76 
GAMMARIDiE. 
to ascertain that circumstance from specimens in which 
the more prominent features have been lost. The two 
anterior pairs of limbs bear an affinity to those of the 
genus Talitrus, The first pair are strong and robust, 
having the finger sharp and straight, and incapable of 
being indexed upon the hand, which is of considerable 
length, and gradually tapering to its extremity, where 
it is not broader than the base of the finger : the coxa 
of this pair of limbs is very thin and transparent, pro- 
jecting so far anteriorly that (when the head is bent 
downwards) it covers all but the last joint of the 
peduncle of the inferior antennas, which is clearly seen 
through it. The second pair of limbs are much longer 
than the first; they are exceedingly thin and slender, 
and exhibit, in a marked degree, the peculiarity of the 
genus, in having the third joint remarkably long : the 
wrist also is very long, being much longer than the hand, 
which is very short, and furnished with a very short 
finger, so that the organ can but be of little value in 
grasping or securing any object of prey, a circum- 
stance which would again suggest to us the habits of a 
vegetable rather than a carnivorous feeder. The third 
and fourth pairs of limbs are similar in form, except 
that the coxa of the fourth pair has a deep emargination 
for the reception of the anterior lobe of the coxa of the 
fifth pair. The three posterior pairs are also formed 
upon a uniform plan, and scarcely differ in length ; the 
posterior margins of the broad squamiform plates of the 
second joints are scalloped, a small hair springing from 
the depression formed by each scallop. The caudal 
appendages are short, and in general form approximate 
those of leaping rather than those of swimming amphi- 
poda. The penultimate pair are shorter than either the 
preceding or the following ; they all have their branches 
