156 Miscellaneous. 



ment which serves for the perception of odours, is, that if the tenta- 

 cles of a Gasteropod, an Avion for example, be carefully cut and the 

 wound's allowed to heal, it will no longer approach certain nutritive 

 substances in the same manner as before the operation. M. Moquin 

 has also remarked that the size of this tentacular nerve was propor- 

 tional to the strength of the faculty of smell possessed by the Mol- 

 lusca ; thus it is very large in the Testacellce which feed on earthworms, 

 which they are obliged to pursue in their subterraneous galleries. 



In the bitentaculate Gasteropoda the olfactory organ also resides in 

 the tentacles ; but in this case the eyes are placed at the base, the 

 sense of smell can be exercised on their entire surface, and it is clearly 

 separated from that of sight. — lb. Nov. 1851, p. 247- 



Monstrosity in the petals o/"Honkeneja peploides. 

 By Charles C. Babington, M.A. 



My friend Mr. J. B. Wilson of St. John's College, Cambridge, has 

 recently placed in my hands a rather curious instance of change of 

 form in the petals of a caryophyllaceous plant. In the Honkeneja 

 peploides the plants are subdioecious with us, although such is stated 

 by Dr. A. Gray not to be the case in America. The petals of the 

 male flower are usually broadly obovate-spathulate and equal, even if 

 they do not exceed, the sepals in length. In the plant before me, 

 which is male, the petals are mostly much shorter, but retain their 

 proper shape. In a few flowers the petals are divided to about the 

 middle into linear lobes. As many of the allied genera have deeply 

 cloven petals, this instance is chiefly of value as showing that we must 

 not trust even that structure as affording constant characters. 



ANAS GLACIALIS. 



To the Editors of the Annals of Natural History. 



Weymouth, January 20, 1852. 



Gentlemen, — On Saturday, January 17th, 1852, a specimen of 

 Anas ylacialis, the Long-Tailed Duck, was shot by a gentleman of 

 this town, in Weymouth Bay : it is evidently a young male. The 

 elongated tail-feathers are absent. On each side of the neck is an 

 ill-defined dark spot, and a narrow band of black encircles the lower 

 part of the breast and joins the black of the back. The legs and 

 feet are bluish lead-colour. This bird had been chased by a gunner, 

 who had eight shots at it. He first shot at it on the wing, when it 

 immediately alighted and dived, and would not rise again, but dived 

 each time it was shot at. When on the wing it flew in the same 

 manner as the tufted duck, and dives better and keeps longer under 

 water than the guillemots or razor-bills. The extreme length of 

 the above is 14 inches (French). 



I have just had brought me a specimen of Rhombus hirtus, 

 Midler's Topknot, being the first I have seen on this coast. 



Gentlemen, yours obediently, 



William Thompson. 



