217 
GASTROTHYLAX BUBALIS, N. SP. WITH A FEW 
NOTES ON THE GENUS GASTROTHYLAX 
(POIRIER). 
Bv J. ALEXANDER INNES. 
{From the Zoological Laboratory, University of Aberdeen.) 
(With 8 Text-figures.) 
The trematode described in this paper was found by Dr Alexander 
Brown, British Central Africa, in the stomach of a Rhodesian hartebeest 
{Bubalis sp.). About 120 specimens were collected and placed at my 
disposal for investigation by Dr John Rennie, Lecturer on Parasitology 
in this University, to whom I am much indebted for the use of the 
interesting material. The specimens proved to belong to a new species 
to which the name Gastrothylax bubalis has been given. Although a 
fuller knowledge of recorded species rather than the recovery of new 
trematodes is to be desired, it is hoped that the description of this 
parasite may be interesting from the fact that the genus includes only 
ten other known species. 
Technique. The parasite was of such dimensions that a single 
specimen could not be mounted whole as an entire preparation, and 
therefore several sets of serial sections were prepared. In spite of the 
thick, tough cuticle it was found that the sections cut quite well at a 
thickness of 10 p., if the time taken in the various paraffin baths was 
considerably shortened. If the process of embedding took longer than 
two hours the specimens became very brittle and serial sectioning was 
practically useless. Both transverse and longitudinal serial sections 
were made, but the latter were the more valuable. Staining with 
haematoxylin and eosin gave good results but for all purposes staining 
in bulk with paracarmine (Mayer) for three days, and then differentiating 
14—5 
