JOURNAL OF CONCHOLOGY. 259 



NOTE ON THE ANATOMY OF HELIX SERICEA Miill. 

 By CHARLES ASHFORD. 



The species passing under the above name in this country 

 — usually referred to abroad as H. granulata Alder — has 

 organic peculiarities which appear to be imperfectly known. It 

 may be well to point out some of them. 



1. — It has no dart-sac and, of course, no dart. In some 

 instances the vagina is slightly dilated, but there is no 

 trace of local protuberance which could be construed as a 

 rudimentary sac even in fully grown examples. 



2. — It possesses no mucous glands at any stage of its growth. 



3. — The right tentacular tube \%free, as in a few other Helices, 

 viz.. If. erketorimi, H. virgata, H. Cartusiana ... that is to 

 say it does not, as is usually the case, pass between the 

 male and female organs embracing the former in its loop. 



4. — The spermatheca is large and subtriangular, supported by 

 a stoutish stem or duct about half the length of the oviduct. 



5. — The flagellum is very short, scarcely more than a booklet. 

 The superior part of the penis-sheath is attenuated, the 

 inferior part much dilated, and the upper end of the 

 swollen portion is for a short distance longitudinally striped 

 with opaque white lines. The retractor muscle is attached 

 a little above this striped portion. The sperm-duct is con- 

 spicuously broad, see pi. x., fig. 5. 



The absence of dart-sac and mucous glands will serve to 

 distinguish H. granulata Aid. from any variety or ally of H. 

 hispida to which it may superficially bear a resemblance. And 

 with these marks of distinction to guide the collector it is to be 

 hoped its European distribution will before long be more 

 accurately determined. 



This species is not the H. sericea Drap. nor the H. rubigi- 

 nosa Zgl., both of which have darts — the former a pair like 

 those of H. hispida., and the latter a single dart, said to have 

 four blunt edges. 



