LAND ANIMALS OF THE COAL PERIOD. 363 



the true Coal measures, Avitli reference to their contained fossils, and 

 the conditions of accumulation of the coal ; and the results were given 

 to the world in a joint paper on "The Remains of a Reptile and a Laud- 

 shell discovered in the Interior of an erect Tree in the Coal Measures 

 of Nova Scotia," and in the writer's paper on "The Coal Measures of 

 the South Joggins ; "* while other important investigations grew out of 

 the following up of these researches, and much matter in relation to the 

 vegetable fossils has only recently been w'orked out. It is with the 

 more striking fact of the discovery of the remains of a reptile in the 

 Coal measures that we have now to do. 



These interesting remains were found in the interior of one of those 

 fossil erect Sigillarioi described in a previous chapter, and which, 

 having fallen from the cliff, lay in large disc-like fragments on the 

 beach. While examining these " fossil grindstones," we were sur- 

 prised by finding on one of them what seemed to be fragments of 

 bone. On careful search, other bones appeared, and they had the 

 aspect, not of remains of fishes, of which many species are found fossil 

 in these Coal measures, but rather of limb-bones of a quadruj^ed. 

 The fallen pieces of the tree were carefully taken up, and other bones 

 disengaged, and at length a jaw with teeth made its appearance. 

 We felt quite confident, from the first, that these bones were reptilian ; 

 and the whole being carefully packed and labelled, were taken by 

 Sir Charles to the United States, and submitted to Professor J. Wyman 

 of Cambridge, who recognised their reptilian character, and prepared 

 descriptive notes of the principal bones, which appeared to have 

 belonged to two species. He also observed among the fragments an 

 object of different character, apparently a shell, wdiich was recognised 

 by Dr Gould of Boston, and subsequently by Mr Deshayes, as probably 

 a land-snail, and has since been named Pnpa retusta. 



The specimens were subsequently taken to London and re-examined 

 by Professor Owen, who confirmed Wyman's inferences, added other 

 characters to the description, and named the larger and better preserved 

 species Dendrerpeton Acadiamim, in allusion to its discovery in the 

 interior of a tree, and to its native country of Acadia or Nova Scotia 

 (Fig. 142). 



In form, Dendrerpeton Acadianum was probably lizard-like ; with 

 a broad flat head, short stout limbs, and an elongated tail ; and having 

 its skin, and more particularly that of the belly, protected by small 

 bony plates closely overlaj)ping each other. It may have attained 

 the length of two feet. The form of the head is not unlike that of 



* Journal of the Geological Society of London, vols. ix. and x. 



