1900.] 



OV THE GEJfUS BENHAMIA. 



171 



has -just, been referred to, Dr. Horst expressly states of B. stampflii 

 that the three glands of each side open separately into the 

 oesophagus. I have since examined a number of small species of 

 Benhamia coming from various localities — East Indian, West 

 Indian, and African ; and in these I find that there is but one 

 oesophageal duct for the three calciferous glands of each side, and 

 that each gland is in communication with its neighbour. I have 

 also to add that in Millsonia rubens the same thing occurs, as far 

 as I could make out by a dissection. This is an additional point 

 supplementary to those enumerated by Dr. Horst in which this 

 worm agrees with Benhamia. I may observe incidentally, while 

 mentioning this latter species, that I am quite in accord with 

 Dr. Michaelsen 1 in regarding my Millsonia rubens as congeneric 

 with his Dichogaster mimus 2 , since he has discovered the numerous 

 intestinal caBca of the hitter species. I am not, however, convinced 

 of their specific identity. For in theoriginal description there is 

 mentioned a tract lying round the male pores which remains free 

 of modification into the more glandular epidermis of the clitellum ; 

 I did not find this in my single example of M. rubens. Nor can 

 I see any trace of diverticula to the spermathecae. Still the generic 

 identity being established, I must drop Millsonia for the present 

 species, though I propose to retain it for Millsonia nigra 3 . 



Fig. 3. 



lr.tr. 



Benhamia cacifera. 



Septum with intestine &o. cut across : d.v., dorsal vessel ; s.i., supra- intestinal : 



v.v., ventral blood-vessel; m, oesophagus ; e, caecum; S, septum. 



(2) (Esophageal C cecum.— One feature in the anatomy of the 

 oesophagus has not been noted by Dr. Benham. 



Nearly opposite to the entrance of the ducts of the calciferous 

 glands, the oesophagus gives off a single forwardly running caecum 



1 "Terricolen von verschiedenen Gebieten der Brde," Mitth. nat. Mua. 



Hamburg, xvi. , , _ . . 



2 "Terricolen der Berliner zoologischen Sammlung, Arch. JNaturg. ivn. 



91 9 



* " On two new Genera of Earthworms from Western Tropical Africa," 

 P. Z. S. 1894, p. 382. 



