88 



THE HATUEALIST. 



in which he has discovered it during the 

 present summer, viz : — from near Ather- 

 stone in Warwickshire, and near "West 

 Haddon, Northamptonshire . So far as we 

 know this appears to be the first time th^'s 

 species has been really identified as British, 

 although M, Deseglise includes it in his 



Synopsis specierum" published in the 

 Naturalist, Vol. i. p. 313, as British. In 

 Lindley's Monograph of the Roses, pub- 

 lished in 1820 it is stated to be only known 

 from Bieberstein's description. In his 

 ' * Review of the British Roses" Naturalist 

 Vol. i. p. 373, Mr. Baker includes it under 

 B. tomentosa, Smith. He wiites, "Of the 

 French species, I do not see how B. cuspi- 

 data, suhglohosa, tomentosa, and Andrzei- 

 ousMi are to be separated. Our common 

 North of England plant agrees with M, 

 Deseglise's description of cuspidata, and 

 to this he refers many of the specimens out 

 of a range of forms which I sent." These 

 remarks of Mr. Baker will probably account 

 for M. Deseglise including it as a British 

 species. For the benefit of those who may 

 not be acquainted with this plant, and in 

 order to facilitate its determination should 

 it be met with again, we transcribe a trans- 

 lation of its diagnosis from Boreau's Flore 

 du Centre, Yol. ii. p. 231. : — 



* ' B. cuspidata, M. Bieb. B. villosa, var. 

 montana, Durand ! Duq. Cat. PI. Lis. 

 A branching shrub with scattered prickles, 

 robust curved or hooked, petioles villose, 

 glandulose and covered with small spines ; 

 upper stipules dilated with pointed auri- 

 cles ; leaflets 6 to 7, rather large, more or less 

 pubescent above, softly villose and whitish 

 beneath, and sprinkled with small glands, 

 oval or elliptic lanceolate pointed, doubly 

 dentate, with the teeth glandulose pointed ; 

 peduncles hispid solitary or in tufts ; 

 Calyx-tube ovoid hispid ; sepals tomentose 

 glandulose with elongated appendages ; 

 styles bristly ; fruit rounded bristly, 

 crowned at maturity with the spreading 

 calyx. Flowers rose-coloured afterwards 

 white. June and July, (in France) rare." 



— C. P. HOBKIRK. 



Sanguisorha canadensis in PertTishire.—- 

 Mr. John Sim has sent us a specimen of 

 Sanguisorha canadensis, gathered by him 

 about a mile to the east of Perth and about 

 sixty yards from the North bank of the 

 Tay, on the 4th September, 1866. The 

 specimen sent is in full flower and was 

 growing in some quantity in hollow moist 

 ground, in two diff'erent localities about 

 one hundred yards apart from one another. 

 This is another interesting addition to our 

 aliens. — C. P. Hobkirk. 



Malformed Kitten. — A remarkable mal- 

 formation in the young of the domestic 

 cat came under my notice yesterday. It 

 was cast at Framlingham, near Norwich, 

 and lived three days. Its head v/as double, 

 the two crania being joined at the base, 

 forming one long one, somewhat resembling 

 a funnel. Its ears and lips are large, an 

 extra lip appearing between the upper and 

 lower ones. It has two bodies which join 

 at the chests. Two of the fore legs on one 

 side are perfect, on the other, they form a 

 double one with two perfect feet attached. 

 The hinder legs and tails are quite 

 perfect. I have seen malformed examples 

 of the domestic cat in several instances but 

 the above is I think the most remarkable. 

 — T. E. GuNN, August 23rd, 1866. 



Note on the distribution of Helix lapicida, 

 Linne. — Most Conchologists take it for 

 granted that this species is not found 

 further North than "Went Yale, near Pon- 

 tefract. It occurs, however, in some 

 abundance on the limestone rocks at Mal- 

 ham, in Craven, in company with Helix 

 rupestris, Studer., and I am inclined to 

 think that it will be found to have a still 

 more northern range; perhaps some of the 

 readers of the Naturalist may throw fur- 

 ther light on this subject. — George H. 

 Parke, Halifax. 



