664 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. II., No. 41, 



missing. Complete absorption was observed in 

 Melampus, Auricula, Blauneria, Marlnula, Tralia, 

 Alexia, Monica, Plecotrema; only partial absorption 

 in Cassidula and Scarabus. Tlie case of Olivella 

 Is more remarkable; since the allied groups Oliva, 

 Ancillaria, etc., do not, according to the authors, 

 present this peculiarity at all. — (Journ. de conchijL, 

 xxii. 3.) Tryon, however, observes that in Oliva 

 i-eticularis he has found the walls absorbed away, so 

 that very little of tlie substance remained, .and con- 

 siders it x^rob.able that all shells witli close volutions 

 are in the habit of absorbing them internally. It is 

 certainly tlie case with many of them. — ( Man, conch. 

 Olivella, p. 64.) w. h. d. [371 



Anatomy of the spider-crab, Libinia. — E. A. 



Andrews gives a very careful description, illustrated 

 witli three excellent photolithographic plates, of the 

 anatomy of Libinia emarginata, the common spider- 

 crab of the eastern coast of the United States. The 

 paper, which was originally presented as a graduation 

 tliesis for tlie bachelor's degree in the Shefiield scien- 

 tific school, describes fully the structure of the body- 

 walls, appendages, and the alimentary, circulatory, 

 nervous, and reproductive systems. The structure 

 tliroughout agrees very closely with that of Maia 

 squinado of Europe. Mr. Andrews's work will be 

 found a very useful guide for American students, as 

 it is the only description thus far published of tlie 

 whole anatomy of any Americaii brachyuran. — 

 {Trans. Conn. acad.,vi. , Aug., ISSS.) s. I. s. "[372 

 A nevT- host for Cirolana ooucharum Harger. 

 — Rev. Samuel Lockwood announced the discovery 

 of this isopod in tlie interior of tlie edible crab, 

 Callinectes hastatus Ordway. The cr.ab was an adult 

 female, and the parasites were crowded in the left 

 side of the carapace.. Incredible to say, there were 

 twenty-three full-grown specimens, measuring three- 

 fourths of an incli by about a quarter of an incli each. 

 The ovaries and the tissues on the left side were com- 

 pletely lioneycombed. How long the animal could 

 have lived, and what its real sufferance of pain was, 

 are questions. But with these predaceous wolves, 

 literally consuming its inwards, it surely would soon 

 succumb. It seemed to Mr. Lockwood that they 

 must, when iu the swimming larval state, have en- 

 tered near the eye-stalks of the crab, which, with a 

 large catch of others, was taken at the close of Feb- 

 ruary in Raritau Bay, New Jersey. From the size of 

 the parasites, it would seem they liad been in posses- 

 sion some three months. The determination of the 

 isopods was due to the kindness of Mr. Oscar Harger. 

 The query how so large a number could have entered 

 the same place, and at the same time, he thought was 

 met by the supposition that the crab had found a 

 nest of the larvae, and was feeding on them, when 

 a part of the batcli entered the host, <as conjectured 

 above. — [New Jersey St. micr. soc. ; meeting March 

 19. ) [373 



Restoration of limbs in Tarantula. — Rev. Hen- 

 ry C. McCook remarked that a tarantula exhibited 



to the meeting had been kept in confinement nearly 

 a year, fed during winter on raw beef, and in summer 

 on grasshoppers. In the spring it cast its skin by a 

 laborious process, in the course of which it lost one 

 foot and two entire legs. This summer again, dur- 

 ing the latter part of August, the animal moulted. 

 The moult as exhibited is a perfect cast of the large 

 spider, — skin, spines, claws, the most delicate hair* 

 all showing, and their corresponding originals appear- 

 ing bright and clean. The moulting occurred during 

 Dr. McCook's absence, but was just finished when he 

 returned. When the cast-off skin was removed, it 

 showed, as might be supposed, the dissevered mem- 

 bers to be lacking. On looking at the spider itself, 

 however, it was seen that new limbs had appeared^ 

 perfect in shape, but somewhat smaller than the cor- 

 responding ones on the opposite side of the body. 

 The dissevered foot was also restored. The loss of 

 the opportunity to see the manner in which the legs- 

 were restored during moult was greatly regretted, 

 but we have some clew from the careful and interest- 

 ing studies of Mr. BUackwall. Several spiders whose 

 members had been previously amputated were killed 

 and dissected immediately before moulting. In one 

 of these the leg, which was reproduced, was found to 

 have its tars.al and metatarsal joints folded in the un- 

 detached half of the integument of the old tibia. 

 Another like experiment was made with an example- 

 of Tegenaria civilis. The reproduced leg was found 

 complete in its organization, although .an inch in 

 length, and was curiously folded in the integument 

 of the old coxa, which measured only one-lwenty- 

 fourth of an inch iu length. Dr. McCook's tarantula 

 had lost both legs close to the coxae ; and in the moult 

 the hard skin formed upon the amputated trunks was- 

 wholly unbroken, showing that the skin had been 

 cast before the new leg appeared. We risk nothing- 

 in inferring, that, as in the case of Bl.ackwall's Tege- 

 naria, the rudimentary legs were folded up within the 

 coxae, and appeared at once after the moulting, rap- 

 idly fijling out in a manner somewhat analogous to- 

 the expansion of the wings in insects after emerging. 

 — (Acad. nat. sc. Philad. ; meetinrj Sept. 25. ) ' [374- 



VERTEBRATES. 

 Birds. 



Anatomy of the Passeres. — Mr. Forbes (inds 

 the syrinx, as well as all other points examined, of 

 Orthonyx spinicauda and O. ochreocephala, to be 

 strictly osciniue. The carotid of the first is peculiar 

 in that it accompanies the v.agus nerve instead of 

 running in the hypophysial canal. On anatomical 

 grounds, O. ochreocephala is separated from the Aus- 

 tralian form as Cletony-K of Reiehenbach. Contrary 

 to Prof. Parker, Mr. Forbes finds a perfectly osciniue 

 syrinx in Petrocca. — {Proc. zobl. soc. Lond., 1SS2, 

 .^44.) J. A. J. [375 



Respiratory organs of Apteryx. — Under this 

 title. Prof. Huxley gives a succinct account of the 

 lungs and air-sacs as tyiiically found in birds, and 

 notes that the respiratory organs are separated by an 

 oblique septum from the cardio-abdominal cavity, as- 

 in the crocodiles. The lungs of Apleryx are strictly 



