﻿Notices of Memoirs — H. Goss — On Tertiary Insects. 163 



to Ettingshausen, in the Cretaceous epoch, progressed continually 

 throughout the Tertiaries, during which period was prepared the 

 way for later and still greater divisions. With the dawn of the 

 post-Tertiary, this dilFerentiation was for the most part accomplished, 

 and in Europe the tropical and Australian forms had been gradually 

 pushed out by those of our temperate zone. So says Ettingshausen. 

 We cannot do better than conclude this notice by translating almost 

 verbatim the inferences which he draws at the conclusion of his 

 paper fro-m the facts we have been considering. They are as 

 follows : 



1. All the present natural Floras of the earth are connected 

 together through the elements of the Tertiary Flora. 



2. The character of a natural Flora is determined by the more 

 pronounced development of some of the Flora-elements (the chief- 

 elements). 



3. In the construction of the recent Floras the collateral-elements 

 have shared, as far as climatal conditions permitted. A mixture of 

 plants has resulted, possessing characters foreign to the general 

 Flora, sometimes present only in subordinate numbers, but some- 

 times in such rich masses that they appear distinctly characteristic. 



4. The representative species in the present phyto-regions are 

 members, mutually corresponding one with another, of the same or 

 similar Flora-elements. 



n^OTiGiES OIF :]vc:E^vLOII^s. 



I. — The Insect-Fauna of the Tertiakt Period. 



AT a meeting of the Brighton and Sussex Natural History Society, 

 held on March 8th, at the Brighton Free Library and Museum, 

 Mr. H. Goss, F.L.S., F.Z.S., etc., communicated a paper on "The 

 Insect Fauna of the Tertiary Period, and the British and Foreign 

 formations in which Insect-remains have been detected." Mr. Goss 

 remarked on the neglect of Fossil Entomology in this country, and 

 called attention to the importance of an acquaintance with fossil 

 insects, and the valuable conclusions which might be arrived at 

 from their study, bearing upon the geological conditions of the earth 

 during the respective periods of its existence. He also observed 

 that the researches of Professor Heer had taught us that the study 

 of insect-remains, and a comparison of the numerical proportion 

 existing between the Carnivorous and Herbivorous species of any 

 period with that existing at the present day, would afford a valuable 

 clue to the state of the vegetation and climate prevailing in former 

 periods. 



After quoting Sir Charles Lyell as to the importance of an 

 acquaintance with fossil insects, Mr. Goss reviewed the bibliography 

 of the subject, beginning with Scheuchzer's " Herharium diluvianum" 

 (published in 1700). He called special attention to the importance 

 of Professor Heer's great work " Die Insekten Fauna der Tertiar- 

 gebilde von CElningen und von Kadoboj in Croatien;" and to the 



