34 



SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



ScHizoNEMA, a branching collection of boats ; 



schizo — to divide, and nema. 

 ScoLioPLEURA, with crooked sides; scolios — 



croolied, and pleura. 

 Skeletonema, ; skeletos — dried 



up, and nema. 

 Stauroneis, a boat with a cross; stauros — a cross, 



and neis. 

 Stephanodiscus, a crowned disk ; Stephanos — a 



crown, and discos. 

 Stephanogonia, an angular or pointed crown ; 



Stephanos, and gonia. 

 Stephanopyxis, a crowned box ; Stephanos, and 



puxis. 

 Stictodiscus, a spotted disk ; stictos — spotted, and 



discos. 

 Strangulonema, a constricted filament ; strangos 



—a strangling, and nema. (The filaments are 



constricted deeply, as though tied with thread.) 

 Striatella, a small ridge ; stria. 

 Surirella. 

 Syndetoneis, a boat bound in another ; sundetos 



— bound together, and neis. 

 Synedra, a joining together ; sunedros — a sitting 



in council. 

 Syringidium, like a shepherd's pipe ; surinks— a 



pipe. 

 Systephania, ; sus — together, and 



Stephanos. 

 Tabellaria, a little tablet. 

 Terpsinoe, heart-gladdening, i.e. musical. 

 Tetracyclus, of four circles ; tetras — four, and 



cuclos. 

 Thalassiosira, sea-filament ; thalassa — the sea, 



and seira. 

 Thalassiothrix, sea-hair ; thalassa, and thrix — 



the hair. 

 Thaumatodiscus, wonder - disk ; thauma — a 



wonder, a juggle (called from the " thauma- 



trope," a child's toy), and discos. 

 Thaumatonema, wonder-filament; thauma, and 



nema. 

 ToxoNiDiA, like a little bow ; toxon — a bow. 

 Triceratium, three-horned ; tris — trice, and ceras. 

 Trinacria, three-pointed ; tris, and acron — a 



point. 

 Trochosira, a wheel-like filament ; trochos — a 



wheel, and seira. 

 Tropidoneis, a twisted boat ; trope — a twist, and 



neis. 

 Tryblionella, a little dish ; trublion — a dish. 

 Xanthiopyxis. 

 Zygoceros, a horned yoke ; zugon — a yoke, and 



ceras. 



I trust these explanations will interest some, and 

 will help towards the understanding of these 

 marvellous beauties of Nature. 



Eastmoor, Church Road, Bournemouth East; 

 May, 1896. 



EFFECT OF FEAR UPON 

 HERONS. 



TN a former number (Science-Gossip, Vol. ii., 

 N.S., p. 194), a correspondent describes one 

 of a flock of partridges flying over a railway 

 train, falling dead, apparently from fright. One 

 September, a few years since, I had an opportunity 

 of testing a statement I had frequently heard 

 made when shooting over Irish bogs, namely, 

 that a heron, when fishing for eels or frogs 

 in a ditch or bog-hole, becomes paralysed if 

 surprised by a person suddenly appearing on the 

 bank above him, and shouting or gesticulating 

 violently ; when they can be killed with sods or 

 stones. On this occasion I was walking on a high 

 bank bordering an estuary of a river running into 

 Sheephaven, co. Donegal, in a gale of wind, and 

 numerous herons, driven by the rising tide off the 

 flats, were sheltering from the wind under it, and 

 flying off from time to time almost from beneath my 

 feet as I passed along. Suddenly I remembered 

 the story of my gillies of days gone by, and resolved 

 to put it to the test. Making a detour, I approached 

 the shore further on where the bank was very steep 

 and fringed with furze. On reaching the edge (for 

 the high wind prevented my approach being heard) 

 I saw a heron standing right beneath, and flapping 

 my cloak and shouting, to my surprise it sat down 

 and waited till I rushed down the bank. Shielding 

 my face from its dangerous beak, I took it up and 

 carried it to the field above. When put down it 

 remained crouching in a sitting attitude on the 

 ground watching me, and uttering occasionally a 

 low croaking sound. When I went about ten yards 

 off, it rose to its legs and walked deliberately to a 

 furze bush and sat down under it. I then took it 

 into the open field and threw it into the air as high 

 as I could ; it merely expanded its wings and 

 pitched again and sat down. Taking it to the 

 shore I retired, and then it waded out till the waves 

 lifted it off its feet, when to my surprise it paddled 

 manfully against them for a while, but the 

 wind drove it back. After some fifteen or twenty 

 minutes of my rather cruel experiments, I left it 

 where I found it, apparently paralysed with terror, 

 but unhurt. It could spread its wings and the 

 wing-bones were sound, and it was apparently 

 uninjured in any way. Judging from the top-knot 

 it was a young bird, but not of that year. 



W. F. DE V. Kane. 

 Diumreaske House, Monaghan. 



We have received from Mr. R, Kanthack, 18, 

 Berners Street, London, W., illustrated priced 

 catalogues of astronomical and physical instruments 

 made by C. A. Steinheil Sohne, of Munich. These 

 catalogues are sent free, on application, to those 

 interested. 



