2 Verm. 
XV. VERMES. 
INTRODUCTION. 
Probably the most important work of the year is the treatise bv 
Benham (25), published under the editorship of Professor Ray Lankester, 
dealing with the phyla Platyhelmia , and Nemertini , w T hich are considered 
as quite distinct. The Mesozoa are left in a somewhat doubtful position 
as appendices to the Platyhelmia. In Shipley & MacBride’s r334) 
elementary text-book, Platyhehninthes , Nemertinea , Rotifera and Nematoda 
are treated as separate phyla. 
Another important work is Ehler’s (109) memoir on Patagonian and 
Chilian forms. 
Some of the most pressing questions as to the principles of nomen¬ 
clature are discussed by Stiles (352) and exemplified by cases occurring 
amongst parasitic worms. 
Contributions on the subject of Filaria and filariasis are numerous. 
Among the most important of them is the report by Annett, Dutton k 
Elliott (2) arising from the Liverpool expedition to Nigeria to investi¬ 
gate malaria. 
Spengel (343) has revised the taxonomy and nomenclature of Herui- 
cliordata. Cohn gives a comprehensive systematic and anatomical work 
(80) on Avian Cestodes. The important work on excretion in Annelids 
by Willem & Minne (396) though dated 1900 probably only appeared in 
1901. 
Meyer (239) has produced an admirable memoir on the mesoderm of 
Annelids, in which he deals exhaustively with the structure and develop¬ 
ment of the various organs. Ikeda (166) has an excellent contribution on 
the development, structure and metamorphosis of Phoronis larva. 
The considerable work by Halkin (156) on the maturation, fertilization, 
segmentation and organogenesis of Polystomum integerrimum adds to the 
knowledge of Trematodes. Brumpt (59, 60) considers the question of hypo¬ 
dermic fertilisation in Hiru-dinea , which he considers a secondary and not 
primitive condition. Loeb (206) has proved that artificial parthenogenesis 
can be caused in Chcetopterus. The unfertilized eggs develope into swim¬ 
ming ciliated larvae (trocliophores) when treated with sea-water. From 
this he infers that the spermatozoon carries into the egg a catalytic sub¬ 
stance which accelerates the development. A set of excellent photographs 
illustrates the paper by Foot & Strobell (116) on the yolk-nucleus and 
polar rings in the egg of Allolobophora foetida. Attention may also be 
called to a very exhaustive paper by Schockeart (328) on the oogenesis 
of a Turbellarian. Rhumbler (311) has contributed a valuable paper on 
the behaviour of the nucleus in the blastomeres of certain Nematodes , and 
Gerard (132) a treatise on the maturation of the egg in Polyclads. 
Braun’s (51) paper on the Trematodes of the Cheloma contains descrip¬ 
tions of numerous species, two of them new, as well as much useful 
synonymy. 
Bardeen (14) contributes much valuable knowledge on the subject of 
regeneration in Planarians, and Rabes (303) an extensive paper on graft¬ 
ing and regeneration experiments in Lumbricidce. The memoir by Rand 
(306) on the histology of the regenerating nervous system of Lumbricidce, 
and the centrosome of its nerve cells is a thorough piece of work. A 
considerable addition to the knowledge of the muscular system of Oligo- 
chceta has been made by Bock (34). 
Friedlander (119 & 120) has an interesting discussion on general 
questions connected with the discovery of a Palolo worm in the Atlantic. 
A work on the supra-littoral fauna of the west of France by Ferro- 
niere (114) giving localities and biology of the spp., and discussing the 
effects of salt and fresh water and other agencies, such as dessiccation 
