OCCUPATION OF A TABLE AT THE ZOOLOGICAL STATION AT NAPLES. 110 



Occupation of a Table at the Zoological Station at Naples. — Report of 

 the Committee, consisting of Professor S. J. Hickson (Chairman), 

 Mr. E. S. Goodrich (Secretary), Sir E. Ray Lankester, Professor 

 A. Sedgwick, Professor W. C. McIntosh, Dr. S. F. Harmer. 

 Mr. G. P. Bidder, Dr. W. B. Hardy, and Professor A. D. Waller, 



The British Association table at Naples has been occupied during the 

 past session by the Hon. Mary Palk, Mr. J. Bayley Butler, and Mr. 

 W. O. Bedman King. 



The following reports of the work done by these investigators have 

 been received. 



The Hon. Mary E. Palk reports: ' I occupied the British Associa- 

 tion table at the Naples Zoological Station for six months from 

 November to May. 1 was engaged in examining a large body of 

 unknown function occurring within the Zocecium of certain Bryozoa, 

 notably in Flustra papyrea (Pallas), which displays a peculiar structure 

 and will take no differential stain. I was not able to come to any 

 definite conclusion as to the nature of this body, which appears to be 

 an organ, not a parasitical growth, but hope eventually, by comparing 

 similar structures in various Bryozoa, to be able to elucidate the 

 matter. ' 



Mr. J. Bayley Butler, University College, Dublin, reports: ' I beg 

 to report that I occupied the British Association table at Naples from 

 January 12 to March 20. I desire to thank the Committee for having 

 granted me the use of their table, and I wish at the same time to 

 express my sense of indebtedness to the members of the staff of the 

 Naples Zoological Station for the assistance they so readily accorded 

 to me. Two lines of investigation were pursued, in both of which 

 further work is necessary before writing a final report. I shall con- 

 tinue the experiments during the year and make due acknowledgment 

 to the British Association when publishing the results. In the first 

 place I was studying the rate and character of the regeneration in 

 appendages of Isopods (two species of Idothea) under ordinary condi- 

 tions in an aquarium, with a view to determining any alteration that 

 changes in the environment may effect. Secondly, I carried out some 

 few experiments on the reaction to light of the large Copepod Anomalo- 

 ccra Patersoni (Templeton). This species differs in its behaviour from 

 most Copepods in plankton, since it swims only in the surface layers 

 of the sea (at any rate in the adult) and does not appear to take part 

 in the general periodic depth migrations. I believe that the investi- 

 gation of its reaction to light and gravity will prove of scientific 

 value. ' 



Mr. W. 0. Eedman King reports : ' I have been in Naples now just 

 five weeks (July 18). The work has been going on fairly satisfactorily. 

 So far I have been for the most part making experiments upon the 

 temperature coefficients of the velocity of development of Sphaerechinus 

 and Arbacia. These have not been hitherto worked out fully and 

 satisfactorily. I had wanted to try some experiments upon the effect 

 of acids and alkalis on sea-urchin hybrids, in order to test Tennent's 

 work; but the above-mentioned sea-urchins are the only forms that are 



