SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



61 



had found the mistletoe parasitic on whitethorn and 

 black poplar in Suffolk, and the cowslip-primrose 

 hybrid plentiful in the same district. Mr. Austin 

 read a paper on " The British Corvidae or Crow 

 Family," in which he dealt exhaustively with each 

 species and produced either coloured drawings or 

 specimens to illustrate same. Messrs. Harvey, 

 Battley, Frost, L. J Tremayne, E. M. Dadd, 

 Simes, Bacot. R. W. Bobbins. Bear, Miss Simmons 

 and Mr. C. Nicholson took part in the discussion 

 which followed. — Thursday, May 13th, 1897. Mr. 

 C. Nicholson, F.E.S., President, in the chair. 

 Mr. P. J. Hanson was elected a member of the 

 society Mr. J. Burman Rosevear, M.C.S., read 

 a paper entitled "My trip to Highcliffe and 

 what I found in the Barton Beds " An interesting 

 discussion followed. — Lawrence J. Tremayne, Hon. 

 tary. 



Hcll Scientific and Field Naturalists' 

 Cllb — At the usual meeting on Wednesday 

 evening, June 9th, the President, Dr. J. Holling- 

 worth, M R.C.S., occupied the chair. Reports of 

 excursions were given by various members. At 

 Cottingham, Mr. Robinson had recently observed 

 the bog pimpernel (Anagatlis tenella) for the first 

 time, though the plant had been recorded for this 

 district by Robert Teesdale about one hundred 

 years ago. The same gentleman also reported 

 hiving collected the bracteate sedge [Carex divisa) 

 from Mardeet Lane. This also confirms a record 

 made by Teesdale. Several grass snakes were seen 

 on the Marfleet Lane Excursion, one of which was 

 captured. The usual disagreeable odour was 

 emitted by the snake on being molested ; but it is 

 stated that this ceases when they become reconciled 

 to captivity. Mr (i, H. Hill called atteniion to the 

 fact that on a recent outing he had noticed that the 

 beautiful clump of trees formerly surrounding 

 "Blue Wells" near Barton had entirely disappeared, 

 the trees having been cut down, leaving only a few 

 stumps and a pond. It is considered a great pity 

 that such a beautiful place as this was should have 

 been so ruthlessly destroyed. Mr J. W. Boult 

 stated that he had visited New Holland, and had 

 found some specimens of the blood-vein moth 

 ilimanira amataria) for the first time, although he 

 had been looking for them for about twenty years. 

 Mr Porter had also made a good entomological find, 

 viz . a " small yellow underwing " (Hcliaca tcnebrata) 

 near Springhead. This moth has not previously 

 been found in this neighbourhood. The exhibits 

 were of a varied and interesting character. Mr. 

 Waterfall handed round a collection of plants and 

 also a nest of small spiders, \xi\h of which 

 had been collected on the Club's excursion 

 on Whit Monday. Mr Boull 

 showed a beautiful collection of moths and 

 tmtterflie* just received from Natal. The 

 ary exhibited a lar British flint 



implement, and Ihe half of a Roman quern 

 in (pi 1 rvation, Ix.ih of which had been 



■ by him in Lioi I li. kg 



wajiv ember of the Club. A lecture on 



" The .' , . then 



ppard. The 



• ■it of the geological 



. and pointed oul thai before 



• red I'-.- ti" and i< e 



sheet* of ili'- ice age, Holdcrnew was not in 



Iched along 



•.; 'I hr ma 

 1 melting o( the li e, formed 

 the Und which If bow termed fiolderness. For 



convenience of classification, the deposits contain- 

 ing the remains of extinct animals were divided 

 under three heads : pre-glacial, glacial and 

 post-glacial. Under the first head were described 

 the series of sands and gravels which are found 

 banked up against the old cliff line, and have been 

 exposed at Bridlington and Hessle by artificial 

 excavations. These beds are covered by boulder- 

 clay, an undoubted glacial deposit, and bones and 

 teeth of elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, bison 

 and deer have been found in them, some of which 

 have been gnawed, evidently by hyenas. Under 

 the next head, the glacial series consist of sands, 

 gravels and clays, which form the bulk of 

 Holderness. The bones and horns of animals, 

 usually very much waterworn, are almost invari- 

 ably found in the gravels. The enormous 

 collections of remains obtained when the Kelsey 

 Hill and Brandesburton sections were worked 

 several years ago, were referred to, and the 

 lecturer also gave an account of his collection from 

 the Burstwick gravel pit. The animals whose 

 bones, etc., are found in the glacial beds, can be 

 referred to the mammoth, deer, Bos, rhinoceros, 

 horse, etc., the remains can be found in the 

 museums at Leeds, York, Driffield, Hull and other 

 places. The mammoth teeth so frequently found 

 on the Holderness Coast were classed among the 

 glacial series. The post-glacial beds were next 

 referred to. These consist principally of layers of 

 peat and old lake beds, which are found in hollows 

 on the boulder-clay, and are therefore of later date. 

 Excellent sections of these can be seen in the cliffs 

 of our coast. In the peat, deer horns and bones 

 are very common, though remains of ox and horse 

 also occur. The old lake beds rarely contain 

 mammalian remains, though deer-antlers have 

 been found in them. An account of the peat beds 

 and "submerged forests," with remarks as to their 

 probable origin, concluded the paper, which was 

 illustrated by specimens found in Holderness. A 

 lengthy discussion followed. — T. Sheppard, Hon. 

 Sec, 78, Sherburn Street, Hull. 



Leicester Literary and Philosophical 

 Society. — The Biological Section, " D," of this 

 Society made its first excursion this season on 

 May 27th to an unfrequented part of Charnwood 

 Forest, known as I-ee Lane. This is a short bye- 

 way leading to nowhere in particular, only about 

 half-a-mile in length, but bounded by woods on 

 either side, and with broad, green margins tufted 

 with bushes and overrun with brambles and briars 

 There are many damp and shady nooks, and the 

 lane is rarely visited save by a few of the rustic 

 inhabitants or an occasional gipsy camp. It is an 

 interesting locality for mosses and Hepaticae. 

 Here were collected patches of the rare British 

 Hepatic Kantia argauta, producing abundance of 

 pseudopodia, each crowned with a tiny ball of 

 green gemmae. Also specimens of the very small 

 mbronia [nulla, with Pellia calycina, Chilost vphus 

 polyanthus ami Conocephalus conicus, and Jungermannia 

 ventricosa and J . sphaeroearpa. Among the mosses 

 found in this lane are Anuothecium crispum, Clima- 

 ciutn dendroides, Plagiothecium borreriatmm, Hypmtm 

 filUinum and Hyloeomium spUndens. Several of these 

 r 1 yptoganu are new records foi the county 01 new 

 la ..in ■ m .■■ thi phani rogam 1 athcred were 



i/m M a, Lathyrut maerorltitits and its vai 

 lus, Asperula odorata, I hrysospleiitum oppositi 

 f, iu,ni. i ...... AflMi, ,,/, eti 1 he 



lane ascendi from a picturesque brook ■•< il" 



bottom en • b li ppin ■ and ■' li n 



foot bridge) up 1 steep hillside, and fi the 



