176 



possession of Leuckart himself. The sj^ecimen in question is in the 

 Leuckart Collection and the original label inside the bottle reads as 

 follows: — 



^^ Peripatus leuckarti Saenger Australien". 



The original label outside the bottle is the same , except that the 

 word 'Australien' is abbreviated. 



There was also a new label inside the bottle, presumably written 

 by Prof. Bouvier, to whom I was given to understand the specimen 

 had been sent for examination. This label reads : — 



"' Peripatoides leuckarti Saeng. var. orientalis Fletcher Q gravide'-''. 



Even if this specimen is by any chance not the original type of 

 P. leuckarti. it may be taken as affording good evidence of the opinion 

 of Prof. Leuckart as to what were the characters of that type. The 

 specimen is apparently a female (but had not been opened). There is 

 no ovipositor, but instead of a single genital aperture there appeared 

 to be two apertures, one lying just in front of the other and both sur- 

 rounded by colourless skin. Dissection or section-cutting would probably 

 be necessary to properly interpret these aj)earances. There are fifteen (15) 

 pairs of walking legs and a pair of oral papillae, the latter rather small. 

 It is impossible to say without prolonged examination whether or not all 

 the legs actually bear claws. They all seem to be normal, however, 

 except that the ninth on the right side and the eleventh on the left (per- 

 haps more) have been mutilated. The feet which I examined have each 

 three primary papillae. The specimen is of a dark gray color above, 

 with a median black line; paler below. There is no diamond pattern 

 such as occurs frequently in Ooperipatus oviparus Dendy. 



In short, the specimen appears to be identical with the ordinary 

 viviparous form of New South Wales, and the result of my examination 

 thereof entirely confirms the views as to the question of nomenclature 

 expressed by me in the memoir already referred to, and is diametrically 

 opposed to the view which has been put forward by Mr. Fletcher 

 that my Ooperipatus insignis^ with fourteen (14) pairs of walking legs, 

 is identical with Saenger's P. leuckarti, a view which I have already 

 shewn on other grounds to be highly improbable (1. c). 



In a short memoir entitled "sur I'Organization du Peripatoides 

 orientalis Fletcher (P. leuckarti de la plupart des auteurs)" M. Bou- 

 vier 2 has definitely adopted the specific name orientalis for the common 

 New South Wales species. It is impossible to allow such an unneces- 



2 Comptes rendus hebdomadaires des Séances et Mémoires de la Société de 

 Biologie. 1902. p. 1033. 



