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  NOTES 
  ON 
  POLYPLACOPHORA, 
  CHIEFLY 
  AUSTEALASIAN. 
  (Part 
  I.) 
  

   i5y 
  Tom 
  Iredale. 
  

  

  Read 
  lith 
  January, 
  1910. 
  

  

  Since 
  the 
  publication 
  of 
  Pilsbry's 
  Monograph 
  in 
  the 
  Manual 
  of 
  

   Conchohgy 
  much 
  work 
  has 
  beeu 
  done 
  in 
  the 
  study 
  of 
  Australasian 
  

   Polyplacophora. 
  Pilsbry 
  himself 
  described 
  many 
  species 
  from 
  material 
  

   supplied 
  by 
  Dr. 
  Cox 
  and 
  Mr. 
  Bednall 
  : 
  he 
  wrote 
  up 
  the 
  Port 
  Jackson 
  

   Chiton 
  fauna, 
  and 
  reviewed 
  the 
  Australian 
  Acanthochitidse 
  (Proc. 
  

   Acad. 
  I^at. 
  Sci. 
  Philad., 
  1894, 
  pp. 
  69 
  et 
  seq.). 
  A 
  collection 
  of 
  Chitons 
  

   from 
  Port 
  Phillip, 
  Victoria, 
  was, 
  very 
  shortly 
  afterwards, 
  worked 
  

   through 
  by 
  Mr. 
  E. 
  11. 
  Sykes, 
  the 
  only 
  recent 
  work 
  on 
  Australian 
  

   Chitons 
  published 
  in 
  England. 
  In 
  that 
  paper 
  (Proc. 
  Malac. 
  Soc, 
  1894, 
  

   vol. 
  i, 
  pp. 
  84 
  et 
  seq.) 
  much 
  was 
  done 
  in 
  clearing 
  up 
  obscure 
  points 
  

   through 
  Mr. 
  Sykes 
  having 
  access 
  to 
  the 
  British 
  Museum, 
  where 
  the 
  

   types 
  of 
  early 
  and 
  indefinitely 
  described 
  Australian 
  species 
  are 
  preserved. 
  

   A 
  splendid 
  account 
  of 
  South 
  Australian 
  Chitons 
  followed 
  from 
  the 
  

   pen 
  of 
  Mr. 
  W. 
  T. 
  Bednall 
  (Proc. 
  Malac. 
  Soc, 
  1897, 
  vol. 
  ii, 
  pp. 
  139 
  

   et 
  seq.), 
  whilst 
  the 
  jS'eozelanic 
  forms 
  were 
  listed 
  by 
  Mr. 
  Suter 
  in 
  the 
  

   same 
  periodical 
  (1897, 
  vol. 
  ii, 
  pp. 
  183 
  et 
  seq.). 
  Since 
  then 
  the 
  

   work 
  has 
  been 
  assiduously 
  carried 
  out 
  all 
  over 
  Australasia 
  with 
  very 
  

   gratifying 
  results. 
  As 
  well 
  as 
  Mr. 
  Bednall 
  and 
  Mr. 
  Matthews, 
  

   Messrs. 
  Torr, 
  Ashby, 
  and 
  Maughan 
  have 
  contributed 
  to 
  the 
  South 
  

   Australian 
  list 
  ; 
  Messrs. 
  Gabriel 
  and 
  Gatliff 
  have 
  been 
  searching 
  

   Victorian 
  waters 
  ; 
  Mr. 
  A. 
  E. 
  Basset 
  Hull 
  has 
  been 
  working 
  Port 
  

   Jackson, 
  New 
  South 
  Wales, 
  and 
  in 
  addition 
  has 
  investigated 
  Norfolk 
  

   and 
  Lord 
  Howe 
  Islands. 
  As 
  regards 
  Queensland, 
  Mr. 
  Hedley 
  has 
  

   collected 
  on 
  the 
  Great 
  Barrier 
  Reef, 
  whilst 
  Dr. 
  Torr 
  and 
  I 
  have 
  made 
  

   small 
  but 
  interesting 
  collections 
  at 
  Port 
  Curtis 
  and 
  Caloundra. 
  In 
  

   New 
  Zealand 
  much 
  collecting 
  has 
  been 
  done 
  by 
  Miss 
  Mestayer, 
  

   Captain 
  Bollons, 
  Messrs. 
  Murdoch, 
  "Webster, 
  Suter, 
  and 
  myself. 
  In 
  

   addition 
  I 
  have 
  obtained 
  interesting 
  species 
  from 
  the 
  Kermadec 
  

   Group. 
  In 
  spite 
  of 
  all 
  this 
  work 
  there 
  were 
  species 
  admitted 
  to 
  the 
  

   Australasian 
  fauna 
  only 
  represented 
  by 
  unique 
  examples 
  in 
  the 
  British 
  

   Museum, 
  as 
  for 
  instance, 
  Spongiochiton 
  productus, 
  Pilsbry, 
  Plaxiphora 
  

   ohtecta, 
  Pils., 
  Plaxiphora 
  egregia, 
  H. 
  Ad., 
  Acanthochites 
  carinatus, 
  Ad. 
  

   and 
  Aug., 
  and 
  Choriplax 
  Oragi, 
  Ad. 
  & 
  Ang. 
  In 
  addition, 
  species 
  

   described 
  by 
  Blainville, 
  Quoy 
  & 
  Gaimard, 
  Filhol, 
  and 
  Rochebrune 
  had 
  

   not 
  been 
  recognized, 
  and 
  the 
  types, 
  if 
  in 
  existence, 
  needed 
  examina- 
  

   tion. 
  Upon 
  inquiring 
  of 
  Dr. 
  L. 
  Germain, 
  of 
  Paris, 
  he 
  courteously 
  

   proffered 
  to 
  oblige 
  me 
  with 
  such 
  as 
  were 
  in 
  existence, 
  but 
  pointed 
  out 
  

   that 
  Dr. 
  Thiele 
  had 
  just 
  recently 
  studied 
  them. 
  I 
  immediately 
  wrote 
  

   to 
  Dr. 
  Thiele, 
  who 
  graciously 
  forwarded 
  me 
  a 
  copy 
  of 
  his 
  work 
  which 
  

   he 
  had 
  just 
  completed. 
  Though 
  unable 
  to 
  agree 
  with 
  all 
  his 
  con- 
  

   clusions, 
  this 
  work 
  must 
  be 
  regarded 
  as 
  the 
  most 
  important 
  contribution 
  

   to 
  the 
  literature 
  of 
  the 
  Polyplacophora 
  since 
  the 
  publication 
  of 
  Pilsbry's 
  

   monograph. 
  Having 
  worked 
  over 
  the 
  same 
  ground 
  as 
  myself, 
  I 
  find 
  

   many 
  of 
  my 
  conclusions 
  anticipated, 
  such 
  as 
  the 
  transference 
  of 
  

  

  