460 EMBRYOLOGY OF THE LOWER VERTEBRATES OH. 



ivtain its funnel shape. The eggs develop within the jelly up till 

 the stage of a tadpole of 9-10 mm. in length. 

 During this process the jelly apparently 

 liquefies, until only a thin nu'inbraimus bag 

 containing watery fluid surrounds each embryo. 

 K \iMitually the remains of the jelly with its 

 contained tadpoles trickles downwards into tin- 

 water. If, as sometimes happens, the margin 

 of the water has retreated from immediately 

 below the leaf the tadpoles may still make 

 their way for a distance of several inches to 

 the pool by active jumping movements, helped 

 it may be by a shower of rain. 



In the allied Phyllomedusa sauvagii, from 

 the same neighbourhood, a similar mode of 

 2os. i>ii !iii>i,\i;i *i oviposition occurs, though here the nest is 

 female composed of several leaves (Fig. 209). Agar 

 (1909) finds in this case that both at the 

 1899.) commencement and end of oviposition there 



are laid a large number of spheres of jelly which 



contain no egg in their interior. 1 The 



eggs are thus protected both above and 



below by a thick mass of eggless spheres. 



During the later stages of development 



the layer of envelope next the surface 



of each egg becomes greatly distended 



by the accumulation of fluid within it, 



the jelly between the eggs meanwhile 



diminishing in volume. The larvae 



with their huge external gills have thus 



considerable room in which to move 



freely. Eventually the envelope ruptures 



and the larva hatches. The nest thus 



comes to be occupied by a seething mass 



of tadpoles, floored and roofed in by a 



thick mass of jelly formed by the empty 



splniivs. Kv'iitujilly in from 12-24 



hours after tbe bulk of the larvae have 



hatched the jellv l-i^ins to deliquesce n.:. -JO'.). /v/////. ,/,//,, 



and the larvae drip down with it into fgS* spawn ' (After Agar ' 



the water. 



Similai habits occur in other tropical Hylids, e.g. Phyllo- 



1 In Hi'- roiiilii' ma I, inpni-nrt<i] apparent \\ einpt \ BajWllei may l>e loi im :1 



in 'jii.tutiiy in tin- uvidwi IM-I,, i, . ..mr., IHMTJ,, | (l , in, i ,1908). Interspersed 



with tint nonii.-il . , nl of Mii'h i-i^lrxs i-a|i>uli-s. Th.-.s.' a 



to be deposited rmiii'l small solid particles sm-h as fragments [' shed ejiillieliuiii 



'L.-hi-un, 1891). 



In Cento riinrtii.iial. cmptv ternary 



iopeM are ii I in .the left ovidud (Braui, i ( .06). 



