Zoological — Entomological Society. 5761 



Proceedings of Societies. 



Zoological Society. 

 Tuesday, July 28, 1857. — Professor Busk, F.R.S., in the chair. 



Dr. Gray communicated, through the Secretary, a paper containing a synopsis of 

 the families and genera of Bark corals. 



Dr. Gray also communicated a notice of a marine animal taken on the coast of 

 Montrose, and presented to the British Museum by Mr. Beattie, Secretary of the 

 Montrose Natural History Society. Dr. Gray provisionally named it Lineus Beattiei, 

 after its discoverer. 



The Secretary read a paper containing the description of a web-producing lepidopte- 

 rous insect, from Wollombi, by A. W. Scott, Esq., member of the Legislative Assem- 

 bly in N. S. Wales. The paper was accompanied by a beautiful drawing, executed 

 by Miss Scott. 



The Secretary also read a paper by Mr. Lovell Reeve, containing descriptions of 

 six new shells from the collection of Sir David Barclay, of Port Luis, Mauritius. 



Mr. Sclater read a paper ' On a Collection of Birds made by Signor Matteo Bot- 

 teri in the vicinity of Orizaba, in Southern Mexico.' Of the species contained in this 

 collection upwards of 120 were the same as had been previously obtained by M. Salle 

 in the same country, and had been already mentioned in Mr. Sclater's papers upon 

 M. Salle's birds. Other (41) species were not included in M. Salle's collections, and 

 were now enumerated, with remarks upon their nomenclature, geographical distribu- 

 tion, &c. The Society's attention was particularly called to three specimens, — a very 

 curious American type, the Vireolanius metitophrys, Bp. ; a new Zonotrichia, pro- 

 posed to be named, after the discoverer, Z. Botterii; and an apparently new form of 

 Vireoninae, which was characterized under the title Neochloe brevipennis. 



Dr. Crisp exhibited a nest which he found, in May last, on the eastern coast of 

 Suffolk. It was covered with twigs and small branches like that of a magpie. Dr. 

 Crisp believed that it was the deserted nest of the great gray shrike (Lanius excubitor). 



Dr. Crisp read a second communication, on the presence or absence of air in the 

 bones of birds. The object of the author was to correct the prevailing error that the 

 bones of birds contain air, his conclusion being that the majority of British birds have 

 no air in their bones, and that, with the exception of the Falconidae, but very few Bri- 

 tish birds had hollow femora. — D. W. M. 



Entomological Society. 

 May 4, 1857. — W. W. Saunders, Esq., President, in the chair. 



Donations. 



The following donations were announced, and thanks ordered to be given to the 

 donors : — ' Proceedings of the Royal Society,' Vol. viii. No. 25 ; presented by the So- 

 ciety. 'Journal of the Proceedings of the Linnean Society,' Vol. i. No. 4 ; by the So- 

 ciety. ' Revue et Magasin de Zoologie,' 1857, No. 3; by the Editor, M. F. Guerin- 

 XV. 3 H 



