76 Royal Society : — 



to constitute the entire mass, and not merely a part of the animal. 

 I am inclined to think thej' are only desiccated portions of the ani- 

 mal, separated from each other in consequence of the absence of any 

 muscular or nervous structure. It may also be questionable if the 

 term "ova" is rightly applicable to an animal which has no distinct 

 organs of any kind. Possibly the fry may pass through a metamor- 

 phosis, as in the case of the Medusa. 



Most of the Foraminifera are free, or only adhere by their pseudo- 

 podia to foreign substances. Such are the Lagena of WaUvcr, Nodo- 

 saria, Vortkialis and Textularia, and the Miliola of Lamarck. The 

 latter has some, although a very limited, power of locomotion ; which 

 is effected bj' exserting its pseudopodia to their full length, attach- 

 ing itself by them to a piece of seaweed, and then contracting them 

 like india-rubber, so as to draw the shell along with them. Some 

 of the acephalous moUusks do the same by means of their byssus. 

 This mode of progression is, however, exceedingly slow ; and I have 

 never seen, in the course of twenty-four hours, a longer journey than 

 a quarter of an inch accomplished by a Miliola, so that, in compari- 

 son w-ith it, a snail travels at a railroad pace. 



Some are fixed or sessile, but not cemented at their base like the 

 testaceous annelids. The only mode of attachment appears to be a 

 thin film of sarcose. The Lobatula of Fleming, and the Rosalia and 

 Planorbulina of D'Orbigny belong to this division. 



Dr. Carpenter considers the Foraminifera to be phytophagous, in 

 consequence of his having detected in some specimens, by the aid 

 of the microscope, fragments of Diatomacea and other simple forms 

 of vegetable life. But as I have dredged them alive at a depth of 

 108 fathoms (which is far below the Laminarian zone), and they are 

 extremely abundant at from 40 to 70 fathoms, ten miles from land 

 and beyond the range of any seaweed, it may be assumed without 

 much difficulty, that many, if not most of them, are zoophagous, and 

 prey on microscopic animals, perhaps even of a simpler form and 

 structure than themselves. They are in their tui'n the food of mol- 

 lusca, and appear to be especially relished by Dentalium Entale. 



With respect to Dr. Carpenter's idea that they are allied to 

 sponges, I may remark that Polystomella crispa (an elegant and not 

 uncommon species) has its periphery set round at each segment with 

 siliceous spicula, like the rowels of a spur. But as there is only one 

 terminal cell, which is connected with all the others in the interior 

 by one or more openings for the pseudopodia, the analogy is not 

 complete, this being a solitary, and the sponge a compound or 

 aggregate animal. 



I believe the geographical range or distribution of species in this 

 group to be regulated by the same laws as in the Mollusks and other 

 marine animals. In the gulf of Genoa I have found (as might have 

 been expected) species identical with those of our Hebridean coast, 

 and vice versd. 



In common with Dr. Carpenter, I cannot help deploring the ex- 

 cessive multiplication of species in the present day, and I would in- 

 clude in this regret the unnecessary formation of genera. Another 



