Mr. W. S. Kent on the Embryology of Sponges. 139 



seen from above, are dotted with white. Above it is olive- 

 green, shining, with the scutellum, suture of elytra, and sub- 

 apical tubercles more coppery. The lateral margins of the 

 elytra, especially beyond the middle to the apex, have a 

 broadish margin of transverse strigose rugosity. The pygi- 

 dium is finely strigose, the striga3 arranged semicircularly. 

 The posterior coxal plates have shallow oval punctures ar- 

 ranged obliquely. The raentum is pale greenish luteous. 

 The femora are olivaceous ; the tibiee dark green, with orange 

 hairs; the tarsi greenish black." 



The following is the description of the species in this 

 museum : — 



Coptomia mutabilis^ sp. n. 



C. olivaceo-viridis, nitidissima ; elytris regione scutellari nigro- 

 cyaneo tincto, lateribus dimidio apicali striate- punctatis ; pygidio 

 laevi ( (5 ) vel parce punctate ( $ ) ; antennis, tibiis tarsisque 

 rufo-piceis. 



Long, 11 lin,, lat, 6| lin. 



A broad highly polished species, with extremely fine punc- 

 tuation on the thorax and some obscure lines of punctures on 

 the elytra in the female. The deep-blue shadow around the 

 scutellum varies in extent according to the direction in which 

 the light falls. The pygidium has a few punctures scattered 

 over the surface in the ? . The lateral margins of the abdo- 

 men, seen from above, are dotted with white. The male has 

 the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th segments impressed in the middle. 

 The posterior coxal plates are nearly smooth, with two or 

 three fine punctures only. The pubescence on the chest and 

 legs is nearly black. 



Hah. Antananarivo {Rev. R. Joy\ Fianarantsoa {Rev. W. 

 Deans Cowan). 



XVII. — Notes on the Embryology of Sponges. 

 By W. Saville Kent, F.L.S., F.Z.S., &c. 



[Plates VI. & VII,] 



Although the independent investigations of Metschnikofi"*, 

 Carter t, Oscar Schmidt J, F. E. Schulze§, and, more re- 

 cently, Barroisjl, have, as a result, necessitated an important 



* MetschnikofF, Zeitsclir. wiss. Zool. Bd. xxiv, p. 1, 1874, 



t Carter, Ann. & Mag. Nat, Hist, vol. xiv. pp. 321 & 389, 1874, 



X Oscar Schmidt, Zeitsclir, wiss, Zool, Bd. xxv, 2 Suppl,, Nov, 1875. 



§ F, E. Schulze, Zeitschr, wiss, Zool. Bd. xxv, 3 Suppl., Dec. 1875. 



II C. Barrois, Ann. des Sc, Nat, torn. iii. 1876. 



