 50, pi. xvii, figs. 3-4; 

 Hedley, Rep. Aust. Assoc. Adv. Sci. 1909, p. 351, 1910. 

 Hab. — Ceylon or Nicobar Islands (Chemnitz), Philippine Islands 

 (Reeve), Manila (Hidalgo), Red Sea (?), coast of Bengal, East Africa, 

 China (Weinkauff), Queensland (Hedley). 



Placed in the Australian list on Mr. Hedley's authority. This 

 species and M. ortiata (Gray) may have been confounded. 



3. Mactra (Spisula) adelaidje, Angas. B.M. 

 Spisida adelaidce, Angas, MSS., Proc. Zool. Soc, 1865, p. 697. 



Rab. — Port Adelaide Creek, South Australia (Angas). Type in 

 Brit. Mus. Adelaide (C. J. Wigram in B.M.). 



In his diagnosis Angas omitted to state that the sculpture consists 

 merely of the fine lines of growth, and the interior of the shell is not 

 referred to. The valves are white within, and the pallial line is 



^ Moll. Novae Hollandia3, 1S43, p. 45. 



