FURTHER REPORT ON THE CENSUS. I57 



Attention was drawn in the last report to the necessity of special attention being 

 paid to Scotland, for which only 65 records had been made in 1909. It is, 

 therefore, gratifying to report that this year no less than 313 fresh authentications 

 have been made for 35 out of 41 vice-counties of Scotland, being an average of 9 

 species per area. 



In this connection it may be mentioned that Mr. Fred Booth has this year 

 investigated various northern counties of Scotland with a grant from the Royal 

 Society's Grant Fund. The object of this investigation was the study of the 

 northern limits of the terrestrial mollusca, and an incidental result was the filling up 

 of numerous blanks in the Census. 



There is much Scottish work still to be accomplished, and the Recorder appeals 

 to all conchologists who have Scottish material, or who are disposed to make remote 

 Scottish counties the scene of their holiday or other investigations, to communicate 

 with him. 



As to some counties, the Orkneys in particular, collections have been made in 

 past seasons by various members, including many species which Mr. J. W. Taylor 

 has not had the opportunity of seeing, and the Recorder would be pleased to have 

 the opportunity of submitting them to him. 



Lincoln North is now the most thoroughly investigated area in the kingdom,^ 

 with 117 species to its credit ; while on the other hand the one of which least is 

 known is the Irish county of Longford, with but 3. It would be a great service if 

 some conchologist would make a special investigation of this county for the benefit 

 of the Census. 



In respect of the more closely investigated areas, there are still numerous cases in 

 which common or readily-obtainable species are required for authentication, and in 

 this connection it is curious that it is only this year that a complete Census has been 

 obtained of any one species ; AgrioHviax agrestis having just been sent by Mr. J. 

 Williams Vaughan from Carmarthenshire, to fill up the only remaining gap. 



There are other species of general range, such as Ajion aler, Hyalinia cellaria, 

 Pyramidula roiundata, etc., for which the blanks in the Census are now reduced to 

 one, two, or three. 



In respect of the difficult genus Pisidium there is at present a considerable 

 amount of confusion. Mr. B. B. Woodward is understood to be engaged on a 

 critical study of the genus, and a large number of specimens have been seen by him 

 as well as by the official referees, and identified by him somewhat differently, but so 

 far he has not, to our knowledge, tlisclosed or published the bases or grounds upon 

 which these determinations have been made. Until this is done it may be suggested 

 that it will on the whole be wiser to follow the accepted nomenclature of the 

 standard works on the subject, and so avoid further confusion. 



In view of this it would be very useful to students if the Council of the Society 

 would cause to be reproduced in the Journal of Conchology the original descriptions 

 and figures of the various species, the figures being reduced to a common standard 

 of size for ease of comparison. 



The table of vice-counties of the British Isles is appended, showing the present 

 state of the authentication-records, both the additions for 1909 and for 1910, and 

 the totals to date. The vice-counties are arranged in the order in which they have 

 been least investigated. 



1 This statement applies also to the detailed tabulation of species within the vice-county 

 itself, in view of the early publication of a work upon the Mollusca of Lincolnshire. 



