8 E. ETHEEIDGE, JTJN"., OUT LOWEE-CAEBONIFEEOTTS INVEETEBEATA. 



This has rendered necessary the establishment of seyeral new 

 species, although I have endeavoured to avoid this as much as 

 possible. 



The occurrence of beds of shale, in the Calciferous Sandstone 

 series of this neighbourhood, with fossils of a decidedly marine f acies 

 has, I think, been little noticed. That containing the greatest 

 variety of species, the Woodhall Shale, was in all probability known 

 to the earlier geological explorers of Edinburgh ; but its very 

 marked marine character was not so definitely ascertained until its 

 exploration was undertaken by Messrs. Henderson and Bennie. Dr. 

 Page read a paper at the British-Association Meeting in 1855 " On 

 the Freshwater Limestone of Dr. Hibbert," in which he insisted 

 that, although the Burdiehouse Limestone in its palgeontological 

 features was of undoubted freshwater origin, still in the series 

 there are bands containing marine fossils * — a point which has been 

 fully borne out by later researches. Mr. Henderson has obtained 

 from the Woodhall shale at least 17 well-defined species, and Mr. 

 Bennie about the same number. Of these, 10 are afterwards met 

 with and become characteristic of the true marine Carboniferous 

 Limestone, and 3 or 4 doubtfully so. 



Description of the Species. 



Class ACTINOZOA. 



Order Tabulata. 



Genus Ch^itetes, Eischer. 

 Ch-etetes, sp. ind. PL II. figs. 33 & 33 a. 



Sp. char. Corallum forming an irregular, thin, incrusting expan- 

 sion, composed of very short hexagonal or polygonal tubes ; angles 

 of the tubes, or calicles, bearing a small, rounded, and blunt mame- 

 lon or " monticule." 



Obs. My friend Prof. H. A. Nicholson, who has devoted much time 

 to the elucidation of the species of this genus, agrees with me in re- 

 garding this as probably a Ohcetetes, more especially as distinct 

 " monticules " are visible. He thinks it (and I quite agree with 

 him) an open question whether some of the incrusting species re- 

 ferred to this genus are not truly Polyzoa. 



Loc. and Horizon. Shale with other marine fossils below the weir 

 of Woodhall Barley-mill, Water of Leith, at Juniper Green, near 

 Edinburgh, incrusting Orthoceratites. In the Wardie-Shale section 

 of the Cement-stone group. 



* Brit. Assoc. Report for 1855, pt. 2, p. 91. 



