146 THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST. 



cocoons or egg-bags (genus Dicrostichus, sp.), and gave some 

 interesting details of the animal's architecture. The nest is made 

 of leaves, closely woven together and held in position by silk. 

 This takes various forms, sometimes being constructed in the 

 shape of a miniature cornucopia. From the nest there is sus- 

 pended two or more long, yellowish, closely-woven, tough egg- 

 bags, and these are always jealously guarded by the mother. 

 Only three species of the genus have been recorded so far, and 

 all of these from New South Wales. Mr. Rainbow also drew at- 

 tention to the curious structure of the cephalothorax of spiders of 

 the genus under consideration, which he illustrated by diagrams 

 drawn upon the blackboard. 



EXHIBITS. 



By Mr. F. G. A. Barnard. — Beetles of the genera Schizorrhina 

 and Stigmodera, from the neighbourhood of Kew. By Mr. A. J. 

 Campbell. — Four varieties of Blue Wrens ; also, the eggs 

 of Eastern Swallow, Hirunda javanica ; Grey-rumped Swiftlet, 

 Callocalia francica ; Chestnut-bellied Rail, Eulahiornis castanei- 

 ventris ; and Blue-faced Lorilet, Cyclopsittacus maccoyi. By 

 Mr. A. Coles. — Leopard cub, two days old. By Mr. C. French, 

 jun. — Erythrcea spicata, with white flowers, collected at Western 

 Port ; photograph of remarkable cocoons of the spider Dicros- 

 tichus, sp., collected in Victoria ; also, nest of Rose-breasted 

 Robin, from Dandenong Ranges. By Mr. R. Hall. — Male 

 cone of Macrozamia, from Western Australia, and nest of White- 

 browed Spine-bill. By D. Le Souef. — Dried Western Australian 

 flowers, in illustration of paper. By Mr. J. Stickland. — Pholas, 

 a rock-boring mollusc, from Picnic Point, Sandringham. By 

 Mr. C. Walter. — Plants new to science — Corchorus longipes, 

 Tate, Minuriella annica, Tate, Zygophyllum hyhridum, Tate, 

 collected by Max Koch, Mt. Lyndhurst, South Australia, August, 

 1899 : Melodinus australis, Maiden and Betche, collected by 

 R. G. Brown, October, 1899. By Mr. H. W. Whitney.— Egg of 

 Minorca hen, with smaller one inside ; weight, 6^ ozs. 



After the usual conversazione the meeting; terminated. 



Victorian Plants. — I desire to record new districts for the 

 following plants, specimens of which were exhibited at the 

 December meeting of the Field Naturalists' Club : — Montia 

 Jontana, L., found at Winslow, near Warrnambool, new for 

 S.W. ; Haloragis alata, Jacquin, found at Curdie's River, De- 

 cember, 1894, identified by the late Baron von Mueller, who said 

 that it had been once before doubtfully recorded from Victoria ; 

 Pseudanthus ovalifolius, F. v. M., from 18 miles south of Sale; 

 and Zieria veronicea, F. v. M., from 20 miles south-east of Sale, 

 Gippsland, both unrecorded for the eastern district. — H. B. 

 Williamson, Hawkesdale, 



