ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY, MICROSCOPY, ETC. 
•285 
Trapeziidse.* * * § — Dr. A. E. Ortinann furnishes a systematic revision 
of this family of Decapods — a revision which seems to be much needed. 
He brings structural characters (of shape) into the foreground, and 
corrects the undue emphasis which has been laid upon colour. Three 
genera are recognised, — Trapezia , Tetralia, and Quadrella. The Tra- 
pezikke live among living corals, excepting only Quadrella coronata from 
among pearl-mussels. They are strictly littoral animals of the low- 
tide mark zone, the deepest habitat recorded being 22 fathoms for Trap, 
cymodoce. They occur in the whole Indo-Pacific region where there 
are coral-reefs ; they are entirely absent, however, from the east side 
of America. The conclusions to be drawn from the distribution are 
discussed at some length. 
Hew Paguridse.'f — Prof. J. R. Henderson reports on fourteen species 
collected by the £ Investigator ’ in 1893-4 in the Indian Ocean. Of the 
fourteen, no less than seven are new r — Eupagurus pergranulatus, Pylo- 
pagurus magnimanus, Gdtapagurus muricatus , Paguristes pusillus, P.puni- 
ceus, Parapagurus andersoni , and P. minutus. The large proportion of 
new species is not remarkable when the deep-water habitat of the 
majority is taken into consideration. 
Freshwater Crustacea of South Africa.^ — Prof. M. Weber’s memoir 
on the freshwater fauna of South Africa includes an account of the 
Crustacea collected. In this he was helped by Dr. J. C. PI. de Meijere 
and Dr. J. G. De Man. The new forms are Sesarma eulimene De Man, 
and Leander capensis De Man. The whole collection included only 
twelve species, and of these only Telphisa is regarded as genuinely “ re- 
gional and local.” Other forms, such as species of Palsemon and Caridina , 
Sesarma eulimene , and Varuna litterata, are regarded as immigrants 
from the sea. 
Mysidse of the Caspian. § — Prof. G. 0. Sars describes a collection 
made by Dr. Grimm. The largest is a very magnificent form, Paramysis 
Eessleri, nearly 40 mm. in length. Between Paramysis and Mesomysis, 
a new genus Metamysis is established. The collection includes six new 
species. 
New Cave Isopod. j| — Dr. B. Nemec describes Trichoniscus stygius 
sp. n. from the Gabroviza grotto near Trieste. It certainly belongs to the 
genus Trichoniscus , but it is probably identical with Joseph’s Typhloniscus 
stygius. The author discusses in a very unprejudiced manner the possible 
origin of blind cave animals, like this Isopod, whether (1) from congeni- 
tally blind ancestors who found the caves safe and congenial, or (2) 
from ancestors whose eyes degenerated in darkness, either (a) by direct 
modification, or (b) indirectly, the absence of light determining the direc- 
tion of intra-selection and germinal selection. 
Amphipods of the Caspian.1T — Prof. G. 0. Sars describes 25 species of 
Amphipods from the Caspian, which raises the number of carefully 
* Zool. Jahrb. (Abth. Syst.), x. (1897) pp. 201-16. 
t Journ. Asiatic Soc. Bengal, lxv. (1896) pp. 516-36. 
t Zool. Jahrb. (Abth. Syst.), x. (1897) pp. 135-200 (1 pi.). 
§ Bull. Acad. Imp. Sci. St. Pe'tersbourg, iii. (1895) pp. 433-58 (8 pis.). 
|| Yerh. K. K. Zool. Bot. Gesellscli. Wien, xlvii. (1897) pp. 58-64 (1 pi.). 
1 Bull. Acad. Imp. Sci. St. Petersbourg, iv. (1896) pp. 421-S7 (12 pis.). 
