132 THE ZOOLOGIST. 



Whales which were ashore at Burchington and Broadstairs were sold last 

 Wednesday lor £374 18s., and that at Deal for £149, which was much 

 more than was expected." 



Former Occurrence of the Great Bustard in Yorkshire. — * The 

 Sporting Magazine ' for October, 1792, states that " within these few days 

 a Bustard was killed at Rudstoneon-the- Wolds by a gamekeeper belonging 

 to Sir Griffith Boynton. The width of the wings was seven feet over." 



SCIENTIFIC SOCIETIES. 



Linnean Society of London. 



January 18, 1883. — Sir John Li buock, Bart., F.R.S., President, in 

 the chair. 



The following gentlemen were halloted for and severally elected Fellows 

 of the Society : — Edward A. L. Batters, A. J. Burrows, Edgar F. Cooper. 

 Prof. J. A. Harker, and George Lewis. 



There was exhibited, on behalf of Mr. James Romanes, a live specimen 

 of Picris rapcB, which had been found fluttering on the window of his house 

 a few days previously. Mr. Stain ton remarked that this early appearance 

 of the insect in question might be accounted for by the fact that the eggs 

 were often hatched on the flowers of Tropaohun within doors, and hence 

 the imago would issue sooner than in out-door specimens. 



Mr. A. G. Bourne offered some remarks on the anatomy of Polytioina, 

 pointing out that Polynoe Grubiana (very common in the Mediterranean) is 

 only a variety of P. clava, Montague, of our own coasts, which has certain 

 constant characteristics and others more variable. 



Prof. P. M. Duncan read his " Observations on the Madrepore Corals, 

 Fam. Fungidee, with special reference to the hard structures." The family 

 Fungitlre of Dana was further elaborated by MM. Milne Edwards and 

 Jules Haime in their ' Hist. Nat. des Coralliaires.' They described the 

 synapticula as constituting an essential family structure, and also the 

 absence of endothecal dissepiments. In Dr. Duncan's communication he 

 describes the ridge of the continuous synapticula with canals between them 

 limited by solid and also perforate septa, and delineates the structures ; 

 the synapticula are shown to have no relation to the ornamentation on the 

 ridges of the septa. The basal wall is stated to be of synapticular origin, 

 and the foramina in it to relate to the growth of these binding structures. 

 'Hie anatomy of species ot Fungia, Herpolitha, and Holomitra, Dana, is 

 given, and it is shown that it is the last genus what the author considers to 

 include PciloLacio, Eclatt ; the synapticula begin to be divided and dis- 



