128 British Association for the Advancement of Science. 



Section D. Zoology and Botany. 



A paper by Mr. Lankester was read, on the formation of woody 

 Tissue. The tissues of plants, are for the sake of convenience, 

 divided into^?;e; but the origin of all these may be traced to the 

 simple cell. How they are formed from the simple cell, is an unde- 

 cided question, especially with regard to woody tissue. Du Petit 

 Thouars supposes, that woody fibre is formed by the buds and 

 leaves, and sent down by them between the bark and wood of the 

 tree ; whilst other writers suppose that it is formed from the bark 

 or wood. The conclusions of the author, from all the known facts 

 on the formation of woody tissue are : — 1. That the requisites for 

 the formation of wood, are a living tissue developing elongated 

 j&bres, a tissue forming and depositing secreted matter, and expo- 

 sure to the influence of external stimuli. 2. That the secreted 

 matters are more easily brought under the influence of external 

 stimuli in the younger tissues ; hence the importance of leaves. 

 3. That neither bark nor leaves are essential to the formation of 

 woody tissue. 



Notice of Zoological Researches in Orkney and Shetland in 

 June, 1839, by Edward Forbes and John Goodsir. Their atten- 

 tion was directed almost wholly to invertebrate animals. Of 

 Mollusca, they found four new species of Eolida, a new Velu- 

 Una, and three apparently new species of Ascidia. Of the An- 

 Qielida^ they took great numbers ; among others, the beautiful 

 Planaria atomata of Miiller, not before recorded as British. As 

 to the Radiata, they were equally successful. The genus Holo- 

 thuria holds its British court in Shetland, and the king of them 

 is an enormous species, which the authors name H. grandis. 

 Five other new species of this genus Avere found, and also a new 

 species of Ophiocoma, of Diancea, of Oceanea, of Alcynoe, and 

 a minute animal, the type of a new genus among the Acalephce. 

 The most beautiful contribution to the British Fauna, from the 

 Orkneys, is a zoophyte of the family TubulariadcB, new both as 

 a species and genus, and the largest known form of its tribe. It 

 is about four inches long, and its stem half an inch in diameter. 

 It belongs between Tuhularia and Coryne, on the relations of 

 which genera its discovery throws much light, as well as on the 

 polypes in general. The authors propose to consecrate the genus 

 to that great British zoophytist, Ellis, calling it Ellisia, and giv- 



