6 ItErORT ON MUSEUM WORK 



CURATOR'S REPORT ON MUSEUM WORK. 



1909-1910. 



The most important piece of museum work described in 

 last year's report was the overhauling of the collection of 

 fishes. This has been continued in the present year, and is 

 now practically completed. The few remaining fishes have 

 been coloured, a large number of labels have been drawn up 

 and printed, and a chart prepared showing the classification 

 adopted in the cases. Fresh specimens are still needed to 

 replace some unsatisfactory ones that are. doing duty at 

 present, and with a view to supplying this want we are 

 making casts of certain fishes (monkfish, chub, char, etc.), 

 and procuring, some other casts (salmon and sea-trout) from a 

 well-known specialist in their manufacture. The reptile and 

 amphibian section, which adjoins that of the fishes, has not 

 yet been thoroughly dealt with. We began work upon the 

 snakes this year, but were stopped for the time being by the 

 difficulty of identifying the specimens. One most welcome 

 addition has been made to the reptile collection during the 

 year, namely a skeleton of the green turtle. It was presented 

 by Dr. F. C. Pybus, and has been very well mounted by Mr. 

 Fletcher. A few other pieces of work done in the zoology 

 room deserve mention. Some finishing-up has been done in 

 the general shell collection, and a number of fresh shells, 

 selected from the store cupboards by Miss Lebour, were 

 worked in at the same time. The reproduction of a rock pool 

 lias been provided with a new key-chart and description ; a 

 large number of beautifully preserved marine invertebrates 

 from the Zoological Station at Naples have been mounted in 

 glass jars ; and a little has been done towards preparing a 

 fresh exhibited series of insects. With most of the orders of 

 insects the difficulty is the obtaining of new material. Of the 

 beetles, however, we have a fairly representative series, and a 

 selected set of these has been identified for us by Miss 

 Bawdier Sharpe at the Natural History Museum, South 



