Zoology. 229 



POLYZOA. 



The "Sea-mats," as they are sometimes called, have been 

 well looked after by Belfast naturalists. William Thompson, 

 Hyndman, Allman, Templeton, Swaiiston and others, have 

 all contributed to our knowledge of this interesting group, 

 and we find their records mentioned in Hincks's work.^ 

 Of the rarer species which have been met off the coasts of 

 our district might be mentioned Caherea El/isii, Fliistra 

 carbasea, AIembranipo7-a Jfi/sfroides, M. imbellis, Cribri/ifia 

 figu/aris, Schizotheca divisa, Forella minuta^ Phylaciella 

 labrosa and /•'. eximia^ Afucronella kKjueata^ CcUepora 

 arf/iata, and Stomatopoi-a /ohns/o/ii. 



Quite recently Miss Thornely has added to our knowledge 

 of the Polyzoa of the Antrim coast by publishing a short 

 account of some material dredged by R. Welch.'- 



R. F. S. 

 ROTIFERA. 



No list of the " Wheel Animalcules" of the north-east of 

 Ireland has ever been published, and in the two most recent 

 Irish papers dealing with this group, by Miss Glascott and 

 Mr. Hood, the counties of Down and Antrim have, un- 

 fortunately, been entirely neglected, so that there is yet a 

 great field here for some members of the Belfast Naturalists' 

 Field Club, who, no doubt, will take up the subject before 

 long. R. F. S. 



NEMATODA. 



This group includes the "Round Worms," many of which 

 are internal parasites, others being abundant in fresh and 

 salt water. No one as yet has been sufficiently attracted 

 towards these worms in north-eastern Ireland to make a 

 special study of them, and even Thompson's records are 

 meagre in the extreme. Indeed the only one he refers to 

 is Gofdiiis at/nafiius, which name is now known to include 

 a very large number of species. 



R. F. S. 



1 Th. Hincks.— a History of the British Marine Polyzoa. 2 vols. 

 London, 1880. 



2 L. R. Thornei.y. — Polyzoa from Fiallycastle and Rathlin Island. 

 Irish Naturalist, vol. xi, 1902. 



