July 14, 1887] 



NATURE 



245 



Spawn of Sun-fish (?). 



DuRTNO a cruise on the west coast of Ireland, from which I 

 have recently returned, I captured a long ribbon of spawn about 

 40 feet long, 3 feet deep, and a quarter of an inch thick. The ova, 

 about the size of No. 2 shot, were set in a firm gelatinous mass, 

 which floated edgeways in a frilled form, I saw it floating 

 about a foot below the surface, and succeeded in gaffing it and 

 towing it behind the punt by getting some of it fixed over 

 the gunwale. The embryos had developed so as to show eyes 

 when first taken, and in the two days, during which some of it 

 remained alive in a deep can, a further advance took place ; but 

 then, owing to the heat of the weather, the ova whitened, its 

 buoyancy was lost, and decomposition set in. 



As we saw several specimens of the sun-fish {Orthagoriscus 

 mola) in the vicinity, and as the spawn must have belonged to 

 some very large fish, I think it probable that what we found was 

 the spawn of a sun-fish. 



I should be glad if any of your readers could throw more 

 light on the subject, W. S. Green. 



Carrigaline, co. Cork, July 4, 



I 



After-Glows. 



In reply to the letter of Mr. L. P. Muirhead in Nature of 

 June 23 (p. 175), I would ask to be permitted to state that the 

 after-glows are very rich and conspicuous here evening after 

 evening, and occasionally discernible till 10 p.m. 



Worcester, July 4, 1887. J. Llovd Bozward. 



The Cuckoo in India. * 

 I HAVE been here for just one month, and during that time 

 have constantly heard the cry of the cuckoo. Last Sunday I 

 heard it at Lackwar, fifteen miles from here. This would 

 apparently point to Jerdon's not being correct in saying the 

 cuckoo is rare in India. F. C. Constable. 



Mussoorie, June 15. 



Mr. Mutzler, the owner of this hotel — the Charleville — tells 

 me the cuckoo is constantly heard from spring to October. 



Luminous Boreal Cloudlets. 



In Nature, vol. xxxiv. p. 192, attention was invited by the 

 writer to what appeared to him to constitute a special class of 

 self-luminous cloudlets in the northern sky at night, for which, if 

 so recognized, the name " nubecula boreales " was suggested. 



A careful look-out was kept every night last autumn, winter, 

 and spring for their reapp^rance here, but to no effect till the 

 night of the 19th inst. Then, and subsequently on the 21st, 

 24th, and 26th inst., there was an increasing development of the 

 phenomenon in a north polar horizontal arc of 50^ or 25° on 

 each side the true north. At length on the 28th, and last night, 

 the 29th inst., there was a magnificent and marked display. 



One of your able correspondents of last year seemed to con- 

 sider he had already drawn attention to the subject in a previous 

 year in your columns. It appeared, however, he had only 

 remarked upon sunlit clouds, as a phase of the cloud-forms 

 attracting latterly special attention. 



It is quite out of the question to attribute the luminosity now 

 referred to in any respect to direct solar illumination at mid- 

 night ; and fortunately the eminent Astronomer- Royal for 

 Scotland was led to apply the spectroscope, confirming the 

 writer's conjecture as to the sub-auroral and self-luminous 

 character of these cloudlets. His letter of July 31 will be found 

 in Nature, vol. xxxiv. p. 311, 



The recentworks of Lemstrom and Koch, reviewed in Nature, 

 vol. XXXV. p. 433 et scq., have followed up the sul)ject in noting 

 a sudden and wide-spread development of cirrus clouds and 

 luminous mists in aurora; of .Sweden and Labrador. 



Dundrum, co. Dublin, June 30. D. J. Rowan. 



The Migrations of Pre-Glacial Man. 



Will Dr. Hicks kindly explain the statement cited in Nature 

 (vol. xxxvi. p. 185), that the migration of pre-giacial man to 

 this country was "from northern and north-western directions." 



June 25. Glaciator. 



On the Pliocene Deposit of Marine Shells near La'ttakia, 

 and a Similar Deposit in the Island of Zante. 



On p. 384, vol. XXX. of Nature, Prof. Hull published«an 

 account, furnished him by myself, of the shell deposit in the 

 marl of the Lattakia plain. Since that time I have submitted 

 these specimens to Mr. Etheridge, F.R.S., of the British 

 Museum, who has kindly furnished me with their specific names, 

 as far as they are determinable. The subjoined list fixes the 

 geological date or succession of the deposit, which belongs to, 

 or is of the same age or period as, the Pliocene or Crag deposits 

 of Essex, Norfolk, and Suffolk, The fossils from the raised 

 beaches may be of post-Pliocene. 



MOLLUSCA. 



Class \.— GASTEROPODA. 



Order I.— 



PROSOBRANCHIATA. 



Sec. A. — Siphonostomata. 



I, Fam. Strombid^. 

 I. Strombiis, sp. 



2. Fam, MuRiciDiE, 



4. Fam. CoNiDi*;. 



19. Conus Noi', Brocc. 



20. 



21. 



22. 



23- 



24. 



3. Murex branderis, Brocc. 



4. ,, erinaceus, Linn. 



5. ,, conglobatus, Micht. 



6. Fusus rostratus, Defr. 



7. ,, corneus, Sow, = F. 



gracilis. 



8. „ sp, 



9. Ranella marginata. Sow. 



or Brocc. 



3. Fam. BucciNiD/?!. 



10. Bticcinium flexuosum, 



Brocc. 



11. Cassis crutnona, Lam. 



12. Cassidaria echinata. 



13. Colufttbella nassoides. 



14. Nassa clathrata, Defr, 



15. ,, megastoma, Brocc. 



16. Terebra imbricaria. 



17. ,, near T. plicaria. 



18. ,, sp. 



deperditt4s, Brig. 

 „ sp. 

 Pletirostoma mottile, Brocc. 

 ,, cataphractra, 



Brocc. 

 ,, turricola, 



Brocc. 



5, Fam, VoLUTiD^. 



25. Mitra scrobiculata, Defr. 



(Brocc). 



26. ,, sp. 



27. ,, sp. 



Sec. B. — Holostomata. 

 6. Fam. Cerithiid>e. 



28. Aporrhais {Chenopus) pes-, , 

 pelecani, L. 



29. Cerithiuin vttlgatum, Brug. | 



7. Fam. NaticiD/E, 

 30. Natica, sp. 



31- 



8. Fam. Littormid.b. 

 Phorus agglutinans, Lam. 



9. Fam. TuRBiNiD/C. 



Turbo rugosus, Lam. 

 sp. 



32. 

 33- 



34. Trochus patulus, Brocc, 



Class W.—CONCHIFERA, 



Lam. 



Sec. A. — Asiphonida. 



10. Fam. Ostreid.^. 



35. Ostrea, sp. 



36. Spondylus crassicostata. 



i II. Fam. Pectenid/e, 



I 37. Pecten, sp. near P. altopli- 



I cat us. 



I 38. ,, jcuobcEUS. 



1 39- >> opercularis, L. 



I 40. ,, dubius, Brocc. 



I 41. ,, janira, near quin- 



1 quecostatus. 



12. Fam. Arcid^e. 

 I 



I 42. Area polii. 

 i 43. Pectunculus, sp. 



I Sec. B. — Siphonida, In- 

 { tegro-pallialia, 



i 13. Fam. Chamid^. 



I 44. Chama squamosa, Brand. 



j 14. Fam. Cardiid.^. 



45. Cardium rusticum, L. 



46. ,, echinatum, L. 



47. ,, edule, L. 



15. Fam. LUCINID^. 



48. Lucina borealis, L. 

 Sec. C. — Sinu-pallialia. 



16. Fam. VENORin,«. 



49. Venus fasciata, Da Costa. 



50. ,, {Cyther(sa)casina,'L. 



Class Ul.-BRACHIOPODA, 

 Cuv. 



5 1 . I'Valdheimia complanata. 



It will be seen by this list that three classes, seventeen fami- 

 lies, twenty-nine genera, and fifty-one species are represented. 



Beside the above marine species, which are found more or 

 less embedded in the soil, as well as on its surface. Helix 

 pomatia is found in great profusion all over the surface. 



Another species of Helix, closely allied to H. lapicida, and a 

 species of Clausilia. No other terrestrial shells were collected 

 in this region. 



In addition to the above Mollusca I found a species of Toxas- 



