44 



All lines of evidence indicate extensive interchanges of ter- 

 restrial animal and plant life between Africa and southern 

 Europe during the Oligocene and the oldest known European 

 species of Copaifera, in conformity with the above brief outline 

 of migration, are found in the Aquitanian of Kumi on the Island 

 of Euboea and in beds of the same age in southeastern France. 



The genus persisted in southern Europe . through the greater 

 part of the Miocene and then by reason of climatic and physio- 

 graphic changes became extinct on that continent. 



To facilitate a graphic comparison I have introduced along 



with the figure of Copaifera yeguana, illustrations of the pods of 



an existing and three other fossil species which were based on 



the remains of pods. 



Johns Hopkins University, 

 Baltimore, Md. 



AN ABNORMAL SPECIMEN OF CITRULLUS VULGARIS 



By Glen P. Van Eseltine 



A peculiar example of teratology is furnished by a watermelon 

 recently received by the U. S. National Museum from Manteo, 

 North Carolina. Normally the flower of Citrullus has a single, 

 tricarpellary pistil ; in this specimen the fruit seems to have arisen 

 from a bipistillate flower with hexacarpellary pistils. The seg- 

 ments of the two pistils in developing into fruit have grown to- 

 gether from the receptacle up to the point where the fruit dimin- 

 ishes to form the apex. The development of each pistil has been 

 distinct from that of the other, one fruit being several inches 

 longer than its companion. Each presents, however, an ab- 

 normal appearance in the carpels, none of which is symmetrical, 

 all being crowded and having the septa more or less distorted. 

 It is unusual for such deformed fruits to mature, but this specimen 

 weighed about forty-four pounds, measured seventeen inches in 

 length of the longer portion, and was of equal width across the 

 widest part. The texture of the pulp was very crisp and the 

 flavor particularly good. 



