144 CURRENT LITERATURE. 



Woodward, B. B. — Li«t of British Non-Marine MoUui-ca. Journ. Conch., 

 1903, vol. 10, pp. 352-3G7. 



Mr. Woodward is to be congratulated upon the publication of, and malaco- 

 logists in at last possessing, a List free from personal bias, and one which 

 is stamped with a genuine attempt to deal in a scientific manner with the many 

 difficulties surrounding such a task. 



Whether one agrees or disagrees with the author in all points, but few will 

 be found who will not welcome a List free from the burden of varieties, sub- 

 varietie?, mutations, monstrosities, etc., and one in which the nomenclature is 

 at least in keeping with that adopted by malacologists throughout the world. 



The List is accompanied by eleven pages of explanatory notes, and should 

 be in the hands of every malacologist who takes an intelligent interest in the 

 British Non-marine >\Iollusca. 



Davis J. R. A. and Fleure, H. ^S.— Patella (The Common Limpet.) L.M.B.C 

 ^lemoirs. 1903, vol. x, 70 pp., 4 pLs. 



The authors are to be congratulated on the completion of this interesting 

 memoir, which brings together in a very concise manner the leading structural 

 features of Patella vuhjata. So much has been written upon the anatomy of this 

 species, that it was scarcely to be expected that any important discoveries would 

 be made, still the authors believe the following points to be new: (1) A 

 lateral glandular streak has been found along each side of the foot of young speci- 

 mens ; resembling that found in Nacella and its allies. (2) A muscular zone, 

 to which the term internal pallial zone is applied, has been found extending in 

 the mantle between the tips of the shell muscle. (3) The structure of the Crop, 

 and inferences consolidation of the visceral hump. (4) The respiratory 

 function of the nuchal cavity as regards damp air. (5) Discussion of the evolu- 

 tion of the present topographical relations of rectum, kidneys, pericardium and 

 heart. (6) Details of mantle innervation and pallial tentacles. 



The reiJroduction of the figures is poor, they would prove much more useful 

 if in the text and if, in some cases, they were larger. An almost entire absence 

 of references to the literature, seriously detracts from the value of the work, 

 besides being scarcely fair to previous workers. 



Dal I, W. H. — Synopsis of the family Astartidae, with a review of the American 

 species. Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus., 1903, vol. xxvi, pp. 933-951, pLs. Ixii-lxiii. 

 The Astartidae are an ancient group of molluscs, from which the Crassatel- 

 litidae have diverged in the later ]Mesozoic and taken definite form in the Eocene. 

 The two families are chiefly discriminated by the character of the ligament, 

 which in the former family is external as well as the resilium, while in the Cras- 

 satellitidae it is separated from the resilium, which, excepting in Eriphi/la, is deejjly 

 immersed. It would seem that each family has an exceptional and peripheral 

 group. Thus in Eriphyla the process of immersion of the resilium has only 

 begun, but the remaining characters of the shell are so close to Crassinella, that 

 the two must obviously be associated in the same family. On the other hand, 

 in Lirodiscus of the Astartidae, the resilium is separated from the hgament, but 

 still remains external, while the other characters link it to Astarte similarly 

 to those which bind Eripli;/a to Crassinella. 



Lists of the species of the Eastern and Western coasts are given and re- 

 viewed, and six new species described. 



