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Show 1874.] DR. T. S. COBBOLD ON NEW OR RARE ENTOZOA. 125 these minute prominences carefully (fig. 3). There were two short conical papillae placed within about the -phi? °f a a ^ncn fr°m tne actual extremity, the point itself being furnished with an excessively minute prominence, whose base scarcely exceeded the rg^nro °^ a n inch in diameter. There was a very distinct appearance of a centrally placed duct (which I regarded as the tubular extension of a large caudal gland), the end of which had apparently become detached from the interior of the minute terminal papilla. As already remarked by Dujardin, the lateral lines of the body are brown-coloured and very conspicuous. I was particularly struck with the remarkable distinctness of the contents of the seminal tubes, whose separate particles could readily be seen through the thick integuments. Unwilling to injure the specimen, which I afterwards returned to Mr. Smith, I merely inserted the point of a fine needle into the main channel, and thus obtained a large quantity of the spermatozoa. These small particles, notwithstanding their long immersion in strong spirit, presented a tolerably characteristic appearance-the larger and fully formed corpuscles giving a long diameter of J-^JJ of an inch (fig. 4). I may add that several of the corpus'cles displayed, more or less perfectly, the well-known flask-shaped envelopes so often described in connexion with this group of parasites. 5. SPIROPTERA TURGIDA, Duj. (Plate XVIII. fig. 5.) O n the 15th of April, 1873, I examined the contents of a small phial in which were two W o r m s that I had long previously received from Dr. Murie. They were sent to m e during the time of his official connexion with the Society's Menagerie. The smaller parasite, as was stated on a label, came from the stomach of an Opossum (Didelphys azarce). The worm was evidently a female, but, unfortunately, not in a satisfactory state of preservation. It measured more than an inch in length by-j^" in breadth. The accompanying figure may be useful (fig. 5) ; but the minute characters were mostly either lost or obscured. The mouth was round, and certainly furnished with several minute teeth, the number of which could not be accurately ascertained. 6. ASCARIS CUSPIDATA, T. S. C. (Plate XVIII. fig. 6.) The larger of the two W o r m s above mentioned appears to be new to science. Dr. Murie labels it as having been obtained from the stomach of a Green Monkey. I have little doubt that his record refers to one of the Monas (Cercopithecus). The W o r m is a true Ascaris, and, although a male, measures fully 3\ inches from head to tail. Owing to imperfect preservation, the spicules have been lost. The three oral lobes are particularly prominent. The caudal extremity is furnished with a very fine spine, or cusp, formed by an extension of the epidermis (fig. 6). This minute cusp curves backwards, and measures only -fihm m c n *n lengtn by t n e swins mca m breadth at the narrowest part. The anal aperture is placed at a distance of -£$ inch from the extremity of the tail. The eggs have a long diameter of about the ^ 0 of an inch. |
