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Show 674 MR. THEOBALD ON CERTAIN SPECIES OF TORTOISES. [Nov. 1, received it from Mr. Thomas H. Potts of Canterbury. The bird, though only a few days old, had its bill very distinctly bent to the right side, quite as much so in proportion to its size as the adult. Bill of Anarhynchus frontalis, pullus. Natural size. Prof. Newton remarked on the great increase in our amount of information respecting this very singular form within the last few years, chiefly owing to the pains taken in Europe by Mr. James Edmund Harting, F.Z.S. (Ibis, 1869, p. 304, pl. 8), and Dr. Hartlaub, F.M.Z.S. (P. Z. S. 1869, p. 433)-but most of all to the investigations in New Zealand carried on by Mr. Potts, who had had ample opportunities of studying the habits of the bird, and had contributed an interesting note respecting them to the ' Transactions and Proceedings of the New-Zealand Institute' (vol. ii. pp. 68, 69), besides a fuller account read before the Wellington Philosophical Society ou the 25th of June last, which would, no doubt, appear in the same journal in due time. Of this last a copy had been obligingly sent to Prof. Newton by Dr. Hector. The Secretary read a paper by Mr. W . Theobald, of the Geological Survey of India, containing " Observations on a Paper by Dr. J. E. Gray, entitled ' Notes on the Families and Genera of Tortoises ' &c," which had been communicated to the Society by Mr. W . T. Blanford, C.M.Z.S. After some preliminary observations, in the course of which it was stated that the author's personal acquaintance with some of the specimens referred to in Dr. Gray's paper might be held to qualify him to make critical remarks on the subject, Mr. Theobald proceeded to treat of certain species of Tortoises mentioned in Dr. Gray's paper (P. Z. S. 1869, p. 165 et seq.) in the following order:- 1. TESTUDO INDICA (Gray, I. c. p. 168). As regards this species, Mr. Theobald insisted that it was time that the error which, in his opinion, was conveyed by the trivial name indica as applied to this species should be abandoned in scientific works, since not a single species of the group containing T. indica (if the aberrant T. phayrei, Blyth, be excepted) was known to occur either in India proper or in Burmah. 2. TESTUDO (SCAPIA) FALCONERI (Gray, I. c. p. 169). This species, Mr. Theobald observed, had been based by Dr. Gray upon a skull " received in Dr. Falconer's collection and presented to the British Museum by his brother on his death." The locality " India " given by Dr. Gray, M r . Theobald considered must be incorrect, as the only species of Testudo inhabiting India proper was |