288 Dr. W. B. Benliani on an 



to be one species at different ages, for in tlie smaller of the 

 two the clitellum was undeveloped, whereas the larger — which 

 is the subject of the present communication — was evidently 

 mature. Being of this opinion, I cut the smaller worm into 

 a series of sagittal sections and proceeded to dissect the 

 larger ; more recently, however, having had the leisure in 

 which to examine these sections, I find that the former 

 presents several important differences from the larger dissected 

 one, and certain peculiar characters, which, at the moment, I 

 have not time to discuss, so that I must leave the worm 

 unidentified for the ])resent. 



Of the genus Bhi'nodrilus, Perrier, we at present know 

 three species, all from the neotropical region, viz. R. para- 

 doxus, Perrier *, from Caracas, in Venezuela, B. GuUehnua, 

 Beddard f, from Britisli Guiana, and /;'. Tenkatei, Horst J, 

 from Surinam j the new species, which has affinities with 

 both the latter, was collected at Oajambe, in Ecuador, at a 

 height of 14,000 feet. 



Rhinodrilus ecuadoriensis, sp. n.§, 



is 3 inches (7'5 centim.) in length, and consists of some one 

 hundred somites. It is thus smaller than any of the previous 

 species, though R. Tenkatei approaches it most nearly, being 

 ir5 centim. in length. 



Tiie colour of the preserved specimen is perhaps wortli 

 recording, though no doubt very different in life ; when 

 stripped of its cuticle it was dirty olive-green, the clitellum 

 buff, tending to orange laterally, the tubercula pubertatis 

 being of a deeper brownish tint. 



The cheetah, as in the other sj)ecieS; are in four couples on 

 each somite, the inner couples being very close to the middle 

 (ventral) line; if this space be taken as the unit (*), the 

 distance between the outer and inner couples is 1.^ 6'. In R. 

 Tenkatei tins lateral interspace is less than the ventral space, 

 and in R. Giilielmus it is equal to ticice the ventral space. 



The chffita3 are absent from the second as well as from the 



• " Eecli. pour s-ervir etc. Lombric. tenestres," Nouv. Arch. d. Mu5. 

 d'llist. Nat. de Paris, viii. 18":?, p. 05. 



t " On the Structure of a uew Geuus of Lunibricidre {T/inttiuodriliis)" 

 Proc. Zool. Sue. 1887, p. lo4. 3Ir. Beddard has recently recognized the 

 characteristic features of lihiiwdrilus iu this wonu, to which geuus he 

 now refers the species (Quart. Jouru. Micr. Sci. .x.wi. p. loi), footnote). 



X " Descriptions of Earthworms," Notes from the Levden Museum, ix. 

 p. 101. 



§ In a strictly etymological sense perhaps ^^ (rquafnrius'' would have 

 been preferable. 



