SCIENCE-GOSSIP. 



6i 



the top of a long stick, opens the blade at an angle 

 of thirty degrees, and with this cuts the leaf-stalk, 

 when, with the attached larva or pupa, it falls 

 gently to the ground. 



Notes of a Home Naturalist. — The first week 

 in May our gardener at Shiplake brought in from 

 our hothouse twin cucumbers. They were united 

 from the stalk, measuring exactly sixteen inches 

 and three-quarters in length. They were perfectly 

 formed and only united by a quarter of an inch 

 strip. They had grown perfectly straight, but on 

 dividing exactly down the middle each cucumber 

 became slightly curved on release from its twin 

 support. Our gardener, who has had much experi- 

 ence, said he had never seen such an instance 

 before. At Shiplake the dates of returning 

 migratory birds were : swallows, April gth ; nightin- 

 gale, April 14th; cuckoo, April 15th; corncrake 

 and wryneck were heard about ten days after. 

 The first thrush's nest with eggs I found on March 

 14th. Two sets of hedge-sparrows built their 

 nests in a French lavender bush not two feet 

 from the ground, and within half a yard apart. 

 The eggs hatched in both instances, but a villain- 

 ous cat disposed of the young birds. One of my 

 wood owls, mentioned before (Science-Gossip, 

 vol. iv. p. 299), was still living in the cedar on the 

 lawn till May 25th, when I left home. His cast- 

 ings, full of mouse bones, were to be picked up 

 below, and one morning he had evidently over- 

 laden himself with prey, for I found a whole 

 mouse, freshly caught and dropped by him. About 

 February 20th I took a dip in a little pool by the 

 side of a wood, not worthy the name of a pond, and 

 found the water alive with Chydorus, which I had 

 never kept before. I took, also, some dead oak 

 leaves and blades of dead. grass from the pool, 

 and soon perceived a number of pale yellow water- 

 louse-like creatures. Each body was segmented, 

 as it were, and the animals had each an air-bubble 

 at the tail, length about a quarter of an inch. 

 They seemed greatly to keep to the surface of the 

 water, renewing their air-bubble supply constantly. 

 I placed the jar in my drawing-room window and 

 watched them carefully. They grew rapidly, turn- 

 ing darker each week. I was now able to perceive 

 the body consisted of eleven segments — the ali- 

 mentary canal being very visible down centre — six 

 legs, and a pair of remarkably long antennae, with 

 which they continually felt about. They continued 

 to grow and gradually became darker, almost black, 

 the segments barred with a lighter colour. On 

 April 4th I found one had skinned entirely, the 

 slough remaining as perfect as the insect, legs and 

 long antennae attached as well, The same crea- 

 ture skinned again on April 26th, each time grow- 

 ing larger. After this I noticed the whole four I 

 had left alive constantly skinning. I endeavoured 

 to place the slough on a card, but in every case 

 failed to place it naturally. As they grew older 

 they often remained at the bottom of the jar, 

 crawling about always with an air-bubble at their 

 tails, but they would suddenly loose their hold and 

 ascend without effort to the surface of the water, 

 tail uppermost. They also had the power of 

 crawling head downwards on the surface of the 

 water. They were extremely interesting to keep, 

 fed on the faded grass bents, and seemed in no 

 way to interfere with the Chydorus. I was obliged to 

 throw them into a ditch on leaving home. I have 

 in vain looked in the Micrographical Dictionary 

 a-id other books for a description of them. Perhaps 

 some one will inform me as to their name ? — 

 {Mrs.) Emily J. Cliinenson, Bournemoiith. 



CONTRIBUTED BY FLORA WINSTONE. 



The Victorian Naturalist (Melbourne, May, 

 1898) contains some interesting notes, with two 

 well-produced plates, by Mr. W. H. F. Hill, on 

 " Some Victorian Case Moths." Only four species 

 are dealt with in this number, but these are fully 

 described both with regard to the larvae and their 

 habits. The species are Metiira elongata, Entometa 

 igiiobilis, Clania tenuis and C. lewinii. Mr. A. J. 

 Campbell contributes an account of the large-billed 

 shrike-robin (Eopsalti-ia magnirostri) which has 

 recently been found among the sub- tropical scrubs 

 of New South Wales, in addition to the coastal 

 regions of Queensland. 



La Nature (Paris, June 4th). M. J. Lafargue 

 gives a history of wireless telegraphy, from the 

 experiments made by Hertz in sound transmission, 

 to Marconi's completed invention in 1896. Illustra- 

 tions of the method of working this machine are 

 given. M. A. Larbaletrier writes on the agricultural 

 productions of Cuba. He also gives an analysis of 

 the soil, which appears to have a large proportion 

 of silica in its composition. M. Henry Chastrey 

 describes fully, with illustrations, the nature, 

 habits and form of the chigoe, named Pulex penetrans 

 by Linee in 1767 and Sarcopsylus penetrans by 

 Westwood in 1836. This troublesome little ani- 

 mal is found on the western coast of Africa and 

 in South America, between latitudes 30° North and 

 25° South. It resembles the ordinary fiea in form, 

 and is exceedingly troublesome both to negroes and 

 whites in penetrating the skin between the fingers 

 and toes, causing ulcers and even gangrenes. This 

 insect is what is familiarly known to sailors and 

 others as the ''jigger," evidently a corruption of 

 its Spanish name. We recently illustrated the 

 chigoe (Science-Gossip, N.S., vol. iv. p. 361). 



Comptes Rendtjs (Paris, May 23rd). M. Ber- 

 thelot contributes some of the results of his recent 

 experiments in the oxidation of pyrogallol by free 

 oxygen in the presence of alkalis. The characters 

 produced vary considerably, depending largely on 

 the nature of the alkali present. M. Edmond 

 Perrier has in this number a long and interesting 

 article on the " Origin of Vertebrates." By a 

 system of inverse analogy he traces the descent of 

 vertebrates from the Amphioxus, or a similar 

 vertebrate source. A note on the inflammability 

 of various combustible vapours by MM. H. Le 

 Chatelier and O. Boudouard should be of great 

 value, especially as it contains a table of several 

 well-known gases, giving (i) the temperature at 

 which they become mixed with air ; (2) specific 

 gravity per litre of the mixture at a temperature of 

 15° '' (3) volume of vapour in 100 volumes of the 

 mixture ; (4) volume of oxygen necessary to cause 

 combustion ; (5) the quantity of heat by the 

 combustion given forth by one molecular volume 

 of the mixture. The results of the spectrum 

 analysis of some minerals by a new method is given 

 by M. A. de Gramont in a note read before the 

 Academy of Sciences by M. Friedel. 



