l6 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 95 



men unskilled in molluscan lore must of necessity be puzzled, to say 

 the least, about the names that should be applied to what they would 

 term their pests. A perusal of the subjoined historical chapter of 

 this genus, in which only the malacological side dealing with problems 

 of naming has been cited, will explain past troubles. 



HISTORY 



From 1852, when Bilharz described Disfomum haematobium, the 

 African blood fluke, until 1913, only surmises were available about 

 the probable life history of blood flukes. 



The first intermediate host of Schistosoma japonicum to be de- 

 scribed hailed from Rono in the center of the southern part of the 

 Island of Formosa. It was christened Blanfordia formosana by 

 Pilsbry (17, p. 751). 



In 1913 Miyairi (19) announced a molluscan intermediate host for 

 the Asiatic blood fluke. This immediately set into action with re- 

 newed energy research students in various parts of the world. 



The year following, 1914, Miyairi and Suzuki (20) pubUshed 

 their paper on " Der Zwischenwirt des Schistosomum japonicum 

 Katsurada." 



In 1915 Leiper and Atkinson (21) published " Observations on the 

 Spread of Asiatic Schistosomiasis ", in which they give an account 

 of their search for the intermediate host in China and Japan. 



By far the greatest impetus to an understanding of this genus was 

 furnished by Robson (22), who in 191 5 described as a new genus 

 and new species Katayama nosophora, the then known intermediate 

 host of Schistosoma japonicum. 



Pilsbry (2^) in the same year refers this to the genus Blanfordia. 

 He also lists under this species the shells which I have here named 

 Katayama nosophora yoshidai. 



In 1918 Johnson (24), in reviewing " The Cercarian Infection of 

 South African Snails ", by F. G. Cawston, M.D., refers to Bhiii- 

 fordia {Katayama) nosophora. 



The following year, 1919, Cort (25) pubHshed a paper on "The 

 Cercaria of the Japanese Blood Fluke, Schistosoma japonicum Katsu- 

 rada ", and gives an account of its intermediate host, Blanfordia 

 nosophora. 



The year following, 1920, Cort (26) published a paper " On the 

 Resistance to Desiccation of the Intermediate Host of Schistosoma 

 japonicum Katsurada." 



The form here used appears to be my Katayama nosophora 

 yoshidai. 



