PROCEEDINGS 
OF THE 
NATURAL SCIENCE ASSOCIATION 
OF 
STA TEN 
ISLAND. 
Vot. VII. No. 3. 
JaNuary rg4th, 1899. 
The regular meeting of the Assocziation 
was held at the Staten Island Academy, 
with the President in the chair. 
Mr C. S. Snead, New Brighton, was 
elected an active member. 
Mr. Thos. Craig exhibited drawings 
and read the following memoranda on 
SOME RECENT INTERESTING FINDS IN 
POND LIFE. 
Dictyosphaerium? It is possible that 
this plant, which I foundin Butler’s pond 
last October, may not be new,but it is not 
figured or described in Wolle’s, Fresh Water 
Algae of the United States, and as I have 
none of the foreign books on the subject 
Iam unable to say whether it is new or 
not; at any rate it is new to this locality. 
It is a smal! plant, composed of a globe 
of gelatinous matter in which silvery- 
looking threads radiate from the centre; 
the tip of each thread branches into four 
parts so that the two opposite form a 
semi-circle, while at the end of each 
branch is a small green sphere, contain- 
ing apparently a single chlorophyll plate. 
The diameter of the cenobium was about 
one fourhundredth of an inch. I submit 
a small drawing of the plant. 
Amphileptus meleagris Ekr. or A. Anser 
Ehr. ‘The question to be decided is which 
isit? In December last I had the good 
fortune to observe, on a Zoothamnium 
arbuscula, an infusorian similar to the de- 
scription in Kent’s Manual of the 
Infusoria of Amphileptus meleagris, with 
this difference, that the oral extremity 
hed a mouth at the end of a very short 
proboscis, through which it was absorb- 
ing the contents of one of the zodids of 
the Zoothamnium. After feeding the 
anima! roved around for a time and then 
came back into the colony again. 
There were two of them—one died and 
_ dissolved—the other, the one I first ob- 
served, after some time, developed a pro- 
boscis and had all the appearance of 
Amphileptus Anser in figure 40, plate 27, 
of Kent’s Manual, 
The irference which I draw from this is 
that A. meleugris Ehr. is only an immature 
form of A. Anser Ebr. 
Drawings of each species, copied from 
Kent’s Manual, are submitted. 
On motion the meeting then adjourned. 
After adjourn nent the first annual pub- 
lic microscopical exhibition of the Asso- 
ciation was held, in connection with the 
Staten Island Academy. 
The President of the Association, Mr. 
Walter C. Kerr, made the following 
introductery remarks: 
Ladies and Gentlemen : 
It is a pleasure to the members of the 
Natural Science Association to place be- 
fore those who have accepted the invita- 
tion for this evening, some of the things 
in which a few of us are interested. 
There is a great curiosity attending the 
ability to see whatever is norma'ly con- 
cea'ed from vision and, with due respect 
to the telescope, the microscope is uu- 
doubtedly the most practical instrument 
with which to enlarge our range. The 
telescope may have its advantages on 
some occasions but the microscope and its 
objects are within reach of all, can be 
used at all hours and, for ordinary pur- 
poses, requires but little skill in manipu- 
lation. 
The beginnings of the microscope are 
humble and convenient. I carried a little 
pocket glass, worth perhaps 25 cents, and 
magnitying 10 diameters, for fifteen years; 
then replaced it with tits one of munch 
finer quality, magnifying 15 diameters 
and worth about $5.00. This I have car- 
ried for five years and what I have seen 
