96 Notice of rare Plants, $c. 



With a specimen of the common tree frog, I have forwarded to 

 the Cabinet of the Society, one of the peeping frogs, captured 

 in a swamp in North Danvers. 



NOTE. It has been deemed advisable to append a more minute description of this inter- 

 esting reptile. A careful examination enables us to furnish the following. 



HYLA. FEMORALIS Le Conte, Ann. Lye. N. Y. Vol. I. p 280. 



* Variety c. 



Move fawn color, changeable to dark cinereous ; marked with two transverse narrow black 

 lines, forming a cross, and an irregular narrow line on each side producing with the other 

 lines a general rhomboidal configuration 5 a large triangular spot on the back of the head, 

 formed by the junction of lines proceeding from the centre of the irides ; a spot at the 

 insertion of the fote legs, rather than "an angle " as in the true species : a pale yellowish 

 line margined with black, bounds the back. part of the fore and hind legs; an irregular 

 spot on the extremity of the rump ; beneath granulated on the abdomen, legs and thighs ; a 

 character also perceptible in some degree, on the upper surface. Head, rather obtuse, lower 

 lip whitish; throat, cheeks and auricles minutely spotted with black dots: irides golden- 

 copper. When resting on a dark substance, it changes at pleasure to a dark ashen hue, the 

 lines becoming ^black and piominent, and the spots on the head and rump very perceptible, 

 as- also the transverse bars on the upper surface of the legs. v 



Length of body from snout to vent, one inch : of hinder thighs and legs, each half an inch ; 

 of tarsus and toes 7-10 Mis. of an inch ; of longest toe 4-10 tJis. of an inch. Entire length of 

 fore legs half an inch. 



The present specimen may be the young, and on that account liable to vary from the de- 

 scribed species, and perhaps the season of the year may have some influence on the color. 



NOTICE OF RARE PLANTS ; WITH A DESCRIPTION OF A CURIOUS 

 VARIETY OF CLADONIA UNCIAL1S. By JOHJI LEWIS RUSSELL. 



CHARA VULGARIS. L. 

 Bigelow's Plants of Boston, 2d ed., p. 334. 



Natural order Characeae. Richard. 



I met with this obscure but exceedingly interesting aquatic, for 

 the first time, in a brook, running parallel with the Eastern Rail 

 Road, on the farm formerly in possession of I. Tucker, Esq. 

 While, with a friend, searching for microscopic objects among the 

 Infusoria, my attention was drawn to the floating tufts of this 

 brittle and crystalline plant, growing from the bottom. Submit- 

 ting it to the microscope, we had the pleasure of perceiving the 

 motion of the sap in those mysterious and beautiful currents, 

 better known among botanists as Cyclosis. Vesicles of a glob- 

 ular form were perceptible traversing the internal cavities and 



