198 THE GENUS PERIPATUS. 



asmuch as the specimen he has figured has thirty-one pairs 

 (in addition to the oral papillae). 



He found a number of embryos in the uteruses of his 

 specimens, all of which, excepting one with thirty, possessed 

 thirty-one pairs of legs. 



His statement on the colour is interesting, as tending to 

 show that the pigment in this species is aflPected by the pro- 

 longed action of spirit. He says : 



" Die Farbung war an einem sehr frisch erhaltenen Wein- 

 geist exemplar ein dunkles unreines Kirschroth, der Weingeist, 

 indem es lag, hatte sich blassroth gefarbt, bei denen die 

 langere Zeit aufbewahrt waren, ging der Ton in's Braunlichgrue 

 iiber, doch blieb die Ruckenseite immer sehr viel dunkler als 

 die Bauchseite, auch zeigte sie bestandig die schon von den 

 friiheren Beschreibern erwahnte mittlere Langsfurche von 

 noch dunklerer Farbe, rechts und links von ihr in einiger Ent- 

 fernung sieht man gewohnlich noch eine dunkle Seitenlinie." 



I cannot be quite certain from Grube's figures whether the 

 papillae have the form characteristic of the Caracas species or 

 of the Demerara form. 



The species possesses all the Neotropical characters, viz. inner 

 blade of jaw with minor teeth separated by diastema from the 

 first small tooth, legs with four spinous pads, generative open- 

 ing between the penultimate pair of legs, oviducts with recep- 

 taculum and process, embryos in uterus of very various ages. 



I propose, therefore, to retain provisionally Grube's name 

 for the specimens from Colonia Towar, and to regard them as 

 belonging to the species found at Caracas, and described above 

 as P. Edwardsii. 



9. Mr. Thomas Belt found a specimen of Peri pat us at Santo 

 Domingo, in Nicaragua. The specimen (dried) is referred to 

 in his work, 'The Naturalist in Nicaragua' (p. 140), and has 

 been examined by Professor Moseley, who found that it 

 possessed thirty-one pairs of ambulatory legs. 



