November iq, 1908J 



NA TURE 



83 



very difficult to deal wilh a huge bundle of memoirs, by 

 about forty different authorities, and bearing diverse dates 

 from i8g6 to 1907. We cannot do more than give a 

 general indication of the contents of these volumes. 



Dr. Paul Matschic reports on eight species of mammals, 

 including a new mouse (.Irodon niichaclscni, n.sp.), and 

 refers to a number of remarkable facts, such as the 

 occurrence in the sub-.\ntarctic region of a cat (Felis 

 pajeros) which closely resembles the Manul-cat of Central 

 .'\sia. G. H. Martens discusses the birds, of which forty- 

 two species were collected. He notes that 299 species 

 (in 176 genera) are known to occur in the Antarctic and 

 notial regions (south of a line between 42° and 43° S.), 

 lliat of these 192 are confined to the western hemisphere 

 and fiftv-si.v to the eastern, while forty-eight are circum- 

 polar. It is pointed out that about a third of the families 

 of birds are represented in the southern polar region. We 

 may direct attention to the statement that the .Arctic tern 

 i-^ found as far south as (16°. Dr. Franz Werner describes 

 two new iguanids from Chili — species of the genus 

 LioteiTius — and a new batrachian, Lcptodactyliis kreffti, 

 also Chilian. Prof. Einar I-onnberg deals with forty-six 

 species of fishes, including Etmoplcrus paessleri, a new 

 dog-fish. Prof. Michaelsen reports on the tunicates, 

 describing some new forms, discussing the classification 

 of Polyzoidre, and showing that Paramolgula, Agnesia, 

 Boltenia, and -Synoicuni are good instances of bipolar 

 genera. The typical form of the pelagic Fritillaria iorcaUs 

 is found in the two polar regions, while other forms 

 (sar^assi and itttermedia) are lound in the tropics. 



Prof. H. Ludwig makes an interesting comparison of 

 Arctic and .Antarctic holothurians. No .Antarctic species 

 occurs in the .\rctic fauna ; ten genera are represented at 

 both poles ; nine genera represented in the south are absent 

 from the north ; six genera represented in the north are 

 absent from the south ; of the ten genera represented at 

 both poles, none is exclusively polar ; two genera — Pseudo- 

 psolus and Theelia — are exclusively .Antarctic; four genera 

 — Eupyrgus, Trochoderma, Myriotrochus, and Acantho- 

 trochus — are exclusively -Arctic. It comes to this, that 

 then' is no special resemblance between Antarctic and 

 .Arctic holothurians ; on the contrary, there is great dis- 

 similarity. It is pointed out that ten forms showing 

 " parental care " are now known, that six of these are 

 peculiar to the .Antarctic, and that each of the si.x has 

 solved the problem in a fashion of its own. There is 

 hermaphroditism in Cticiimaria crocea and Pscudopsoliis 

 viacquaricnxis, while in two synaptids (Chiridota pisanii 

 and Ch. cotitorta) the sexes are separate. Dr. M. Meissncr 

 describes a new echinus from Gough Island, and takes 

 a survey of the southern forms. He notes some illusory 

 suggestions of bipolarity which he corrects later on ; the 

 fact is that there is little in common between north and 

 south. Only one species of .Antedon (.1. rhomboidea) was 

 obtained from the Magellan region, but Prof. Ludwig 

 takes a survey of the known southern forms. He finds 

 that the species of .Antedon are in a general way like the 

 northern species, but there is no bipolar species, and there 

 are no northern countr-rparts of Thaiiniatocrinits reiiovatiis, 

 Promachocrinus hcrgiirlcnsis, and P. ahyssorum. In his 

 report on the ophiuroids, Prof. Ludwig notes that although 

 six genera occur in both polar regions, there is no bipolar 

 species. Meissner discusses the asteroids, and notes that 

 although fifteen genera are represented in both polar 

 regions, there is no bipolar species. Dr. Walther May 

 discusses the twenty-two species of alcyonarians from the 

 Magellan region, including the three new species Alcyonium 

 paessleri. .^fetalcvotiiitm patagonicum. and Virgularia 

 kohhameli. Dr. Carlgren reports on the Zoantharia, de- 

 scribing many new species and establishing a number of 

 new genera, Condylanthus among .Antheadae, Isotealia, a 

 Bunodid, Parantheoides. one of the Paractidfe. There is 

 no clear case of bipolarity of species. An interesting fresh 

 discovery is that of numerous brood-pouches (ectodermic 

 Invaginations of the body-wall) in Condylactis georgiaiia. 

 the first case recorded among .Antarctic Actiniaria. 



The reports on .Arthropoda make up a thick volume. 

 In his account of the Hemiptera, G. Breddin establishes 

 •1 new family to receive a soinewhat isolated tvpe, 

 Peloridiuin : If. Schouteden describes two new aphids ; 

 Prof. .A. Forel discusses three new ants, which are the 



xn. 2"v;S, \'oi.. 70] 



most southerly representatives of their race as yet re- 

 corded ; E. H. Riibsaamen reports on a remarkable new 

 Ptcromalid {Aditrochiis fagicoliis, n.g. et sp.), peculiar in 

 structure and unique in making Cynipid-like galls on the 

 leaves of the Antarctic beech, whereas all other gall- 

 making Ptcromalids, so far as is known, attack mono- 

 cotyledons (orchids and grasses). Prof. H. Kolbe uses 

 the beetles to support the theory of a connection through 

 the Antarctic continent between the south of South 

 .America (Archiplata) and Australia (including New 

 Zealand). Dr. O. Staudinger discusses the Lepidoptera of 

 the -Magellan region, and describes more than a score of 

 new species. The small collections of Trichoptera and 

 Ephemcrid^e are reported on by G. Ulmer ; Prof. Fr. 

 Klapalek describes a few new Plecoptera ; Dr. F. Ris has 

 based his report on Odonata on more material than the 

 collection aftorded, and he has been able to show the 

 striking contrast between the -Atlantic and the Pacific 

 sides as regards their dragon-flies. Ur. C. Schaffer had a 

 large collection of Apterygota to deal with (including 

 twenty-two new- species), and he has established five new 

 genera. He directs attention to the presence of a large 

 number of European forms, e.g. species of Achorutes, in 

 .South .America. 



E. Simon deals with the spiders, many of which are 

 new. He points out that the Clubions and Agelenids 

 form more than half the whole arachnoid fauna in the 

 Magellan region. In connection with Bigots antarctica. 

 n.sp., he refers to the occurrence of the only other species, 

 li. pupa, in the Philippines, " one of the strangest facts 

 of geographical relations, of which no adequate explana- 

 tion can be suggested at present." He also reports on a 

 couple of scorpions, a book-scorpion, and two Opiliones. 

 The Gonyleptidae, or Opiliones Laniatores, are dealt with 

 by W. Sbrensen, and the mites by Prof. P. Kramer, who 

 remarks on the absence of any characteristic Magellan 

 genera. Dr. Carl Graf Attems reports on three myrio- 

 pods — apparently the first to be recorded from the Magellan 

 region. One of them is the widespread European and 

 North .American Scolopendrella inimaculata ; the second 

 is a new species of Scolioplanes — a genus the representa- 

 tives of which are known from Europe and the East 

 Indies; the third is nearly allied to the European and 

 north African species of Schendyla, but is made the type 

 of a new subgenus, Schendyloides. It is thus evident that, 

 so far as may be judged from these three species, the 

 Magellan myrjopods have close affinities with Palaearctic 

 forms. • 



Mr. T. V. Hodgson describes three new species of 

 pvcnogonids belonging to the genera Nymphon, Tany- 

 stylum, Colossendeis ; Dr. Carl Zimnier deals with a new 

 species of Neomysis and six new Cumacea. Dr. W. 

 Weltner discusses the Cirripedia, and coinpares the Arctic 

 and .Antarctic forms, showing that the seven genera and 

 the four species which are represented both in the north 

 and the south are cosmopolitan in their distribution. Of 

 the fresh-water ostracods described by Dr. W. VAvra, three 

 are European and cosmopolitan, and five new species 

 belong to widely distributed genera. The same authority 

 deals with the fresh-water Cladocera, of which four are 

 new. .Al. MrAzek discusses the fresh-water copepods, and 

 lavs emphasis on the distinctiveness of the southern Centro- 

 pagida?, among w-hich Parabroteas, Lovenula, and the 

 genera centred around Boeckella are especially character- 

 istic. 



L. Calvet reports on sixty-one species of marine Bryozoa, 

 of which three are cosmopolitan, seven occur also in Arctic 

 seas, and three others are sub-.Arctic. Of the thirty-five 

 genera represented, no fewer than twenty-five have Arctic 

 as well as sub-.Antarctic species. Thus, as regards genera, 

 there is considerable resemblance between the north and 

 the south, but a similar resemblance exists between the 

 tropical littoral genera and those of the north or south. 

 There is not much resemblance between north and south 

 as regards species of Bryozoa, and it cannot be said that 

 there are in the deep sea any connecting links between 

 the Arctic and -Antarctic contingents. 



Dr. W. Fischer's short report on four Gephyrea is very 

 interesting, for he shows that the Antarctic forms of 

 Phascolosoma are simply varieties of the .Arctic Phascolo- 

 soma margaritaceum, Sars, that Priapulus caiidaiiis is 



