462 PROF. J. BELL ON THE GENUS VIRGXJLARIA. [June 17, 



as before stated, forwarded the skin to me for identification. The 

 weather at the time was very warm, and Mr. Lowne seeing that it 

 was a vakiable bird would not risk sending it to me in the flesh ; 

 hence it was that I saw onlj' the skin, but I may mention that it 

 had all the appearance of having been very recently removed and 

 that there were still many living parasites remaining on the feathers. 

 The sternum Mr. Lowne sent to Professor Newton. The total length 

 of the bird in the flesh was 8 inches and its weight 2| oz. Mr. 

 Knights was good enough to give me the first off'er of the bird, and 

 through the liberality of some friends of the Norwich Museum I 

 was enabled to purchase this latest addition to the many local rarities 

 for that Institution," 



Profesor Jeffrey Bell, F.Z.S., read a note which he had received from 

 Mr. Edgar Thurston, C.M.Z.S., of the Madras Museum. He explained 

 that his attention had been called, last autumn, by the Hon. A. E. 

 Gathorue-Hardy, M.P., F.Z.S. , to certain difficulties which he felt as 

 to accepting the generally received statements as to the mode of 

 life of British Pennatulids ; of which difficulties Mr. Gathorne- 

 Hardy gave an account in his interesting paper in the ' National 

 Review ' of February last. Shortly after its publication Prof. 

 BeU received Mr. Thurston's report on the Marine Fauna of the 

 Gulf of Manaar. As the habits of Virgularia are there described he 

 called Mr. Thurston's attention to Mr. Gathorne-Hardy's paper, with 

 the result that he received the following interesting letter from 



Mr. Thurston : — 



" Madras Museum. 



May 19, 1890. 



" My attention has been directed to an article in the ' National 

 Review' for February 1890, entitled 'Out of the Depths,' by the 

 Hon. A. E. Gathorne-Hardy, M.P., who enters into a discussion of the 

 habits of the genus Virgularia. The points at issue are twofold : — 



" 1. Do the animals'stand up vertically with their bulb planted 

 in the mud ? 



" 2. Can the animals pull themselves in with force so as to nearly 

 or quite disappear ? 



" I see that in my ' Notes on the Pearl and Shank Fisheries, and 

 Marine Fauna of the Gulf of Manaar,' ^ I say (p. 74) with reference 

 to specimens of Virgularia : — ' The Sea-pen, Virgularia juncea, was 

 collected at low water, and accords in its habits with another species, 

 F. j)rt<rt<70juc«,which is described by Darwin(' Journal of Researches') 

 as being seen projecting like stubble, with the truncate end up- 

 wards, a few inches above the surface of the muddy sand. "When 

 touched or pulled they suddenly dre\\- themselves in with force so 

 as to nearly or quite disappear.' 



" The specimens were obtained by one of my native Sabbi divers 

 in shallow waicv opposite the Kothanda Raman Sovil (temple) on 

 Ramesvaram Island in July 1 888. His attention was attracted by 



' Madras Government Press, 1890. 



