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Show 336 MR. F. E. BEDDARD ON EARTHWORMS [Mar. 16, in Queensland (and the rest of the Australian continent) ; spines powerful, closely set, and entirely hiding the hairs ; 2nd claw on hind foot very long. Hab. Common in all localities visited in Arnhem Land, inhabiting hilly and mountainous country. Not seen at Roebuck Bay (N.W. Australia). The Echidna is highly valued for food by the natives and, according to Dr. Dahl, its flavour is excellent. Native names : Melk, Guarang. 3. On a Collection of Earthworms from South Africa, belonging to the Genus Acanthodrilus. By F R A N K E. B E D D A R D , M.A., F.R.S., &c. I have to thank Mr. W. L. Sclater, F.Z.S., Director of the South African Museum, for kindly forwarding to me a well-preserved series of Earthworms and also a few aquatic species, collected in the neighbourhood of Cape Town by Mr. Pureed of the South African Museum, and forming part of the collection .of that Museum. The worms were without exception in an excellent state of preservation for microscopical work, having been prepared with chromic acid or corrosive sublimate, followed by alcohol. Extremely few specimens of Oligochaeta have been hitherto collected in the Cape Colony. I am only acquainted with Acanthodrilus capensis, Perichceta capensis, and Mlcrochceta the near neighbourhood of Cape Town. The new species of earthworms of which specimens are contained in the collection forwarded to me by Mr. Sclater all belong to Acanthodrilus (sensu strlcto). This fact is of considerable interest. Tropical Africa has numerous representatives of the family Acanthodrilidae; but they are all members of the wrell-marked genus Benhamia. Up till the present time the sole instance of a true Acanthodrilus from that continent is the species described by myself some years ago as Acanthodrilus capensis. I shall, however, comment more fully upon this new fact in the distribution of the genus after describing the new species. The table on p. 337 will serve to discriminate the species described in the present paper. The main points of difference are indicated in the table. All the species, however, agree in certain particulars. In all of them the clitellum is of somewhat limited extent-limited, that is to say, as compared with some other species of the genus. The utmost extent of that region is from segment xiii. to segment xvi. In only one species, A. africanus, is the clitellum less than this, and iu no species is it larger. In all these species the setae have an unusual, but not unknown arrangement. Tbe ventral setse are comparatively strictly paired ; they are at any rate closer together than are the lateral setae; aud in nearly all the species there is a closer approximation of the ventral setse in a few segments on |
