88 Mr. W. Nicoll o« </«! 



An interesting oncurrence was witnessed while a liviuj^ 

 speeimen from the sand-eel was being examined. The left 

 Tolk-gland was observed to gradually, but rapidly disappear, 

 so that not a trace was l^ft. The preserved specimen 

 exhibits only one yolk-gland. This may afford a possible 

 explanation of Montieelli's obsei'vation of only one gland 

 in Hemii/rifs Sfossic/iii, a case which Liihe has difficulty in 

 reconciling with his own observations ^. 



In an example of Hemiuri(.<i appemUcidatus from tlie halibut 

 (PI. III. fig. 11) a rare condition was met with, namely, 

 pigment-spots in the ova. The presence of eye-spots in the 

 ova of Hemiurinre is not usual, and on that account I 

 regarded the case as suspicious. On close examination some 

 of the ova displayed two spots, one at each pole ; others had 

 several spots congregated at one end, but in the majority 

 the appearance simulated the usual occurrence of eye- 

 spots. Indications of pigmentation, however, were found 

 throughout the body and large patches were discovered in 

 the substance of both suckers. Another smaller example 

 showed no spots in the ova, but the suckers contained several 

 black patches. The explanation of this seems difficult ; the 

 case is certainly unique in my experience, and I can only 

 attribute it at present to some diseased condition. 



Brachyphallus crenatus (Ilud.), Liihe. 

 Dtstoma crenatiim, Rud. Entoz. Hist. ii. p. 404, pi. v. fig. 1. 



Distoma ocreatum, Olsson, Lunda Uuiv. Arsskrift, iv. (8) p. 48, pi. v. 



figs. 9(V98. 

 Hendurns crenatus, Liihe, Zool. Anzeig. xxiv. p. 399 ; Lander, Bull. 



Mus. Harvard, xlv. no. 1. 

 Brachyphallus crenatus, Odhner, Faun.i Arctica, iv. (2) p. 352. 



Amongst the numerous examples of Hemiurus communis 

 from the sand-eel several specimens of this species were 

 found. It is at once differentiated by the almost equal size 

 of the suckers. The length of my examples, which were 

 pretty nearly all of one size, was 2- 12-2-38 mm., with an 

 appendix of 1*08-1 -18 mm., i. e. the appendix equals about 

 half the length of the rest of the body. This corresponds 

 very well with the observations of Lander and Odhner. Liihe 

 makes the length 1-25-1 -35 mm. and the appendix | as long 

 as the trunk. The breadth behind the ventral sucker was 

 •52--64 mm., and near the appendix it was '71-77 mm. 

 These figures are much in excess of any found by other 

 observers. 



* Zool. Auzeiger, ixiv. p. 309, note 13. 



