76 REPORT— 1880. 



is therefore probable that many species in this extinct ordinal group 

 produced their young from eggs, like the majority of their living allies. 



I would express my thanks to the Council of the Eoyal Society for 

 assistance in examining the museums of Europe in which remains of 

 Icbthyosaurs are contained ; as well as to Dr. Fraas, Prof. Quenstedt,and 

 Prof. McK. Hughes, for the facilities so. freely aiforded me for studying 

 the specimens in the collections over which they preside. 



Explanation of Plate I. 



Fig. 1. Small portion of Woodwardian specimen showing part of young Ichthyo- 



saur, with a few caudal vertebrse of the large animal. 

 Figs. 2 and 3. The two Ichthyosaurs with young at Tubingen. 

 Fig, 4. The imperfect Ichthyosaur with young at Stuttgart. 



Report of the Committee, consisting of Professor P. M. Dukcan and 

 Mr. Gr. E. Vine, appointed for the purpose of reporting on the 

 Carboniferous Polyzoa. Drawn up by Mr. Vine (Secretary). 



As so much remains to be done before the Pateozoic Polyzoa can be 

 properly classified — more particularly the Carboniferous fepecies— it seems 

 to me that the wisest course to adopt in this Report, is to go carefully 

 over the work of other authors, reviewing their labours generally, and 

 giving, in as condensed a form as possible, th.e results of their varied 

 efforts. 



David Ure,' the son of a working weaver in Glasgow, is the first, so 

 far as I am aware, who drew attention by figures to British Carboniferous 

 Polyzoa ; and Martin ^ gives some good figures of Zoophyta, but species 

 of these belong to both the Corals and Polyzoa. Thirty.'five years after 

 the publication of Ure's work. Dr. Fleming^ named some of the species 

 figured, and the Zoophyta he called Gellepora TJrii and Eetepora elongata. 

 The first of these, according to Mr. Robert Etheridge, Jun.,* is Ghcetetes 

 tumidus, Phillips, and the other is a Fenestella. 



In 1826, the work of August Goldfuss* was published. In this a 

 system of nomenclature was adopted, and many figures of Polyzoa and 

 Corals given, which to a large extent assisted investigators and helped 

 them to identify species found in this country. The generic terms used 

 by Goldfuss were accepted by authors who followed him, but as no dis- 

 tinction was made by the earlier investigator in separating true Polyzoa 

 from true Corals, those who worked from his types and descriptions fell into 

 his error, and mingled, for a time, Corals and Polyzoa together whenever 

 they had fresh forms to describe. 



The chief of the generic terms used by Goldfuss were : — 



1. Gorgonia, Linnteus, 1745. 



2. Gellepora, Gmelin, 1788? 



3. Betepora, Lamarck, 1816. 



4. Geriopora, Goldfuss, 1826. 



The type of Linneeus' Gorgonia was altogether different from the types 

 of Goldfuss's genus. The first had reference to the fixed Polypiferous 



' History of Rutherglen and East KilhHde, 1793. 



2 Petrifactions of BerhysMre, 1809, Petrefacta DerKensia. 



* Histonj of British Animals, 1828. 



* Ann. May. Nat. Hist. 1874. ' Petrefacta GermanUe. 



