534 
SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 
tozoa, is its encysted phase. It is true that the enclosure of the general 
protoplasm in a cyst-wall may be compared with the fruit formation and 
other cyst-like productions of the Mycetozoa ; but, on the other hand, it 
is to be noted that the physiological character of its cysts, the activities 
of the encysted organism, and the great relative duration and importance 
of the encysted phase are peculiar to Chlamydomyxa , and may be ex- 
plained by the fact that this organism is an inhabitant of fresh water, 
and subjected to the changes of temperature and evaporation of the 
water which we know are frequently associated with special protective 
structures and aberrant phases of growth and activity. 
