Ancient Myriapods. 97 



A peculiar family, Archidesmidce , referred by Scudder to 

 this order has been found in the Devonian rocks of Scot- 

 land ; in this family the halves of the dorsal plate of the 

 several joints are scarcely consolidated ; but the anterior 

 half is more important, both by its size and by the ex- 

 panded lateral lamellae that ornament it. These curious 

 Myriapods are found in the old red sandstone of Forfar- 

 shire. 



The most important family of the Palaeozoic Myriapods 

 is the EuphoberidtVj distinguished from the last by the 

 more or less complete soldering of the two portions of the 

 dorsal plate; in this the elevated anterior portion is orna- 

 mented with large, often forked spines, or with tubercles. 

 The Euphoberidae are the typical forms of the order Archi- 

 polypoda, and some are of great size. According to Dr. 

 Scudder some species were amphibious, being provided 

 with organs, apparently of the nature of gills, beside the 

 ordinary spiracles, and with lamellate legs. They appear 

 to have been far more abundant in the new world than in 

 the old, and in the latter are scarcely known outside of 

 Great Britain. 



The ironstone nodules of the shales on Mazon Creek, 111., 

 have produced the greatest number and the most remark- 

 able forms of these archaic Myriapods, though some have 

 been found in the British carboniferous deposits. Those 

 found at Coldbrook Dale were at first taken to be the cater- 

 pillers of certain butterflies, and afterwards as belonging to 

 the Merostomata. Myriapods of this family have lately 

 been found at St. John, JST.B. 



A third family of ancient Myriapods is that designated 

 as Arehiulidae by Dr. Scudder. In this group a near ap- 

 proach to Diplopoda of modern Myriapods is seen. The 

 two pieces of the dorsal plate are closely consolidated, but 

 still are distinctly visible, though the anterior is rarely 

 elevated much above the posterior, the body is almost 

 smooth or covered more or less abundantly with serially 

 disposed papillae, from which in some cases hairs or small 

 spines arise. The members of this family resemble modern 



