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Show 2 5 6 UR. W. B. BENHAM OX [Nov. 15, possibly premature. No such mountain occurs on ordinary maps of New Zealand as " Mt. Wellington," and I therefore consulted Prof. H. B. Kirk, who has an extensive first-hand knowledge of the geography of the North Island : in response to my query, he informs me that " Mt. Wellington is one of the small volcanic cones just out of Auckland. It is, now, under grass, and is in a fully cultivated district." The geographical doubt is thus set at rest; for Schmarda visited Auckland, and at that period (1860, about) it is probable that little or no cultivation had then been carried on on this .small mountain ; and, in light of these new observations of mine, it seems that we must now admit into our fauna Schmarda's species. Our knowledge of its internal anatomy is due to Beddard ('92), who recognised that it belonged to the genus Megascolides, as he understood it, but by Michaelsen it is placed in Fletcher's genus JVotoscolex ; but as we did not know the condition of the nephridia in the posterior end of the body, it is impossible to be sure of the correctness of the genus. (See later.) JV. orthostichon appears-from the necessarily brief account given by Beddard-to differ from the species of Tokea only in the .size of the prostate, which that zoologist states is " short and tubular." He says nothing as to whether it is confined to one segment or extends beyond i t ; but presumably it does not exhibit the characteristic disposition found in Tokea, though, as we see, in T. hnttoni this gland is " short " as compared with its length in the other species, as it only traverses three segments. It is remarkable, however, that it differs from all the other species of JVotoscolex, in which the clitellum covers fewer than ten segments, and in which the arrangement of the chajtse is unchanged at the posterior end of the body (Michaelsen, '00), in that the chsetse are equidistant (i. e. the formula is ah = bc = cd), as is the case with several of my species; and if we suppose that it does belong to the same genus as do the seven new species herein described, it might be suggested that one or other of the latter is identical with JV. orthostichon, especially as I have obtained two species from Auckland. Let us, then, examine such characters which appear to be specific as Beddard mentions. Firstly, it has two pairs of spermathecte, in which it agrees with T. kirhi and T. maorica- the latter of which came from the Auckland district. The other Auckland species, T. suteri, is out of court, as it possesses three pairs of spermatheca*. The two species to which it presents this resemblance have very different forms of spermathecse. Unfortunately, Beddard's description is too meagre to allow us to judge whether in JV. orthostichon the organ resembles either of them ; for, he says, " each [spermatheca] has a small diverti-' culum, pyriform in shape like the main pouch." Such a general description applies to several of the above species. Now, in T. maorica the duct of the spermatheca is very wide |
