210 MR. r. E. BEDDABD ON EABTHWORMS [Juiie 4, 



I am indebted to Mr. Bu dgett, of Trinity College, Cambridge, for 

 a number of specimens of Earthworms from McCarthy Island in 

 the Gambia, which he collected during a recent visit. The speci- 

 mens were at first put aside under the impression that they belonged 

 to a species recently characterized by myself as Benliamia budgetti^. 

 A further examination has, however, shown that they are not of 

 that species, but represent two other species of the same genus 

 upon which I propose to offer some notes. The preponderance 

 of the known species of this genus are of West-African habitat, 

 some 25 having been described from that part of the continent ; 

 there are some 18 East and Central African forms. 



The species of this genus are not at all easy to identify, and 

 there is a group of West-African forms to which the specimens 

 described in the present paper belong which are all characterized 

 by the calciferous pouches usually lying in the xivth to the xvith 

 segments, and of a form like the "quarter" of an orange; by 

 spermathecse unprovided with an externally visible diverticulum, 

 the anterior pair being often the smaller ; and often by genital 

 papillas in the neighbourhood of the male pores. This group con- 

 tains the species B. buettikoferi, B. horsii, B. beddardi, B. stampjlii, 

 B. schlegelii, B. liberiensis, and B. hudgetti. To the first of the 

 new forms described here I shall give the name of 



(5) Benhamia gambiana, sp. n. 



I have examined three examples all of which were sexually 

 mature. The length of the worms, which were somewhat softened 

 in condition, was about 170 mm. ; the diameter not more than 

 5 mm. except in the more swollen clitellar region. 



The prostomium is I'ather broad and does not notch the buccal 

 segment ; it belongs to the type termed " prolobisch " by Dr. 

 Michaelsen, but which I prefer to call "procheilous." 



The setce are in closely approximated pairs, and, as is the case 

 in this genus, lie upon the ventral surface of the worm. 



The clitellum occupies segments xiii.-xx., and is not developed 

 upon the ventral area which bears the genital orifices of the male 

 system. The latter part was to be distinguished from the yellow 

 clitellum by its grey colour. 



The seminal gutters uniting the two orifices of the spermiducal 

 glands of each side of the body are bracket-shaped, the main portion 

 of each being perfectly straight and only bending inwards and 

 that at right angles at each eud, where it becomes confluent with 

 the aperture of the spermiducal gland. This species has a number 

 of very conspicuous genital pa2nllai in the neighbourhood of the 

 male pores. These lie intersegmeutally, and in the intersegments 

 xv./xvi., xvi./xvii., xviii./xix., xis./xx. One pair of papillae there- 

 fore lie within the genital area. A remarkable fact about these 

 papillae is that although paired their mutual distance (of each pair) 

 increases gradually in successive papillae commencing with the 



1 VroQ. Zool, Soc. 1900, p. 653. 



