38 



The Naturalist. 



been so fortunate as to find one of the wing cases, and one of the 

 thoracic plates of a beetle of yet unknown affinities. The labour of 

 further investigation, and of identifying the mosses, if that be possible, 

 I have placed in abler hands — the hands of one of our society's 

 honorary members, Mr. John Whitehead. 



" It would, T think, be unreasonable, and scarcely in accordance with 

 the teachings of geological science, to expect that the plants under 

 examination would be identical with those to be met with in the 

 latitude of Oldham at the present day. When these mosses, &c., 

 adorned the earth with their bright green cushions, we had perhaps 

 not exactly an arctic climate, but a sub-arctic one. Our summers were 

 short and our winters were long : the higher hills were covered with 

 snow the year round ; the valleys sent down their glaciers, the 

 vegetation was scanty, and had but a limited area upon which it could 

 find shelter and sustenance ; the sea shore was ice-bound in winter, 

 and in summer the surrounding waters were chilled by the presence of 

 innumerable icebergs which, partly melting, here dropped their heter- 

 ogenous burden of clay, boulders, pebbles, gravel, and sand, on the 

 then sea bottom, now the land upon which we stand to look, to think, 

 and to wonder. Should it be possible to identify these beetles, mosses, 

 stems, roots, &c., with species now living, I will venture to predict 

 that it will be found that their present habitat is in more northern 

 latitudes, or at a considerable altitude on our mountains, where alone 

 they meet with the temperature and other conditions that they 

 require." 



THE FLOEA OF CARNAKVONSHIRE AND ANGLESEA. 



C Continued. ) 



By J. E. Griffith, F.L.S., F.R.A.S. 



ALISMACE^. 



Butomus nmhellatus, L. (A) Cors ddygai ; (C) ditches near Llan- 

 dudno. 



Alisma Plantago, L. Abundant in both counties. 

 A. raminculoides, L. (A) Cors ddygai, &c. 



A . natans. (A) Cors ddygai ; also between Towyn Capel and Forth 



Dafarch, near Holyhead. 

 Triglocliin palustre, L. Frequent in both counties. 

 T. maritimum, L. (A) Near Menai Bridge, &c. ; (C) between Aber 



md Llanfairfechan, &c. 



