462 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



ment of an independent group of tlie Mastigopliora ; we must always 

 bear in mind their peculiar and characteristic mode of development ; 

 as to the name which is ordinarily applied to the group, it is no doubt 

 misleading. As he cannot with Klebs extend the term Peridinese 

 beyond Periclinium and its allies, and as he cannot recommend the use 

 of Stein's term of arthrodele Flagellata, he proposes to make use of 

 the term Dinoflagellata, which will call to mind the characteristic 

 pesuliarity of the group — the development of a transverse groove and 

 the appended flagellum. 



As to the relationship of Noctiluca with the Cilioflagellata, he 

 allows that there are certain points of resemblance, such as the longi- 

 tudinal groove, the cilium with its rod-like organ, and the two flagella. 

 The so-called swarm-spores of Noctiluca recall a number of the 

 characters of the Cilioflagellata, such as the backward direction of the 

 flagellum ; other points of resemblance are discussed. The difficulty 

 in the way is that no direct observations have yet been made on the 

 further development of these swarmers. Biitschli suggests that as 

 they grow the transverse groove is lost, a portion perhaps becoming 

 the anterior margin of the atrium. This last is found as a depression ; 

 changes occur in the size and relations of the flagella, and so on. But 

 the question can only be set at rest by an exact study of all the 

 changes which occur in the course of development. 



Cenchridium.* — Dr. E. v. Daday remarks that the groove in the 

 test of this Cilioflagellate is not, as Stein thought, homologous with 

 the ventral suture of the Proroeentrina, but is merely due to ridges of 

 the test, such as extend from one end to the other, and divide it into 

 two equal halves. The protoplasm never completely fills the internal 

 cavity of the test ; it is rare for it to be yellow in colour. An oval 

 nucleus and smaller scattered masses of various sizes are distinctly 

 to be observed, as well as small, brownish-yellow, rounded algse, 

 which are, of course, foreign bodies. It is very important to note 

 that the protoplasm changes continually its form and place. The 

 author repeatedly saw the protoplasm streaming out through the 

 siphon, and then branching into very fine pseudopodia ; with the 

 change in form and shortening of these pseudopodia we may correlate 

 the locomotive movements of the animalcule. Dr. v. Daday comes 

 to the conclusion that the Cencliridium of Ehrenberg and Stein (with 

 which is synonymous the Entosolenia of Williamson) is not a Cilio- 

 flagellate, but a Rhizopod, and that the species are really members of 

 the genus Lagena. The contained algae are representatives of 

 Brandt's Zooxanthellse, and are not to be regarded as having been 

 swallowed as nutriment ; food is obtained by means of the pseudo- 

 podia. Prof. A. Gruber f points out that he has already (1884) shown 

 that Cenchridium is a Ehizopod, allied to Lagena. 



Phosphorescent Flagellate Infusorian.^ — Dr. A. A. Julien de- 

 scribes a minute organism, which he regards as the cause of the phos- 

 phorescence of the sea. He obtained it from the sea off the coast of 



* Zool. Anzeig., ix. (1886) pp. 15-9. t Tom. cit., p. 200. 



X Trans. New York AcaJ. Sci., v. (1885) pp. 15-6. 



