468 PROF. HOWES ON PALINURUS PENICILLATUS. [MhJ 1 7, 



May 17, 1887. 

 Prof. W. H. Flower, LL.D., F.R.S., President, in the Chair. 



The President read some extracts from a letter which he had 

 received from Dr. Emin Pasha, dated Wadelai, Nov. 8, 1886. 



Dr. Eniin stated that he was forwarding along with the letter 

 some objects of Natural History procured in Monbottu, amongst 

 which were the skull of an old male Chimpanzee, killed by his party 

 on the 13th of July, some skulls and bones of natives of the Akka 

 tribe, together with some boxes of mammals' skins, birds' skins, and 

 butterflies. 



Mr. A. Thomson exhibited specimens of P(ipilio porthaon 

 (Hewitson, Exotic Butterflies, vol. iii. Papilio, uos. 21 & 22) 

 reared in the Society's Insect-house, together with the empty pupa- 

 cases. Eighteen specimens of the pupa of this fine insect had been 

 deposited in the Insect-house by Mrs. J. Monteiro in September 

 last, having been brought home by her on her return from Delagoa 

 Bay. Out of these 2 had died, and 3 emerged in October last. The 

 remaining 13 remained in the pupa stage all through the winter, and 

 had emerged at various dates, from the 19th of April of this year 

 till this day (May 17th). 



Prof. G. B. Howes, F.Z.S., exhibited and made remarks upon an 

 original drawing of the head of a Palinurus (P. penicillatus ; 

 Mauritius), originally described by M. Alphonse Milne-Edwards', 

 F.M.Z.S. Having recently had occasion to correspond with M. 

 Milne-Edwards concerning the same, that gentleman, with great 

 courtesy, had sent the sketch especially made in reply. As the in- 

 terest of the case was very great and as the original paper had been 

 published without illustration, he thought it desirable to bring, the 

 drawing before the notice of the Society ^ 



The chief interest of the specimen lay in the fact that the left 

 ophthalmite had taken on antenniform characters, this being the only 

 Crustacean yet recorded in which that had been observed. Prof. 

 Howes stated the facts of the case, and recapitulated the learling 

 arguments for and against the supposition that the ophthalmite is 

 the homologue of an appendage, and its supporting skeleton that of 

 a somite. He wished especially to draw attention to one feature 

 which it appeared to him M. Milne-Edwards had not noted. It was 

 well known that the cornea of the decapod crustacean eye does not, 

 in many instances, surmount the entire free end of the eye-stalk ; a 

 portion of the latter (generally the outer free border) is often desti- 

 tute of corneal facets, and frequently swollen and well differentiated. 

 Comparison with the drawing which he had the honour to exhibit, 

 and which he had ascertained was a faithful representation of fact, 

 showed that the filiform appendage was derived from a similar non- 



^ Compt. Kendus, vol. lix. (1864). 



^ The Soeipty is indebted to the generosity of M. Milne-Edwards for per- 

 tnission to reproduce the same. 



