OBSERVATIONS ON TESTUDO NIGRITA — WAITE. 
101 
EGG. 
WEIGHT IN 
GRAMMES. 
DIMENSIONS IN 
MILLIMETRES. 
GREATEST 
CIRCUMFERENCE. 
A. 
99-2 
569 
X 
53-4 
175-2 
B. 
106-7 
56-8 
X 
55-5 
C, 
109-8 
57-8 
X 
55-5 
1810 
D. 
1059 
58-2 
X 
55-2 
181-8 
E. 
106-4 
58-9 
X 
550 
F. 
85-8 
598 
X 
54-8 
180-4 
Other Tortoises. 
In the Museum collection are four examples of Testudo nigrita . 
These may be tabulated as follows : — 
A. The female (and skeleton) already dealt with. 
B. A smaller female, mounted in the Museum. 
C. Carapace and plastron of another example, possibly a male. 
D. Skeleton of a much larger specimen, also believed to be a 
male. 
The last named is the only other one of which I can gather any 
information. It was brought to Sydney in a schooner about the 
year 1860, and from that time to the date of its death it was an 
inhabitant of the Museum grounds. It not infrequently wandered 
into the street, arid on one such occasion a cart collided with it 
and broke in part of the carapace, the injury being now very 
apparent. The specimen has not been well cared for in the past, 
and the mandible and portion of the tail bones have been lost. 
This collection of four is an interesting one, and shows well to 
what extent the shape and structure of the shell alters with age. 
In the younger examples the concentric stride of the shields are 
extremely well marked (almost absolute in the adult), the free 
edges of the carapace are much more deflected, especially on the 
posterior border, while the costal sutures are more deeply cleft. 
Another feature exhibited by the immature form is the greater 
prominence of the knobby protuberances of the carapace. 
The dimensions of the three smaller examples have been ascer- 
tained, as below : — 
Carapace. 
Length over curve ... 
„ in straight line 
Width over curve ... 
,, in straight line 
Plastron. 
Length 
Width 
B? 
Cc? 
mm. 
mm. 
mm. 
905 
840 
930 
710 
715 
755 
950 
920 
960 
540 
515 
550 
590 
580 
640 
590 
510 
540 
