248 



middle stamen; whereas, if these were respectively halves of one 

 stamen, we should expect to be able to trace their fibro-vascular bun- 

 dles into a common trunk, or at least into an intimate relation. No 

 such relation was detected. 



Therefore, from the distribution of the fibro-vascular bundles, as well 

 as from the development of the androecium, I conclude that the sta- 

 mens are not four, of which two are bisected and sepai'ated, but, mor- 

 phologically, two, alternate with the inner petals, and each divided 

 into three by chorisis. 



Dr. B. G. Wilder presented a paper entitled "Concern- 

 ing Morphology and Physiology, especially in the limbs of 

 Mammalia," which was referred to the Publishing Commit- 

 tee. 



Mr. F. W. Putnam remarked, in reference to a notice of 

 the appearance of Grystes fasciatus Ag. in salt water, to 

 which he had referred at a recent meeting, that he had since 

 learned that it had been introduced into the ponds on Cape 

 Cod in great quantities, and thei-efore its appearance in 

 Boston Harbor did not seem so unaccountable. 



In response to an inquiry of Prof Wyman, Mr. Putnam 

 said that he had repeatedly found the nest of the robin built 

 upon the ground, but only in New Hampshire; and in one 

 case he had found a nest, in which the young were reared to 

 maturity, built upon the beam connected with the moving 

 machinery of a saw-mill which was in daily use throughout 

 the summer. 



Mr. Bouve stated that the red-headed woodpecker {Sphy- 

 ropicus varius) had done remarkable injury to his house at 

 Hingham while unoccupied. These birds had made a number 

 of large round holes through the closed blinds of an upper 

 story window, and going into the room to see what damage 

 had been done, he found the glass broken in a number of 

 places, some being evidently broken by blows from without 

 and some from within. No stones or any missiles were 

 found in the room, and the only possible explanation was in 

 the supposition that a woodpecker, having bored through the 

 blinds and broken a pane of glass fi-om without, sufficient 

 for ingress, had attempted to escape, and not finding the 



