).U'C{^^^i^J »- ^/ FOR THE PEOPLE FOR EDVCATION FOR SCIENCE LIBRARY OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY /'Bound! it 1 A..M.N.H. V 1922. THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST, VOL. XXXVI., 1919-20. THIE Victorian Naturalist: THE JOURNAL & MAGAZINE OF THE ^ V»^ ( ^\AY, 1919, TO APlilL, 19-20. 1bOn. HDltOr : MR. F. (i. A. BARNARD. The Author of each Article is responsible for the facts and opinions recorded. /I5 c I b 0 u r n c : WALKER, MAY ct CO., PRINTERS, 429-431 BOURKE-STRFKT 19:10. THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST MAY, 1919, to APRIL, 1920. CONTENTS. Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria : — _ pack Annual Report - - - - - 42 Exhibition of Wild-flowers - - - 98, 105, 136 Proceedings 1, 21, 41, 53, 65, 81, 97, 109, 121, 133, 149, 161 Reports o+" Excursions 1, 3, 41. 53, 58, 65, 81, 100, 109, 114, 116, 121, 124, 136, 149, 153, 161 ORIGINAL PAPERS. Barnard, F. G. A. — Notes of a Visit to Western Aus- tralia - - - - - 24 Booth, J., M.C.E., B.Sc— About "Pet Peter," a Flying Phalanger - - - - - 49 CuRRiE, Miss C. C. — The Birds of a Gippsland Garden - 85 DALE^f, C, B.A., F.L.S.— At Wartook rGrampians) - 141 GouDiE, J. C. — Notes on the Coleoptera of North-Western Victoria: Part VII. - - - 117 Luc.\s, A. H. S., M.A., B.Sc— A Week Amonti the Sea- weeds at Portsea - - - - 60 Luc\s, .\. H. S.. M.A., B.Sc— Ferns Grown in the Open - 89 Nethercote, Tvliss G. — A -Girls' Camp at the National Park (Wilson's Promontory) - - 126 Searle, J. — The Gleanings of a City Naturalist - 71 Taylor. Griffith, D.Sc, B.E. — A Scientist in Antarctica 5 Weindorfer, G., and Frxnxis, G.-Wild Life in Tas- mania - . _ _ 157^ 165 Williamson, H. B. — Notes on the Census of Victorian Plants - ^ - - - 11 vi INDEX. INDEX. PAGE PACK Abnormal Tadpoles - 148 Evelyn. Excursion to 109 Antarctic. A Scientist in 5 Exhibition of Wild-flowers 98. Asiur clams 54 105, 136 At Wartook (Grampians) 111 Ferns Grovv'n in Open 8.^ 5, 89 Audas, J. W.— Through Field Naturalists' Club of the Murra Murra Victoria — Country (Western Annual Report 42 Grampians) 163 Excursions — Austral Avia^i Record 147 Alphington 100 Australian Trees and Beaumaris - 1 , 49 Shrubs - - - 23 Belgrave - 138 Australian Wattles - 59 Bendigo - 100 Barnard, F. G. A.— A Cheltenham SI Visit to Western Eltham and St. Australia - - - 24 . Helena - - 109, 114 Beaumaris, Excursion to 1 Emerald - - 109, 124 Belgrave, Excursion to 138 • Emerald-Beaconsfield 100 Bell-bird and Bell Miner 67 Evelyn 109 Bendigo. Excursion to - 100 Evelyn to Montrose - 41 Birds of Gippsland Garden 66 Fitzroy Gardens 121, 136 Booth, J.— About Pet Franks ton 121 Peter, a Flying Pba- Geological INIuseum - 41 langer - - 22 49 Hurst Bridge 65 Bovonia- anemonifolia 101, 102 Loch Valley 153 Butterfly. Australian Ad- Macedon 1 miral _ - - 68 Melton 161 Caladenia dilatata (white) 100 :\Iont Albert and Bal- Cassytha melavtha - 112 wyn - - KH), IK) Census of Victorian National Museum : Plants . - - 2 . 11 Ethnologv 53 Cheltenham. Excursion to 81 Richmond Quarries - 3 Chlamvdopsis, A Rare Ringwood 81 Beetle 123 Studley Park - 41 , 58 Coleoptera of XAV. Vic- Sydenham 149 toria - - - - 117 Zoological Gardens - 161 Cryptandra amara - 102 Exhibition of Wild-flowers Cudmore, Mr. F. A. 65 98, 105, 136 Currie, Miss — Birds of a Financial Statement 46 Gippsland Garden 66 Office-bearers, 1919-20 - 48 Dalev, C— At Wartook - 111 Proceedings, 1. 21, 41, 53, Dicksonia a^tarcfica 54 65. 81, 97. 109. 121, 133. Dodder-Ivaurel 112 149, 161 T^dwardcs Park 54 Fish Remains of Xcw Zea- Eltbam and St. Helena, land - - - - lOS Excursion to - 109, 114 Fisheries, Rej-iort on \'ic- Emerald. Excnrsion to 109 124 torian 57 ErythrcFa ausiralis - 82 Fitzroy Gardens, 1-^xcur- Ethnology 53 sion to - - 121, 1 36 F:v:^lyn-Mon1roso. Excur- Flowers, Bendigo 103 sion to - - - 41 Fossil Bluff, A - 168 INDEX. PAGE Fossils from South Aus- tralia - - 66, 88 Frankston, Excursion to - 121 Fungus, The Luminous - 2 Geelong Field Naturalists' Club- - - - 132 ]\Iuseum, Visit Geological to - Gippsland Gleanings Birds of a 41 66 City Naturalist . - 54, 71 Goshawk, Grey-backed - 54 Goudie. J. C. — Coleoptera of N.W. Victoria - 117 Grampians, At Wartook - 111 Grampians, The Western - 163 Green Mountains, The - 20 Haloniscus searlei - - 59 Holiday Rambles - - 150 Hovea heterophylla - - 82 " In Australian Wilds " - 96 Isopod, A New - - 59 Lake Corangamite, &c., Map of - - - 132 Loch Valley, Excursion to 133, 153 Loch Valley, The - - 19 Lucas, A. H. S. — Ferns Grown in the Open 83, 89 Lucas, A. H. S. — Seaweeds at Portsea - 21, 60 Luminous Fungus - - 2 Macedon, Excursion to - 1 Macgillivray. Major Dr. - 53 Maovopus riificollis, var. henneiti - - - 167 'Ship — Corangamite, Sec. - 132 Melbourne Zoo, The - 108 Mont Albert and Balwyn, Excursion to - 109, 116 Mount Horsfall - - 156 Mundaring Weir, W.A. - 31 Musical Sands - - 151 National Museum, Visit to 53 National Parks 20, 126, 160 Nethercote, Miss G. — A Week at National Park - - 99, 126 New Zealand, Fossil Fish Remains of - - 108 Patey, The late Mr. B. R. 48 Peiaurus hreviceps - 22, 49 Phalanger, I he Lesser Flying - - 22, 49 Phascolomys uv sinus, var. tasmaniensis - - 158 Phosphorescence in Insects 55 Pleurotus candescent - 2 Portsea, Among Seaweeds at - - - - 60 Queensland's National Park 20 Richmond Quarries, Ex- cursion to - - 3 Ringwood, Excursion to - 81 Ruppia marithna - - 69 Science and Indnslvy - 52 Sea Tassel, Growth of - 69 Searle, J. — Gleanings of a City Naturalist 54, 71 Seaweeds at Portsea 21, 60 Selaginella sfolonifera - 151 i Shearsby, A. J. — Travertin I near Yass, N.S.W. - 162 I Snail, Food of Black - 134 Spencer, Retirement of Professor - - - 110 Studley Park, Excursion to - - - 41, 58 Sutton, C. S.— On the Growth of the Sea Tassel - - - 69 Sweet, The late Mr. George 164 j Table Cape, Tas. - - 168 Tadpoles, Abnormal - 148 Tasmania, Wild Life in 157, 165 Taylor, Griffith— A Scient- ist in the Antarctic - 5 The Gum Tree - - - 132 Travertin near Yass, N.S.W. - .- - 162 Wallaby, Bennett's - - 167 Wattles, Australian - - 59 Weindorfer, G., and Fran- cis, G.— Wild Life in Tasmania 122, 134. 157, 165 Western A.ustralia, Visit to 24 White Flowers - - 82 Wild Life in Tasmania 122, 134, 157, 165 Wombat, The Tasmanian 158, 165 Williamson, H. B. — Notes on the Census of Vic- torian Plants - 2, 11 Wilson's Promontory, A Girls' Camp at -' - 126 Yallingup Cave, W.A. - 33 Zoo. The Melbourne - 108 INDEX. ILLUSTRATION, PA«K Growth ol Sea Tassel - - - - - 70 ERRATA. Page 66, line 24- For " Croydon " read " the Abattoirs." Page 68, line 7 from bottom — For " Croydon " read " the Ab- attoirs." (See note on page 88.) I'age 86, line 6 — For " acacia seeds " read " insects." (See ex- planation on page 88.) I*agc 97, line 10 from bottom— For " Bell Miners " read " Bell- birds." Page 104, last line — For " Hakea rigida " read " //. nigosu." (See text, page 103.) l^age 107— In second paragraph, insert " Mr. F. Keep, Moiml- field, Canterbury." Page 1.32, line 5— For " Arthrotaxis " read " Athroiaxis." Page 135, line 12 — Delete words " long mistaken for an insect." Page 142, line 21 — For " myrsinoides " read " lanigerum." tbe Uictorian naturalisi Vol. XXXVI.— No. 1. MAY 8, 1919. No. 425. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 14th April, 1919. Mr. J. Gabriel, one of the vice-presidents, occupied the chair, and about forty-five members and visitors were present. CORRESPONDENXE. From the Chief Secretary, in appreciation of the Club's congratulatory motion and letter on the firm attitude taken by him with respect to the recent attempt to vary the quail season. REPORTS. In the absence of the leader, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., a report of the excursion to Macedon on Saturday, 22nd March, was given by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, who said that about ten members had proceeded to Macedon by the first train and then driven to Upper Macedon, where, after morning tea, the grounds of Government Cottage were inspected, and several rare specimen trees and shrubs seen. The members then pro- ceeded through the pine plantation of the Forest Department to the top of the range, about 3,000 feet above sea-level ; thence tracks were followed to Taylor and Sangster's nursery, where the manager pointed out a number of plants which do well only in the higher elevations. Many of the specimen trees were conspicuous by the autumn tints of their foliage. After- noon tea was taken at " Rosebank," and the party returned to town by the 6 p.m. train. A report of the excursion to Beaumaris on Saturday, 27th March, was given by the leader, Mr. J. Shephard, who said that about a dozen members, together with some members of the Microscopical Society, had taken part in the outing, which was favoured by fine weather and a suitable tide. Since the last excursion to the locality the electric tram, which covers part of the distance, had been opened, rendering Beaumaris more easy of access. A number of marine worms, polyclads, and nereids had been obtained, also calcareous sponges, of which details would be published later. ELECTION OF MEMBERS. •On a ballot being taken, Mr. G. P. Webb, Canterbury-road, Canterbury, was duly elected a member of the Club. 2 Field Naturalists' Cluh—Pyoceedings. [vof.'''xxxvi.. REMARKS ox EXHIBITS. Mr. H. B. Williamson called attention to a number of speci- mens of the luminous fungus, Pleurotiis candescens, collected at Clayton, and exhibited their phosphorescent character by affi.xing them to the blackboard and then turning off the lights for a short time. DISCUSSIOX ox PAPER. The chairman said that the discussion on Mr. Barnard's paper on Western Austraha, postponed from last meeting, would then be taken. Mr. H. B. WilHamson asked for information re the Sandal- wood, which had not been mentioned in the paper. Mr. Barnard said that he had not met with the tree in the parts he had visited, and beheved it had a more northerly habitat. Mr. Anthony asked if there was any reason for the paucity of species of ferns recorded for Western Australia. Mr. Barnard said that he could not understand why ferns were not more numerous in the south-west, seeing that the average rainfall was as large as that of the fern gullies of Victoria. Mr. Best asked if there was any accommodation for travellers between Port Augusta and KalgoorUe. The author rephed that Tarcoola seemed to be- the only place where there were other houses than those of the railway employes. PAPER READ. By Mr. H. B. Williamson, entitled " Notes on the Census of Victorian Plants." The author remarked that for some time he had been of opinion that a number of plants listed in the " Key to the System of Victorian Plants " had not been collected in Victoria, and said that recently he had been given the opportunity of examining certain species at the National Herbarium, which had convinced him that a number of plants were regarded as Victorian on insufficient data, arising mainly from indefiniteness in recording the locality where found. He furnished lists of about i8o species regarding which he considered further information should be sought, and, if possible, undoubted Victorian specimens collected. Mr. J. Shephard emphasized the author's remarks regarding the correct naming ot specimens exhibited or mentioned in reports of Club excursions. Mr. E. E. Pescott, F.L.S., said that he thought deletions from the list should be made with great caution. Mr. F. Pitcher, as a member of the Plant Names Committee, considered that the paper would prove very useful to tlic ^'^y'j Field Naturalists- Club — Proceedings. 3 committee, and said that he was not in accord with the author when he suggested that because only one specimen of a plant had been found in Victoria such a plant should not appear in the Victorian list. Mr. P. R. H. St. John also congratulated the author on his good work. He regarded correctness of records as of the utmost importance. He had on one or two occasions called attention to doubtful records in excursion reports. Mr. J. Searle would not refuse to recognize a plant as Vic- torian because it had been found in only one locality, and instanced a case in point. Owing to the lateness of the hour it was decided to postpone the paper by Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., entitled " A Week Among the Seaweeds at Portsea," until next meeting. EXHIBITS. By Mr. C. F. Cole. — Australian Coleoptera from various localities. By Miss C. C. Currie. — Flowering specimens of various eucalypts, including E. pikdaris, which had proved a great attraction to Honey-eaters and other birds recently, from Lardner, Gippsland. By Miss Amy Fuller. — Botanical specimens (undetermined) from sand plains of South-West Australia. By Mr. C. J. Gabriel. — Marine shells from South Australia : Stenochiton cymodocealis, Ashby, and S. juloides, Ad. and Aug., with their host plants, Cymodocea antarctica and Posidonia australis respectively. By Miss G. Nethercote. — A young Koala or Native Bear from Wilson's Promontory, kept by permission of the Fisheries and Game Department. By Miss G. Nokes. — Large specimen of the luminous fungus, Pleurotus candescens, from Sandringham. By Messrs. E. E. Pescott and C. French, jun. — ^Terrestrial orchids : Diuris longifolia, R. Br., collected by Rev. A. J. Maher at Cann River, East Gippsland (these specimens have purplish markings, causing the flowers to resemble those of D. maculata, Smith) ; and Prasophyllum Archeri, Hook, f., collected by Mr. J. E. Dixon at Warburton, April, 1919. By Mr. J. Searle. — Crustaceans and polychaete worms, collected on Portarlington excursion, January, 1919 ; marine •worms, &c., collected on Beaumaris excursion, March, 1919. By Mr. H. B. Wilhamson. — Specimens of luminous fungus, Pleurotus candescens, collected at Clayton by Miss L. Audsley. By Mr. F. Wisewould. — Fresh specimens of orchid, Eriochilus autiimnalis, and Native Heath, Epacris impressa (crimson variety), from Pakenham Upper. After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. 4 Excursion to Richmond Quarries. [voi!'^xxxvi. EXCURSION TO RICHMOND QUARRIES. The excursion to Richmond quarries on Saturday, 22nd Feb- ruary, announced for aquatic zoology and geology, was attended by about a dozen members, who were favoured with a pleasant afternoon. It was found that by the cessation of quarrying the holes had become filled with water to a greater depth than usual, and consequently the shallow pools, which were usually so prolific with minute life, had disappeared, and with them the unique alga, Monostroma expansa, West, which has been found nowhere else. A very uncommon arid interesting phenomenon, known as plastogamy, was seen in the heUozoan Actinophrys sol, of which many groups of two, and others up to eight in number, were seen uniting. Diatoms were found in myriads, apparently of about six species, including Bacillaria paradoxa, which never fails to excite interest, on account of its extraordinary powers of movement. Among other forms found were the protozoans, Arcella, sp.. Astasia tricophora, Vorticella, sp., Pyxicola, sp., Vaginicola, sp., Urocentrum turbo, and Trachelocera olor. Among the rotifers were Floscularia ornata, Pterodina patina. Rotifer vulgaris, and Brachionus, sp. Entomostraca were conspicuous by their absence. Those who were interested in the geology of the locality were somewhat disappointed to find that on the side nearest the railway quantities of rubbish are being deposited with the view of in time filhng up the excavations. The quarries nearer the Yarra are, however, still fruitful of interest to the observer, and an effort should be made rather to beautify them for the sake of the geological features which they possess. To the geologist the. basaltic flow exhibits several instructive features, the result of variable cooling, tabular blocks, columns, and concentric masses being easily apparent, whilst on the face of the quarries the weathering effects of atmospheric and chemical agencies are seen in the gradual passage of dense basalt upward to the derived clay or bleached product of disintegration. A pleasing feature of the quarries was the number of aquatic birds in the water, seemingly quite at home. About a dozen Black Swans and a small flock of Australian Coots swam about. Several Black and one or two Black and White Cormorants flew restlessly from place to place. Other birds were a Tippet Grebe and a Little Grebe, ceaselessly diving and reappearing, while a Silver Gull completed the feathered company. The birds seemed by their habits to be unmolested. If the quarries are falhng into disuse, as appears to be the case, those adjoining the river, containing a consider- able expanse of water, could with advantage be reserved for recreative purposes and as a sanctuary for water birds. — J. Stickland, J. Wilcox, and C. Daley. JJ^y*] Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic, 5 A SCIENTIST IN THE ANTARCTIC. By Dr. Griffith Taylor, B.E., B.A., F.G.S., F.R.G.S., Physiographer, Commonwealth Bureau of Meteorology. {Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, nth Nov., 191 8.) Captain Scott's last expedition left New Zealand on the 26th November, 1910. Dr. E. A. Wilson, already known for his Antarctic labours, was chief of the scientific staff, which con- tained four other scientists from Cambridge. Dr. Simpson, from India, was in charge of the meteorology, while there were three geologists, five biologists, and a physicist in the expedi- tion. Most of the naval officers also took a great interest in the scientific work, and our leader himself was a keen student of the chief features of the Antarctic environment, as his paper on the Ice Barrier (for the Royal Geographical Society) clearly shows. On the voyage to Cape Evans — which occupied five weeks — the biologists were perhaps the busiest scientists. But the study of the bergs and floe ice, together with the sounding work, gave the geologists much to do. The bergs were driven by the blizzards farther north than the floe ice. They were usually huge tabular sheets torn off from the Great Barrier ; but irregular or pinnacled bergs were not uncommon, and these were derived partly from glacier snouts and partly from disintegrated barrier bergs. One of the most interesting was about a mile long, and had originally been tabular. All along the face were enormous vertical joints, broadening into sea- caves below. These had split the berg into columns, so that it was wonderful how it held together ; but probably the portion under water had not been eroded by the waves, and still remained fairly solid. At each end was an isolated pillar, a hundred feet away from the main mass, and over a hundred feet high. It exactly resembled the classic geological example of weathering known as " The Old Man of Hoy." We were imprisoned in pack ice for nearly three weeks, and here made acquaintance with some of the characteristic Antarctic fauna. Snow-Petrels and other sea-birds flew around the rigging, and were occasionally caught by Wilson and Cherry-Garrard in loose snares. Others were shot and retrieved in the dinghy. It was queer work navigating the floes. Many were too slushy to stand on and yet too solid to admit of the boat's passage, so that some of our specimens were perforce abandoned. A few crab-eater seals were shot, and we found it a laborious job to get their heavy, unmanageable carcases aboard. They live on small Crustacea chiefly, and their ferocious-looking fanged teeth act only as sifters to free the shrimps from the water ; they are, therefore, in function, akin to the whale's baleen, Wilson set up a " flensing " table 6 Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic. [voilxxxvi. on which to lay the skins and carve off the thick layer of blubber which lies just beneath. The hides were rubbed with salt and rolled up for transport. The skeletons, I beUeve, were roughly cleaned, then dried, and carried quite satisfactorily until they reached the museums. Nelson and LilUe were busy getting deep sea temperatures by a very ingenious reversing cylinder. This was sunk at the end of miles of piano-wire, and samples of the bottom were also obtained on these lines. Forams and volcanic lava thus obtained were of interest to the geologist ; but our queerest collection was a set of specimens from the gizzard of an Adelie Penguin. There were three rock-types represented in this collector's gallery, and only ten years or so before they would have doubled our knowledge of Antarctic petrology ! Microscopic life swarms in these Polar seas. It is stated that there is almost as much protoplasm per acre of ocean as there is in a well-cultivated land crop. Most of this occurs as diatoms and infusoria, forams, and copepods ; indeed, almost every floe in its lower layers is stained yellow from the presence of millions of small diatoms allied to Corethron. Early in the new year of 191 1 we cruised along the slopes of Mount Erebus. On shore we could see the rookery of the Emperor Penguins, where Wilson's party nearly lost their lives in midwinter, 1911. It was now nearly empty — for this misguided bird lays its eggs in the middle of the long night. A little to the west was one of the largest Adelie Penguin rookeries. Here the rocks were brown with guano, while the seas teemed with shrimps {Euphausia), which formed the food of the innumerable Penguins. Along the edge of their territory prowled the killer whales ifirca gladiator). I should think the latter animal is as dominant in the southern seas as man is on the land ; and when (as happened on three occasions) there was a tussle between men and Orcas on the floating ice, it was the Orcas who gained a strategic victory ! In the South Polar Times this biological cycle was de- scribed in verse — which should appeal to naturaUsts, whatever the poets may think of it ! LIFE'S ROUND IN THE ANTARCTIC. " Big floes have little floes all around about them, And all the yellow diatoms couldn't do without them ; Forty million shrimplets feed upon the latter, And the shrimps make the Penguins and the Weddel Seals much fatter. Along comes the Orca and kills these down below, While up above the scientist attacks them on the floe. A bold explorer tumbles down and staves the mushy pack in ; He's crumpled up between the floes — and so they get their whack in. And there's no doubt he soon becomes a patent fertilizer, Invigorating diatoms — although they're none the wiser. So the protoplasm passes on its never-ceasing round. Like a huge recurring decimal — to which no end is found." ^^y-l Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic. 7 1919 J ' / We fixed our headquarters on a low promontory in MacMurdo Sound, now called Cape Evans ; and after three weeks of hut- building several parties set out for depot work or exploration. The two western parties — of which I had charge — surveyed in considerable detail the western shores of MacMurdo Sound and the adjacent Ross Sea for a distance of a hundred miles. Here the Great Ice Plateau, of 7,000 feet elevation, reaches within twenty miles of the sea ; but it is fringed by a range (rising to 13,300 feet in Mount Lister) which can only be traversed via the great outlet glaciers. Although some of these had been roughly charted, none except the Ferrar had been topo- graphically surveyed. Our chief studies, naturally, were concerned with geology, and especially with the evolution of the land surface. Only in two places did we come across any land flora. On a sunny debris slope at the snout of the Ferrar glacier we found a carpet of green moss, about sixty feet long, and in a similar situation in Granite Harbour there were thick clumps of peaty moss between the granite boulders. Save for a few lichens and for some algae in the small lakes, this is all the vegetation in 78° south latitude. The animal life along the coast has often been described. Weddel Seals were common, especially at the entrance to the Taylor Glacier. Here was a flock of some thirty individuals, and hereabouts also we found a troop of Emperor Penguins awaiting their moulting time. In the moss I was lucky enough to discover the first living insects — some small aptera, about a millimetre long, which I brushed on to seccotined paper, and so embalmed many thousands ! These insects must hold the record for hibernation, for they were frozen in an ice film even in midsummer, until I turned them toward the sun, when they moved slowly among the moss hyphae. The stratigraphy of Antarctica in this region is very like that of southern Australia. At the base are contorted schists and gneisses like those of Port Lincoln. Above these come red and grey granites of great thickness, forming cUffs two or three thousand feet high. Highest of all is a sedimentary series of yellow sandstones, called the Beacon sandstones. These are of Palaeozoic age. The chief feature, however, is a series of colossal dolerite sills (like those of Tasmania), which penetrate the granite in horizontal layers, often a thousand feet thick. One grand section in the Ferrar valley must be almost unique. Above the gleaming glacier is a thousand feet of talus of a brown tint. This reaches up to the red-grey granite. A little higher comes the lower black dolerite sill ; then more red granite ; then another black sill, and high above this the yellow pinnacles of the Beacon sandstone some 4,000 feet above the glacier. 8 Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic. [v^."^xxxvi. At Mount Suess, behind Granite Harbour, Debenham found some small plates in the sandstone. We diligently searched the locality, and found numbers of these plates — some bluish, and burnished almost like beetle elytra. They have been assigned to primitive armour-clad fish, and so determine the Beacon sandstone hereabouts as of Devonian age. Far to the south Wilson discovered well-preserved Glossopteris leaves, so that there the sediments and associated coal are akin to our Sydney coal-field. Here, also, Wright found a fine specimen of the primitive Cambrian " coral," Archeocyathince, in the Beardmore Moraine — near where Shackleton had also found relics of this fauna. In the far north Priestley also ■ added considerably to the Permian flora of East Antarctica, so that the expedition was very successful in fossil fields. The problem which interested me most was the evolution of a glacial landscape. Research in the Alps and elsewhere has shown that bygone glaciers have carved out great valleys and impressed many peculiar features on alpine scenery. But many problems are still unanswered. Of these the chief are the origin of the cirque (or " armchair ") valleys, and the actual mechanism of glacial erosion. In the great scarp bounding the west of MacMurdo Sound is a series of unrivalled cirques. The Walcott Cirque is twelve miles wide, with a rear wall 10,000 feet high, and a small glacier only a few miles wide occupies this great hollow. A complete series in different stages of evolution were mapped along the coast from Mount Morning to Mount Marston. These examples have led to what is, I believe, a somewhat novel theory of land erosion known as the " Palimpsest theory." I believe that the chief carving of the earth's surface in an Ice Age is done, not by glaciers, but by the action of King Frost. The gradual cooling and gradual warming at the onset and waning of the Ice Age extends through much longer periods than the age of maximum glacier development. In these lengthy periods " sapping " or frost-erosion is paramount. At this time most of the cirque valleys so characteristic of alpine scenery are cut out by a sapping process, too complicated to describe here. As the ice-fields increase and the glaciers pour down into the valleys, they carry ice-erosion deeper into the crust, but they often only partly obliterate the earlier erosion by sapping and frost action. Thus, the earlier landscape shows dimly — much as does the earlier writing in the Greek palimpsest. Most geo- logists have allowed the later erosion to engage their attention too often at the expense of the earlier and (in my opinion) even more important erosion by sapping. Many of the less fundamental features of ice erosion are most interesting. When a glacier reaches the sea ice it t)uckles the ^^^'1 Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic. g latter (often six feet thick) into great pressure waves up to twenty feet high. In similar fashion has the earth's crust been buckled in the process of mountain-building. All round the coast — long after the sea ice has vanished in summer — extends a long terrace known as the ice-foot. This is frozen spray, &c., attached to the land, and might have been invented to form a sledge-track for the explorer ! Every cape has a long snowdrift on its leeward side built by the southern blizzards. This hardens to ice in situ, and forms a small gla- cieret. In summer these often dam back small lakes, and we see in miniature the origin of the famous Glenroy Terraces which so puzzled early Scotch geologists. Only rarely in miles and miles of moraine does one come across the scratched blocks which used to be postulated as the indispensable evidence of a glacial deposit. Finally, I would add that Antarctica is too cold for maximum glacial erosion. Infinitely more work is being done by the ice in New Zealand than in Antarctica. I will devote the last few paragraphs of this article to a brief account of our life in the hut during the long winter night. Captain Scott early instituted a series of forty lectures. These were given, not only by the scientists, on all branches of science, but also by Pouting (our camera artist), and by most of the naval officers, on such subjects as travel, clothing, food, surveying, &c. Much time was spent in writing up records of the past summer's sledging, and also in preparing for the ensuing season ; but the vicinity of the hut offered many problems of its own. There were great •cones of debris, up to thirty feet high, which we found to be due to the complete weathering of huge monoliths of kenyte lava. The biologist kept a pool open in the sea ice right through the winter. Here, protected partly by a six-foot wall of ice from the furious blizzards, he dredged and took tem- peratures. To prevent the delicate organisms from getting frost-bitten, he used to carry them the mile to the hut in a thermos flask ! Nearer the hut we had fishing-holes, in which we sunk a wire fish-trap. Many weary half-hours have I spent hauling this contraption up at temperatures down to eighty below freezing ! All the fish were Notothenia, about eight inches long. Even forty of these (our greatest catch) did not go far among twenty-five stalwart explorers. In ice-grottos carved out of the living glacier were stationed the magnetographs and the pendulums. Here Simpson and Wright would engage in a " quick run." At this instant all over the earth similar magnetic records were being taken with a view to correlating them with aurorae, sun-spots, magnetic storms, &c. lo Taylor, A Scientist in the Antarctic^ [voT.'^xxx\ Sounding balloons were sent up to chart the upper air. They carried meteorographs, which recorded temperature pressure and humidity, and also a fine silk thread, which, like Penelope's web, was supposed to lead one to the fallen treasure ; but either the thread had snapped on an icy pinnacle or else the instru- ment had drifted over the open water or other accident had supervened. Few of us claimed the chocolate allotted to the successful tracker, but Simpson obtained sufficient records to add greatly to our knowledge of Antarctic aerology. Lieutenants Evans and Gran spent the spring months in a theodolite survey of the whole vicinity. Debenham and I plane-tabled Cape Evans — one of the coldest jobs I have ever tackled. One could hardly draw accurate lines muffled up as comfort required, and with temperatures of —40° thin gloves soon meant torture. Through the sleeping hours the night-watchman {i.e., each of the officers in rotation) kept watch in and around the hut. He would cast an eye to the east and see a glow over the crater of Erebus. To the south and east the dancing curtains of the Aurora often flashed across the sky. Usually they were grey or palest green, and were never so vivid as they appear in more northern regions. In foul weather, which occurred five days in the week, it would often be his unpleasant duty to free the pressure-anemometer (" bhzzometer ") from the bUzzard snow. Picture hifn muffled up and carrying an electric torch round the hut to the base of a frozen ladder. Up this he creeps in the teeth of a gale at seventy miles an hour. Sheets of snow drive past him into the bay, and seem to rock the roof across which he straddles. Here projects the tube of the " bhzzometer," and it is his unpleasant duty to excavate the snow therein until the tube is clear and the " bhzzometer " registering again. He returns to the shelter of the hut, knowing that it will probably be his lot to repeat the performance before his watch is over. So passed the long ni^it. Almost all the survivors of the expedition reached England in 1913. The scientific work was put in hand at once, and is being published by the British Museum ; but the Great War has naturally prevented any large output to date. However, nearly a dozen quarto memoirs, dealing with marine biology, penguins, whales, algae, fossils, &c., have already been pubhshed ; and, now that the war is happily over, science will come again to her own, and the publication of the scientific results of Captain Scott's last expedition will proceed apace. [The paper was illustrated bv a large series of lantern shdes. —Ed. Vict. Nat.] Jf^o'J W1LI.IAMSON, Census of Victorian Plants. 11 NOTES ON THE CENSUS OF VICTORIAN PLANTS. By H. B. Williamson. (Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 14th April, 1919 ) The " Key to the System of Victorian Plants," issued by Baron von Mueller in 1888, contained short descriptions of 1,890 species of plants, including 86 ferns and lycopods, which had been recorded as having been found in various parts of Victoria. This list, with supplementary lists published in the Victorian Naturalist, was regarded as our census until 1908, when, on the Plant Names Committee being appointed to consider the question of providing vernacular names for our plants, a " Recording Census " was prepared, under the direction of Professor Ewart, D.Sc, Government Botanist, and chairman of the committee, for the purpose of facilitating the work. Prof. Ewart had already, in the Naturalist for January, 1908 (xxiv., p. 144), thrown some doubt on certain Victorian plant records ; consequently there were some differences in the two lists, to which he referred in the Naturalist of April, 1909 (xxv., p. 200). The " Recording Census," which provided space for inserting various particulars regarding each species, was placed in the hands of all who might be expected to help in the aim referred to. Since then this list has undergone some slight alterations ; deletions and additions have been made, as well as some changes in nomenclature, in order to accord more with the rules adopted at a convention of the world's botanists, and to correct errors that had been made in departing from the nomenclature in Bentham's " Flora Australiensis," so that the Census now contains 2,090 species, and, as 30 species given in the " Key " have been dropped, it follows that the number of species added since 1888 amounts to 230. All but about a dozen have been added on the strength of plants gathered within the State, the actual specimens being now in the National Herbarium. These 12, together with about 188 species named in the '* Key," form the subject of this paper, which, perhaps, ought to have been entitled " The Rare Plants of Victoria." Now and again apparent errors have come under the notice of the Plant Names Committee during its considerations, and some of us have begun to doubt whether all the species named in the Census have really been gathered in our State, especially in view of opinions the compiler of the " Key " had expressed regarding certain plants growing near the boundaries. The inflation, if any, of our Census is certainly due almost entirely to von Mueller — or " the Baron," as we fondly remember him — and he may have made mistakes. If we investigate these 12 VJihi-iAMSOTSi, Census of Victorian Plants i [vX'^xxxvi. doubtful records we shall not, I am sure, be accused of trying to discredit him either as a botanist, an explorer, or as a careful observer and recorder, for we know that he was all of these in the highest degree. The types of his published species will stand for many years, and, with Bentham's confirmatory initials, will form a lasting monument to the name of Mueller. But it is to his locahty notes and indefinite place names on some of his labels that exception may be taken, and it is just possible that this indefiniteness has caused an inflation of our Census. If a plant has been recorded for Victoria, we should find the specimen in the National Herbarium, but many of our recorded plants are not represented in the Herbarium by specimens labelled with a definite Victorian locality. With the approval of Professor Ewart, and the kind help of the Herbarium assistants, I had the opportunity, during the recent holidays, of looking into some hundreds of species and examining several thousands of labels at the Herbarium, and from my investigations I have compiled lists including about i8o species which appear to be doubtful records for Victoria. When looking over the specimens I was impressed with the immense amount of work that had been done by the various collectors — in many cases enthusiasts who looked for no monetary return for their labours. Some, we know, received payment from the Baron, who was known to have used his income to obtain specirnens for investigation. This was one of his grievances, and no wonder ; he should have had, as every Government Botanist should have, one or more paid assistants, who could be detailed at any time to make field researches to supplement and sustain laboratory work. As to my method of investigation : I, of course, used my own herbarium as a guide. This contains 2,060 Victorian species, 1,300 of which had been collected by myself. Of the remainder, 360 were received in a fresh state from correspondents in different parts of Victoria, so that I had to confine my attention to about 400, more than half of which are repre- sented in my collection by specimens gathered in other States. A copy of the " Austrahan Census," written up to date, showing the whereabouts of each species, was placed at my disposal, so that it took only a minute or two to obtain the required species. I am grateful for the assistance given to me in the work by Mr. J. R. Tovey, senior Herbarium assistant, of whose thorough knowledge of the institution and good memory for references I took the fullest advantage. It was to me very interesting work, and I am much indebted to Professor Ewart for the privilege. On looking into the folders and reading the labels I came across interesting type- May.i Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants. tt 1919 J ' -^ J specimens (from which the plants were described), and there, also, I saw sprigs gathered in such widely-separated places as Victoria River and Roper River, Northern Territory, King George's Sound, Lord Howe Island, Menindie, Geraldton, Alice Springs, and I was sorely tempted to halt and study the varying forms due to diverse climatic conditions or differences of altitude, but for this there was no time. Accounts of early voyages and inland journeys were recalled by the specimens labelled with the following names as collectors : — Banks and Solander (1770), Robt. Brown (1802), Allan Cunningham (1817), Mitchell (1836), Dr. Leichhardt (1840), F. Mueller (1853-55), and those Victorian collectors of later years — Dallachy, who collected chiefly in the North- West and the Grampians ; Dr. A. W. Howitt, Gippsland ; and Bauerlen, East Gippsland. Other names occurring frequently on Victorian specimens were Reader (S. and N.W.), Walter (general), Alhtt (S.W.), Fullagar (S.), Jephcott (Hume R.), Sullivan (Grampians), Tisdall (Walhalla), Whan (Skipton), French and Stirling (Alps), D'Alton (N.W.), Macmillan (Gippsland), Findlay (Towong), Campbell (Grampians), Wilhelmi (N.W. and S.W.), Bacchus (Ballarat), Adamson (Melbourne), Curdie (Camperdown), Hannaford (Warrnambool), J. B. Wilson (Geelong), Robertson (S.W.), Eckhert (N.W.), Lockhart Morton (N.W.), and that enthusiastic lady collector, Mrs. M'Cann (Mitta Mitta). Almost all the Victorian specimens before 1890 were collected by those mentioned, Mueller standing first for number of species. Since that year specimens have been sent along by a few collectors, some of whom, in his characteristic original way, the Baron styled his " kind phytographic coUaborateurs." Two aims have been before me in preparing this paper : to draw attention to certain supposed Victorian species with a view to stimulating botanical workers in their field research work, and to put in a plea on behalf of the National Herbarium, of which Victorians should be proud. With regard to the former, the plants in question may be regarded as non-Victorian as far as the present botanical workers are concerned, so that any discoveries of them in our State can be considered credit- able to those who make them. Hence the necessity for publishing a list of them, and which ought to result in a more accurate and complete census. More than half of the 180 in question have probably not been gathered since Mueller obtained them himself during those early journeys in 1853-55 which were so tersely described and mapped out by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard in his interesting paper in the Naturalist for June, 1904 (xxi., p. 17). Many of these plants are labelled " Munyang Mt.," " Nungatta Mt.," "Sources of Snowy and Murray," " Mt. Imlay," "Lower Murray," none of which are definite Victorian localities. It 14 Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants. [vd'^xxxvi is probable that some of these species were actually collected by Mueller in New South Wales and South Australia, since, from remarks he made, verbally and otherwise, he considered that plants gathered within a day's walk across the border should be credited to Victoria. In his first edition of the " Census of Australian Plants " (1882) he says : — " The geographic columns in these pages indicate simply the occurrence of plants within any of the colonial areas, but have been extended even to such species which merely may pass boundary lines." From this it would appear that in compiling his " Key " he had credited Victoria with those plants which, being near the boundary, might reasonably be expected to be met with on this side of it. In the case of some of them this expectation has been realized, while in many others it has not, no Victorian specimen being found in the Herbarium. In Bentham's " Flora," among Victorian localities are mentioned *' Munyang Mt." Under this indefinite and now disused name Mueller, I think, included all those species he gathered on his journey along " the highest summits of the Alps," from the Cobber as (in Victoria) to Kosciusko (N.S.W.) Nungatta Mt., in which the Genoa River takes its rise, is some miles east of the border. Mt. Imlay is in New South Wales, south-west of Twofold Bay. These are, of course, also mentioned as New South Whales localities. " Upper Snowy," " Head of Genoa," are among Victorian localities, though both of these rivers rise in New South Wales. I think that Victoria has also been credited with plants gathered in the Rivcrina and the " Murray desert " below the South Australian border. Such places as Cudnaka and Lake Victoria are given on thejabels of some plants which appear on our Census, of which no other specimens can be found in the parcels. For instance, PuUencea densifolia is labelled " Lower Murray " ; this, I feel sure, means South Australia. Mr. D' Alton sent it in later from " across S.A. border." It must be conceded that in those early days definiteness in place names was not easy to get, and, also, it did not seem so necessary, so that writing " Near Murray," or just " Murray," which occurs on so many labels, seemed the best that could be done, especially considering the difficulties of the wayback collector. It would appear that no collector has since 1854 travelled along the routes of Mueller in the North-West, and to Cobberas and Kosciusko (Munyang). If he has, he did not record the result. There is a good field for botanists in those two areas" alone. Who will undertake them ? Regarding the absence of these recorded species from our Herbarium, several reasons may be advanced. Some may have been lust ur mislaid, and thus missed getting into their May,j Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants. 15 parcels. We know that Mueller did a great deal of his systematic work at his private house, but he was very careful with specimens and labels, and I was surprised to see so many of the scraps I sent to him placed in their proper parcels, with correct dates and localities, for I had considered them scarcely worth keeping. Just one exception may be mentioned. A Pultenaea I had sent him was labelled " Wannon R., Port Fairy " ! The fact that so many that are missing are " boundary " plants seems to me significant. Some of the missing specimens may have been put into what are known as supplement parcels, and may turn up yet. These parcels contain specimens which require further examination to determine the species. Some, of course, I may have missed, but my lists need not be condemned on that account, for I intend them to be considered as merely tentative. If, on looking over the Hsts, some collector notes any that he has had determined by an authority, it is hoped that he will communicate with Prof. Ewart. A specimen gathered in Victoria would, however, be required for the species to be recorded ; and here I may express the opinion, shared by other workers, that observers and excursionists have had plants recorded in the Naturalist on the strength of a passing glance or of hearsay, without any specimens being secured for determ- ination. On looking over accounts of excursions of our Club — valuable and interesting as these outings are — I have come across mention of plants which, I feel sure, cannot have been seen on the occasion, and for which probably some commoner species has been mistaken. And this brings me to a point worthy of the consideration of the committee — the desirability of having accounts of excursions placed before a small committee of botanists before publication, with a view to preventing errors in scientific records occurring in print. Certainly I think that no record of any of the plants in my lists should be allowed unless a specimen has been submitted for determination and for placing in the Herbarium. Our journal is recognized as a scientific one, and it is a pity to see in it these inaccuracies, which stand uncorrected, but for which the hon. editor is in no way responsible. Surely writers would not mind the editor, at the instance of the " censors," deleting or querying any doubtful species name. As to the claims of the National Herbarium, I consider that if the lists referred to were noted and made use of, two good purposes would be served : correct records would be established, and the Herbarium would be furnished with a. supply of fresh specimens, which are always acceptable for replacing those damaged or sent away in exchange. The least collectors should do in exchange for information received is to supply good specimens fresh from the field. i6 Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants, [vd'*^'' ^^*' XXXVI. Coming to the matter of revising the Census, it may be asked whether I would advise cutting out all the species not now represented in the Herbarium by Victorian specimens. Since 1888 30 of the species in the " Key " have been dropped, 10 of these because they have been included in another species, while it is probable that several of the remaining 20 have been dropped simply because there is no Victorian specimen. Perhaps it would scarcely be wise to drop out 180, but I think that, in any future edition of the Census, or in a new " Flora of Victoria " (which is eagerly looked for), it would suffice if those plants were marked, say, with an asterisk, to denote " doubtful record for Victoria." It is quite true that to include in any future " Key " a description of these would render such a book more useful, seeing that a Victorian field- worker might reasonably expect to find them near the boundary, and perhaps that was in the Baron's mind when he compiled his "Key." One disturbing thought regarding these rarely-gathered species is that, owing to the advance of settlement and con- sequent grazing and prevalence of fires, some of them may now be quite extinct in our State, and even in Austraha. In a letter from a fellow-member, Mr. E. H. Lees, of Mallacoota, he deplores this probabihty, and mentions that some plants, notably Nephelium leiocarpnnt, are almost unknown where a few years ago they were frequent in his district. This thought should stimulate us to investigate the localities where these rare plants may be found before a greater evil comes upon them — their total extinction. In my investigations I did not need to trouble about the eucalypts or the orchids. Both these have been worked well by specialists, notably Messrs. P. R. H. St. John in the former and Messrs. French, Pescott, and Braine in the latter. So well have they worked that the number of eucalypts has been increased from 36 to 66, and that of the latter from 75 to 119. These increases account for about one-third of the total species added to the " Key," and they are still going strong ! With only one exception, I think we know where all these 285 species are to be found — or perhaps I should say were to be found, in the case of the orchids. The exception is Drakea irritahilis, the interesting " Hammer Orchid." No one knows where, when, or by whom this was found in Victoria, and there are in the National Herbarium only three or four specimens from New South Wales and Queensland ; but Mr. C. French, jun., who assisted in the work connected with the compiling of the '' Key," tells me that the Baron showed him with delight a specimen of that orchid which he had just received from " East Victoria," but no record of the date, locality, or collector's name can be found, and the specimen itself has disappeared. May,"! 1919 J Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants. 17 The following are the Hsts referred to, and botanical workers of Victoria in general, and Professor Ewart, Curator of our Herbarium in particular, would esteem it a favour if those in charge of Herbaria in other States who read them, and who have any Victorian specimens of the plants, would forward them to Melbourne for examination and record. List No. i. Plants represented in the Herbarium only by specimens labelled with definite N.S.W. and S.A. localities, and no printed record. Those not named in the " Key " marked.* (a) Plants Recorded from North-Western District. Hibiscus Krichauffi, F. v. M. Euphorbia erythrantha, F. v. M. Dodonaea lobulata, F. v. M. *Gunnia septifraga, F. v. M. Chenopodium auricomum, Lindl. ♦Didymotheca thesioides, Hk. fil. ♦Didiscus glaucifolius, F. v. M. Podolepis Lessoni, Benth. *Leptorrhynchos panaetioides, Benth. Helipterum strictum, Benth. *H. laeve, Benth. Centipeda thespidioides, F. v. M. Goodenia cycloptera, R. Br. Sarcostemma australe, R. Br. Heliotropium asperrimum, R. Br. Corynotheca lateriflorum, F. v. M. Crinum flaccidum, Herbert. *Xerotes dura, F. v. M. *Panicum bicolor, R. Br. P. MitchelH, Benth. *P. trachyrachis, Benth. *P. parviflorum, R. Br. Neurachne Munroi, F, v. M. Andropogon annulatus, Forst. A. gryllus, L. Aristida leptopoda, Benth. Notholaena Brownii, Desv. (Cheil- anthes vellea). Blennodia Lucse, F. v. M. Calandrinia brevipedata, F. v. M. (S.W.) Scaevola crassifolia, Labill. (S.W.) Augianthus tenellus, Benth. A. pusillus, Benth. (b) Plants Recorded from East Gippsland. Zieria cytisoides, Smith. *Dodonaea tenuifolia, Lindl. Desmodium brachypodum, A. Gray. Acacia vestita, Edwards. A. glaucescens, Willd. (N.E.) Homoranthus virgatus, A. Cunn. (Darwinia virgata). Melaleuca hypericifolia, Smith. Pomaderris cinerea, Benth. P. ligustrina, Sieb. P. obcordata, Fenzl. Daviesia Wyattiana, Bailey. Cryptandra Scortechinii, F. v. M. Cissus (Vitis) Baudiniana, Brouss. Panax Murrayi, F. v. M, Xanthosia Atkinsoniana, F. v. M. Actinotus Helianthi, Lab. A. Gibbonsii, F. v. M. Santalum obtusifolium, R. Br. Notothixos incanus, Oliver. Isopogon anemonifolius, R. Br. Conospermum taxifolium, Smith. Persoonia revoluta, Sieb. P. oxycoccoides, Sieb. Grevillea triternata, R. Br. (N.E.) Vernonia cinerea, Less. Cassinia quinquefaria, R. Br. Ammobium alatum, R. Br. Glossogyne tenuifolia, Cass. Prostanthera incisa, R. Br. P. violacea, R. Br. P. saxicola, R. Br. Westringia rosmarinifolia, Smith. Myoporum tenuifolium, G. Forst. Ehretia acuminata, R. Br. Epacris crassifolia, R. Br. *Smilax glyciphylla, Smith. Tricoryne simplex, R. Br. *Drakea irritabilis, G. Reich. Andropogon australis, Spreng. Lycopodium Carolinianum, (L. varium) (N.E.) *Cystopteris fragilis, Bernh. Aspidium tenerum, Spreng. Hypolepis tenuifolia, Bernh. Asplenium nidus, L. A. felix femina, Bernh. L. 18 Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants, [vo^.'^xxxvi. List No. 2. No specimens except those labelled " Munyang Mt." (M.), " Sources of Snowy" (S.), " Nungatta Mt." (N.) Parantennaria iiniceps, F. v. M. (M.) Ranunculus Muelleri, Benth. (M.) R. anemoneus, F. v. M. (M.) Blennodia alpestris, F. v. M. (S.) Colobanthus (Benthamianus) sub- ulatus, Hk. f. (M.) Scleranthus mniarioides, F.v.M.(M.) Drapetes Tasmanica, Hk. f. (M.) Azorella Muelleri, Benth. (M.) A. dichopetala, Benth. (M.) Seseh algens, F. v. M. (M.) Oreomyrrhis pulvinifica, F.v.M.(M.) Persoonia myrtilloides, Sieb. (N.) List No. 3. No specimens except those labelled with no more definite locality than " Murray,^' " Murray desert," " Lower Murray," " Murray and Darling." A number may have been gathered by Mueller on this side of the river, but some were sent to him by residents of Wentworth and some gathered by Dallachy and others, who collected in both States and along the Darling. All are doubtful records. Rutidosis leiolepis, F. v. M. (S.) Abrotanella nivigena, F. v. M. (M.) Plantago stellaris, F. v. M. (M.) Veronica densifolia, F. v. M. (M.) Euphrasia antarctica, Benth. (M.) Scutellaria mollis, R. Br. (N.) Epacris robusta, Benth. (S.) Agropyrum velutinum, Nees. Lycopodium selago, L. (M.) Gratiola nana, Benth. (M.) Capparis Mitchelli, Lindl. Cardamine eustylis, F. v. M. Blennodia (Erysinum) curvipes, F. V. M. Lepidium phlebopetalum, F. v. M. Drosera Indica, L. Geijera parviflora, Lindl. Sida intricata, F. v. M. Poranthera ericoides, Klotsch. Phyllanthus Fuernrohrii, F. v. M. P. lacunarius, F. v. M. P. trachyspermus, F. v. M. Dodonaea Baueri, Endl. Trichinium (Ptilotus) nobile, Lindl. T. alopecuroides, Lindl. Amaranthus macrocarpus, Benth. Hemichroa (Polycnemon) diandra, R. Br. Atriplex limbatum, Benth. A. rhagodioides, F. v. M. A. spongiosum, F. v. M. A. vesicaria. Reward. A. Muelleri, Benth. Kochia lanosa, Lindl. K. triptera, Benth. K. oppositifolia, F. v. M. Chenopodium cristatum, F. v. M. Bassia tricornis, F. v. M. B. billora, F. v. M. Rhagodia crassifolia, R. Br. Pachycornia (Salicornia) robusta, Hk. f. MoUugo cerviana, Seringe. Pimelea simplex, F. v. M. Pultena^a densifolia, F. v. M. Psoralea eriantha, F. v. M. Cassia desolata, F. v. M. Swainsona Greyana, Lindl. Acacia Sentis, F. v. M. A. continua, Benth. Brachycome melanocarpa, Sond. and F. v. M. B. basaltica, F. v. M. ♦Minuria denticulata, Benth. Calotis microcephala, Benth. C. plumulifera, F. v. M. Olearia (Aster) subspicata, Benth. O. Hookeri, Benth. Podolepis rhytidochlamys, F. v. M. Leptorrhynchos ambiguus, Benth. Chthonocephalus pseudevax, Steetz. Elachanthus pusillus, F. v. M. Jasminum lineare, R. Br. Marsdenia Leichhardtiana, F. v. M. Solanum lacunarium, F. v. M. Prostanthera Behriana, Schlech. Eremophila polyclada, F. v. M. E. alternifolia, R, Br. E. scoparia, F. v. M. E. oppositifolia, R. Br. Calostemma purpureum, R. Br. Eriocaulon electrospermum.F.v.M. Panicum repens, L. P. coenocolum, F. v. M. Spinifex paradoxus, Benth. Andropogon bombycinus, R. Br. A. micranthus, Kunth. Anthistiria gigantea, Cav. (A. avenacea). Aristida arenaria. Gaud, A. calycina, R. Br. Danthonia bipartita, F. v. M. May, J Williamson, Census of Victorian Plants. 19 List No. 4. No Victorian specimens other than those recorded from Genoa River, which runs part of its course through New South Wales. Pittosporum revolutum, Aiton. PhebaUum (Eriostemon) Ralstoni, Benth. Lasiopetalum parviflorum, Rudge. Claoxylon australe, Baill. Homalanthus Leschenaultianus, F. V. M. Trema (cannabina) aspera, G. Forster. Ficus scabra, G. Forster. Halorrhagis monosperma, F. v. M, Pteris longifolia, L. (rep. Snowy- River). In addition to these lists I have compiled one containing 250 species which have been collected very rarely in Victoria ■ — in most cases in one locality only. It indicates localities, and in many cases gives collectors' names and number of specimens in the National Herbarium. This it may be con- sidered advantageous to publish at a later date. The Loch Valley. — ^The extension of the Neerim railway to Noojee, a distance of about thirty miles from Warragul, which was opened on the 30th ult., opens up another inter- esting district to tourists and nature-lovers. Loch Vahey must not be confounded with Loch (township) on the Bass River, between Nyora and Korumburra, many miles south of Warragul. From Noojee it will be possible, in a walk of about eighteen miles — the greater part through interesting forest scenery — to reach that well-known hostelr}/, M'Veigh's, on the Yarra, about twenty miles above Warburton, and virtually the start of the Baw Baw track. The Noojee station is situated almost on the bank of the Latrobe River, a little below the confluence of the Loch, and about a mile above the junction of the Toorongo. All of these streams abound in picturesque scenes, and their gurgling waters are pleasant company as one wanders in their neighbourhood. Th-e Neerim district was once celebrated for its huge trees, but these have disappeared and made way for smihng pastures. The tourist who wants to see big timber must make his way farther north up the Loch Valley to Mount Horsfall and Whitelaw's track, on the divide between the Yarra and Latrobe ; here he can see giants upwards of 250 feet to the first branch and of great girth. Near Nayook, a station about eight miles before reaching the terminus, is situated the celebrated Nayook Glen — a magnificent assemblage of ferns and beeches — which has been made accessible to tourists by tracks and a look-out. This is situated on a tributary of the Tarago, another stream which abounds in beauty spots. One of the features of the new railway are the immense trestle bridges spanning some small creeks on their way to the Latrobe. On one of these the rails are 95 feet above the creek below, while the bridge itself is 600 feet long. ^'otes. [vlf'xxxvi.. These were pictured in the Leader of 19th April. There are also some very interesting cuttings through Ordovician forma- tions in which the strata are particularly well marked. The tourist also has the chance of travelling from Nayook up the Latrobe to Powelltown, about 16 miles, whence a steam tram, ten miles in length, connects with the railway at Yarra Junction. A small party of members of the F.N.C. visited the district at Easter, and were very pleased with their outing. Nice falls, or cascades, occur on tributaries of both the Loch and the Toorongo, and can be reached with a little exertion ; but without leaving the road tree-ferns, beeches, and giant black- butts, with all their attendant undergrowth, in endless pro- fusion, can be seen, almost untouched by the hand of man. The Green Mountains : Queensland's National Park. — Under this heading, Mr. A. H. Chisholm, in the Sydney Mail for 5th March last, gives an interesting description, illustrated with characteristic scenes, of Queensland's National Park, an area of 47,000 acres, situated in the Macpherson Range, which is practically the boundary between New South Wales and Queensland. The fact of the reservation is largely due to the perseverance and energy of a young resident of the district, Lieut. W. R. Lahey, who, while studying at the Sydney University, spent all his vacations in unravelling the intricacies of the mountains. The vegetation is superb, and, as an elevation of 4,000 feet is attained in some places, there should be considerable variety in it. The Brisbane Field Naturalists' Club spent a week there during the recent summer, but, as little has yet been done to open up the area, they found the difficulties of investigation rather severe. The Park is distant from Brisbane about 70 miles, and from one of its highest points Moreton Bay and Stradbroke Island can easily be made out. Among the trees to be seen there are venerable specimens of the Antarctic Beech, Fagiis Mooreii, cedars, pines, and flame- trees, while the Queensland Waratah, Emhothrium Wickhauii (var. pinnata), has recently been recorded for the area. The birds are numerous, and in several instances almost unique. Lyre-birds, Mountain Thrushes, Black-faced Flycatchers, Scrub- Wrens, Pigeons, Parrots of many sizes and colours. Eagles, Cat-birds, Bell-Miners, Dragoon-birds, Rose-breasted Robins, are among those noted, while that rare bird, the Rufous Scrub- bird, AtYichornis rufescens, has also been seen there. Though the male of this bird was described by the late Dr. E. P. Ramsay so long ago as 1865, and the nest and eggs were first discovered by Mr. S..W. Jackson on the Bellinger River in 1898, the female bird has not yet been taken. The bird is a wonderful mimic, and in its attitudes greatly resembles the Lyre-bird. Che Ulcforlan namrallst. Vol. XXXVI.— No. 2. JUNE 5, 1919. No. 426. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 12th May, 1919. The president, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., occupied the chair, and about fifty members and visitors were present. ELECTION OF MEMBER. On a ballot being taken, Mr. J. G. Thompson, 16 Collins- street, Melbourne, was duly elected a member of the Club. GENERAL BUSINESS. Nominations were made for office-bearers for the year 1919-20, and Messrs. F. Keep and F. Wisewould were elected to audit the accounts for 1918-19. On the motion of Messrs. F. G. A. Barnard and H. B. Williamson it was resolved that a letter be sent to Mr. D. Le Souef, C.M.Z.S., sympathizing with him in the recent attack made on him by footpads, and expressing the hope of the members that he would have a speedy recovery from his injuries. The president said that, on hearing of the assault, he had at once written in the name of the Club and expressed sympathy with Mr. Le Souef. PAPERS READ. I. By Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., B.Sc. (hon. member), entitled " A Week Among the Seaweeds at Portsea." In the absence of the author, who is a resident of Sydney, the paper was read by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard. The author gave a chatty account of a week's seaweed collecting at Portsea, almost on the extremity of the Nepean Peninsula, and quite close to Port Phillip Heads. Here, with both ocean and bay beaches available, he collected just one hundred species, some of them being new for Victoria. He re- marked on the richness of the marine algal flora of Victoria and the good work done by the late Mr. H. T. Tisdall and the late Mr. Bracebridge Wilson, both members of the Club, and urged that further work should be taken up by some members of the Club. Mr. J. Gabriel said that he considered dredging gave the 22 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [voi'^^xxxvi. best results in searching for seaweeds. He had collected 67 species in one day at Western Port. He offered to give a demonstration on mounting seaweeds for the Herbarium on some suitable occasion, and called attention to his exhibit of a collection made many years ago by the late Mr. H. Watts, one of the original members of the Club. Mr. C. J. Gabriel said he was pleased to know that the marine plant Cymodocea antarctica is to be found in Port Phillip Bay. At the previous meeting he had exhibited some small shells found on the plant, which had been forwarded from South Australia ; he would now try if the mollusc occurred here. 2. By Mr. J. Booth, M.C.E., B.Sc, entitled "About 'Pet Peter/ a Flying Phalanger." The author gave an interesting account of the life of a Lesser Flying Phalanger, Petaurus hreviceps, Waterhouse, commonly known as the Small Flying Squirrel, which had been kept in captivity for a period of nearly six years, when it apparently died of old age. Being a nocturnal animal, it was, of course, difficult to watch all its movements. It seemed to recognize its usual caretaker, and made sugar and milk-soaked bread its staple diet, though it was fond of an occasional cock- roach. Mr. J. A. Kershaw, F.E.S., remarked on the happy way in which the author had described his pet's peculiarities, and, referring to its food of insects and honey, asked whether it ever ate gum (Eucalyptus) leaves. Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., said that he had had no experience with the Phalangers, but he had recently been inquisitive as to the food of a Queensland Koala (Native Bear) kept by a travelling circus, when he was informed that its favourite food was the leaves of the Sugar Gum, Eucalyptus cladocalyx. He had tried it with leaves of E. Delegetensis, but they had been refused. The animal had never been known to drink during the three years it had been with the circus, apparently obtaining all the moisture it required from the gum-leaves. Mr. Booth, in reply, said gum-leaves had been offered to " Pet Peter," but he did not appreciate them. EXHIBITS. By Miss C. C. Currie. — Fruiting specimen of Billardiera longiflora, Lab., Purple Apple-berry, from Loch Valley ; fronds and sporocarps of Nardoo, Marsilea quadrifolia, L., grown at Lardner. By Mr. J. Gabriel. — Collection of Victorian seaweeds made by the late Mr. H. Watts (one of the founders of the Club), principally at Warrnambool, 1858-66. June,! Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings, 23 By Mr. C. Daley, F.L.S. — Asbestos, showing gold deposited by precipitation, from South Queensland. By Mr, J. E. Dixon. — Dried specimens of two rare Victorian plants, Jasminum linear e, R. Br., and Calostenima ptirpttreum, R. Br., collected by exhibitor near Lake Hattah, Northern Mallee. By Mr. A. L. Scott. — Rocks and clay containing crystals of gypsum, from Mornington beach, Port Phillip ; granite from Mount Eliza, near Frankston. By Mr. J. Searle. — Slides of the benign tertian malaria parasite, Trypanosoma evansi, under the microscope. After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. Addendum to April Report. By an inadvertence Mr. H. B. Wilhamson's reply to the criticism on his paper was omitted. It was to the effect that he had not suggested that if only one specimen of a plant had been found in Victoria it should not appear in the Victorian list, neither did he venture the opinion that any of the plants contained in his lists should be omitted from the census. The Western Australian plants exhibited by Miss Amy Fuller have been determined by Prof. A. J. Ewart, D.Sc, Government Botanist, as follows : — Banksia Baueri, R. Br. ; Callitris Roei, Beath ; Grevillea eriostachya, Lind. ; Hakea Baxteri, R. Br. (in the absence of fruit this species is very difficult to distinguish from H. Brownii) ; H. comniutata, F. V. M., in fruit (this species seems to be rather rare — no fruil specimen in the Herbarium previously) ; H. multilineata, Meissn, ; Helichrysum obtusifolium, Sond. and F. v. M. ; and Physopsis spicata, Turcz. Australian Trees and Shrubs. — With the desire of bringing more directly under the notice of those who con- template beautifying the surroundings of their homes the value of Australian trees and shrubs for that purpose, Mr. E. E. Pescott, F.L.S., F.R.H.S., Government Pomologist, commenced a series of articles in the Journal of Agriculture, Victoria, for March last, on " The AustraUan Flora from an Ornamental Aspect," dealing in the opening article with some of the eucalypts or gum-trees. Seeing that the author is a practical man, and such a lover of Australian vegetation, the articles cannot fail to supply a want which has often been experienced both by public and private persons desiring to plant to the best advantage. 24 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [y^ ict. Nat. . XXXVI. NOTES OF A VISIT TO WESTERN AUSTRALIA. By F. G. a. Barnard. {Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, loth March, 19 19.) In August last, having persuaded myself that I needed a holiday, the question arose. Where shall I go ? Then, re- membering Mr. C. A. Topp's interesting paper, " Impressions of the Wild-Flowers of South- Western Australia," read before this Club just two years ago {Vid. Nat., xxxiv., p. 37, July, 1917), and that the best time of the year for wild-flowers was fast approaching, I determined to try and arrange for a visit to Western Australia. As time was a matter of importance, I decided to make the journey by the recently-opened Trans- Australian railway, having been informed that at that time of the year the trip by rail would be quite pleasant. So, leaving Melbourne on Wednesday afternoon, 28th August, by mid-day on the following Sunday I had traversed some 2,168 miles, and practically crossed the continent from east to west, with nothing to regret in having adopted that route, and having gained a lasting impression of the Nullabor Plain, said by Mr. T. Dunbabin, in an article in the Argus of 3rd August last, to be the greatest plain in Australia, covering about 100,000 square miles — an area greater than the State of Victoria. Some little account of items interesting to the naturalist on the overland journey may be worth while. In Victoria, owing to the shortness of the daylight, little was to be seen. The new lake in the Werribee Valley, near Melton, with its gaunt skeletons of trees standing in fifty or sixty feet of water, had anything but a picturesque appearance. My last glimpse of the vegetation consisted of some golden wattles in full bloom near Rowsley. When daylight broke next morning we had almost traversed the so-called Ninety-Mile Desert, which is really an ordinary piece of Mallee, with stunted gums, Casuarinas, Hakeas, &c., but nothing definite could be recog- nized. In South Austraha, about Mount Barker Junction and right through the Mount Lofty Ranges, golden wattles were everywhere in evidence, and presented a lovely sight ; by the way, the South Australian form of Acacia pycnantha seems to be more robust both as to flowers and leaves than the speci- mens we are used to in Victoria. The Native Heath, Epacris impressa, both pink and white, was still blooming freely all through the hills, and with the yellow of the wattles made up a picture worth travelling far to see. On leaving Adelaide for Port Augusta (260 miles) all was new to me. The country was under wheat to so great an extent that Uttle natural vegetation was to be seen. Along the railway line the introduced Oxalis, 0. cernuta, grew in J"g"^^'] Bari^ard, Notes of a Visit to W. A. 25 abundance for miles and miles. At Peterborough (formerly Petersburg), where the line from Broken Hill to Port Pirie crosses the north line, a train-load of zinc tailings on its way to the smelting works at the latter place was seen. A few miles beyond here numbers of native melons were noticed in the railway enclosure. Some very dry, rocky country was entered near Eurelia (1,733 feet above sea-level), where we stopped for tea. Daylight disappeared soon after. At Quorn (234 miles, 961 feet) the Oodnadatta line branches off, and, going north, penetrates 450 miles further towards the heart of Australia. From Quorn to Port Augusta is the most pic- turesque part of the South Australian portion of the line, now narrow gauge, but this was traversed in the dark. Coming back three weeks later the early morning was just hght enough to be able to get an idea of the Pichi Richi Pass, through which the line rises about 1,300 feet in 25 miles. The hills were very abrupt and stony, and only sparsely covered with moderate- sized trees. Leaving Port Augusta punctually at 10.30 p.m. on the long run of 1,050 miles to Kalgoorhe, nothing was, of course, seen till nearing Tarcoola (257 miles), when, as daylight appeared, it was seen that we were passing through country similar to that of the Ninety-Mile Desert, between Serviceton and Murray Bridge. It is unfortunate that the train on both its east and west-bound journeys passed through the stretch of salt lakes between Wirrappa and Wirraminna (about 80 miles) during darkness, as, though probably unpicturesque, there should be a certain amount of variety in them. However, I managed to get a glimpse of one by moonlight on my return journey. During the short stoppage at Tarcoola I was able to obtain specimens of the travertine limestone, which outcrops along the line, and has been used extensively for ballast. Tarcoola was expected at one time to prove a good goldfield, but the difficulty of procuring water in such dry country has greatly retarded its mining possibilities. Signs of the industry can be seen some two miles away, to the north of the line. Seeing that the Trans-Australian line is laid down east and west within a few miles of the same parallel of latitude — 31° S. — and the range of elevation during the 800 miles between Pimba (113 miles) and Zanthus (921 miles) is only 270 feet, and that not a running stream or even a dry creek- bed is seen in all that distance, much variation in the vegeta- tion cannot be expected ; still, at the time of year I crossed (30th, 31st August), which is probably the most favourable for flowers, except on the Nullabor Plain, 300 miles from Ooldea to Nareetha, I was within sight of flowering shrubs nearly all the time. The difficulties of botanizing, or rather of identifying 26 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [vo^.'^^xxxvi. plants and shrubs when travelUng at thirty miles an hour and over, through unfamiliar country, are considerable, more especially as at least a chain on either side of the track has been cleared absolutely of every sign of vegetation, probably on account of the risk of fire. By a chance stoppage of the train for some slight defect of the engine some twenty miles beyond Tarcoola I was able to pick my first flowers — a low-growing White Everlasting, probably Heliptentm floribundttm of our Wimmera and North-Western Plains, as these were growing close to the line. At about 280 miles I saw a scarlet patch on the ground near the edge of the cleared space, which I put down as being Sturt's Desert Pea, and, though I could not pick it up on my return, when at Tarcoola a resident presented the passengers with bunches of the finest flowers of that plant I had ever seen, grown in her garden, I am pretty sure my surmise was right. Some of these I exhibited at the recent wild-flower exhibition, but they had by that time (nine days later) almost lost their beauty. My next identification was a quondong tree bearing fruit. Many other shrubs were in bloom, some of which I took to be Acacias, but later, at Barton, I found I had, owing to the distance, been mistaking a Cassia for an Acacia. Of course, all the trees of any size near the line had long ago been used up by the construction parties for huts and firewood, so that those remaining were very poor specimens of gums, black-oke, and myall. A shrub with red flowers was never near enough for me to make even a guess at. It was probably a Templetonia. About 100 miles beyond Tarcoola we ran into sand-hill country, and at 10.30 a.m. pulled up at Barton, for the east- bound train to pass. This, we learned, would be an hour late, consequently I was able to examine some of the shrubs,' &c., near the line, finding several Acacias, a Cassia, quondongs, and many others strange to me. Continuing on among sand- hills, several unfamiliar shrubs were seen. About 2 p.m. we left the sand-hill country and entered on the straight run of 300 miles across the NuUabor Plain — " Nullabor " meaning " no trees." This is often called desert, but it is not so. The plain is covered with low saltbush, with here and there a taller bush ; limestone outcrops alongside the track, and requires little excavating for use as ballast. About 8.30 p.m., near Deakin, we entered Western Australia, and when we looked out next morning found we had left the Nullabor Plain behind and had reached Zanthus (921 miles), the most interesting locality we had yet seen. Shrubs of many kinds were plentiful, several being in flower, while here and there were salmon gums and gimlet-wood — the latter a gum with very twisted grain, hence its name. The timber lasts for some miles, then, as {""^'1 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to IV. A 1919 27 Kalgoorlie is approached, bare plains appear again — whether naturally so or whether the timber has been used for firewood in Kalgoorlie I cannot say, for timber trams run out for fifty or more miles all round that centre. Just before reaching Kalgoorlie the dump-heaps of the mines along the famous ** Golden Mile " and a few distant hills are seen. The west- bound passengers generally have about five hours to spend here. Considering that Kalgoorlie is httle more than twenty years old, its appearance is wonderful. Fine buildings, trams, electric hght, &c., all created by gold and water, for without the latter (provided by the great Mundaring scheme) it would have been impossible to win the former. Like all other mining centres, Kalgoorlie is feeling the effects of worked-out mines, and considerable anxiety about the future is being manifested by those who have made the town their home. A wild-flower excursion train was announced for Menzies, 80 miles to the north, for the following day (Sunday) ; but, as I was ex- pected by friends in Perth on that day, I had to forego seeing the famous everlasting-covered plains of the Central West. My description of the country passed through has been very brief. Those who are interested should obtain one of the illustrated folders issued by the Commonwealth Railways from the Tourist Bureau. Further interesting details will be found in a little journal, The Inlander, issued by the Home Mission Board of the Presbyterian Church of Australia, dealing with problems of life on Australia's frontiers. In the number for February, 1918, the editor, Rev. John Flynn, in a well- illustrated article entitled " Spanning the Continent," gives a graphic description of the trials and difficulties of laying down the line in such inhospitable country ; while in the Emu for January last (vol. xviii., part 3) Captain S. A. White, C.M.B.O.U., gives some account of four ornithological trips to the Nullabor Plains. This article also is illustrated, and from it one can get an idea of the natural history of this previously almost unvisited region. His illustration of the Ooldea Native Well is par- ticularly characteristic of the area. The Golden West, an annual published in Perth, for December, 1917, contains further illustrations descriptive of scenes along the line. About 6.30 p.m. I was once more on the train, bound for Perth. Of course, nothing could be seen of the country till next morning, when at Meenaar, 82 miles from Perth, flowering shrubs — I think Hakeas — were seen near the railway enclosure ; but it was not till near Northam that really normal country — trees, hills, and streams — were seen. The Avon here being the first stream since crossing the Para, in South Australia. The green grass-covered hills, with the river meandering 28 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [voT.'^xxxvi. between, were indeed a welcome sight. Soon I began to see flowers along the line. One, a curious rusty-coloured spike, I could not make out ; then it suddenly dawned on me — my first Kangaroo Paw ! And so it was — Anigozanthos rufa, called " Wallaby Paw " on account of its smaller size. As we chmbed the Darling Range the timber improved, and more flowers appeared, among them the beautiful Leschenaultia, patches of brilliant sky-blue, which simply captured me, and I longed to be able to pick some. Nearing Swan View, the hillsides were covered with masses of a small acacia in full bloom, of a brilliant yellow. Many other flowers of various hues appeared as we passed down the western front of the range towards Midland Junction. Here the country changes, and you get on to the sandy, slightly undulating plain on which Perth is built. My attention was soon attracted by the numerous Zamias along the railway enclosure — a group of plants quite absent from Victoria. Then in a garden I caught a glimpse of a coral-tree in bloom. Friends met me at Perth, and in the afternoon introduced me to Perth's greatest glories — the King's Park and the view of Swan River. The latter, let me tell you, is rather an estuary than a river, for, except during flood-time, there is probably little current in the water near Perth except that created by the tide. Of King's Park I cannot say enough ; I approached it via Harvest Terrace, in which is situated the Parliament House, in the grounds of which I saw fine bushes of the Geraldton Wax-flower in full bloom. This charming shrub, allied to our Leptospermum, is grown in many gardens about Perth ; in one I saw it used as a hedge plant. It is not found wild about Perth, being a native of the drier districts further north. Harvest Terrace is lined with fine trees of Erythrina indie a, known as the Coral- tree ; at that time they were bare of leaves, but bearing clusters of large, crimson, pea-shaped flowers. Towards the end of my stay the leaves were appearing and the flowers disappearing. In the Ob- servatory grounds, close at hand, was a mass of native vegetation. On entering King's Park one's attention is soon centred on the fine drives bordered with Eucalyptus fwifolia, which, at their flowering time in December and January, bear masses of pink, orange, or scarlet flowers. Unfortunately for me, only an odd flower or two appeared before I left for home. Then came the view down on to the Swan, 200 feet below, with South Perth and its acres of bush land in the distance. A few yards further on my friends introduced me to the Kangaroo Paws, growing in the uncultivated centre of the park — some 800 acres — and with them many other flowers whose relation- ship I was able to guess at from their likeness to familiar J""«='l Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. 29 1919 J ' ^ ^ Victorian forms. A dwarf myrtaceous shrub, Hypocalynirna robusta, quickly took my fancy on account of its double peach- coloured blossoms ; hence it is generally known as " Peach Blossom." A Sowerbaea, a purple liliaceous plant, after the style of our Burchardia, was also prominent. Then there was our friend Kennedya prostrata, but apparently larger than we usually find it, and numerous other pea-flowers. The Kangaroo Paws were in hundreds, and just at their best. The picking of wild-flowers in the park is strictly forbidden, and if detected is followed by heavy fine, so that all who desire can feast their eyes on Nature's handiwork almost within a mile of the centre of the city. Many other strange and beautiful flowers were here, but where were the Epacris and Correa which one would expect to find associated with such heath-loving plants ? On looking up my lists afterwards I found both these genera are absent from Western Australia. We then followed the shore of Melville Water (as the expanded Swan is there cahed) to Nedlands, and took another tram, passing through a lot of bush country near Karrakatta back to Perth. I made up my mind then to try and get some flowers for the September meeting of the Club, and was advised to try the South-Western (Bunbury) line, between Gosnells and Kelmscott, about 15 miles from Perth. There I went on the following Tuesday, and, keeping within the railway enclosure, was soon bewildered with the many beautiful flowers met with. I did not go to Western Australia to collect, so have nothing to show you to-night ; besides which, Mr. Topp has told you better than I can the characteristics of the flora prevailing in the south-western portion of Western Australia. In the moist places along the line were splendid Droseras up to three and four feet high, with a greater variety of colouring than we are accustomed to, a magenta Utricularia, and quantities of Leschenaultia of that delightful sky-blue colour of which one never seems to weary. Then I came upon the green Kangaroo Paws, Anigozanthos viridis, and got a fine bunch of them, but there were very few A. Manglesii, the crimson and green species. Asking a resident where to get them, I was directed to a drier part of the enclosure, towards Armadale, and in about a mile came upon them in all their glory. It was a great sensation to pick such a striking flower ad libitum for the first time. I soon had a nice bunch, and, getting a box at the local store, posted them at once to our secretary, thinking that, as the parcel should arrive in Mel- bourne on the following Sunday, they would be in time for Monday night's meeting ; but as such promptitude in delivery might have established an awkward precedent for the post- office, they were not delivered to our secretary till the Tuesday, 30 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [ Vict. Nat.. Vol. XXXVI. SO missed the meeting, and decorated his home instead. I understand they arrived in very good order. Next day a friend gave up the day to introduce me to the Kalamunda railway Hne, and I would advise any flower-lover visiting Western Austraha in August or September to take one or more trips up this line. I took only two, because I had not time for more. The line leaves the main line at Midland Junction and strikes south-east for the Darling Range, up which it climbs by means of a zig-zag like that formerly in use near Lithgow, in the Blue Mountains of New South Wales. The line was bordered with flowers on either side for miles. Soon after leaving Midland the rusty Kangaroo Paw appears, then Manglesii, with a few viridis ; then Kennedya coccinea climbing over the smaller shrubs and gum sapUngs, converting them into pillars of brick-red flowers. It is an extremely pretty creeper, and I am glad that plants are now growing in our Botanical Gardens. Then fine patches of Leschenaultia, some of deeper blue than others ; then the. Smoke-bush, Conospermum (?), a white, woolly flower, appearing in the distance like so much smoke ; and lots of others which I regret I cannot exhibit or tell you the names of. We left the train at Kalamunda (20 miles, and 920 feet above sea-level) and started off through the bush down the range to Midland, a distance of some twelve miles. The country was very rough, granite outcropping over a large portion of it, but the excitement of seeing so many unfamiliar flowers made me forget the rough- ness of the travelling. I cannot remember now all we saw. Almost our only orchid was Caladenia /lava, resembling our C. latifolia, but of a beautiful lemon colour. I was disappointed in not seeing more acacias around Perth ; perhaps I was too late for them, but as Western Australia is such a stronghold of the genus (140 in the extra-tropical portion), it must be that I did not strike their habitats. We saw one that day with extensive flanges to the stems and branches. Two or three Grevilleas were met with, and a part of the track bordered with an allied genus, Petrophila, was very fine, while Kennedya coccinea was everywhere, so that I returned to town with a nice collection. A large proportion of the plants met with were of a very woody type, and consequently a collector would have considerable trouble in making herbarium specimens of them. My next excursion was a run by railway to Fremantle. Two plants excited my attention here. The blue Lupin of our gardens grew in many places along the line, and was flowering freely, while the display made by the introduced Cape-weed, Calostemma calendulacca, exceeded anything I had seen before. Perhaps the underlying limestone of tlic land J""*'l Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. ti 1919 J 'J J* about Cottesloe suits it. However, the flowers were larger and of a deeper yellow than I had seen elsewhere, and one person said it was quite as fine a sight as the everlastings are at the goldfields. For the Saturday, a friend of Miss Fuller's, to whom she had written of my coming, kindly invited me to join a few kindred spirits in an outing to Darlington, another locality in the Darhng Range. Unfortunately, the day turned out showery, but I collected and saw enough to be able to say to a prospective visitor to Western Austraha, " Don't miss DarHngton." The Leschenaultia here was wonderful in numbers. Western Austraha boasts of many Stylidiums (Trigger-plants) ; here they were in numbers and of the most curious and quaint designs. The next day other friends took me a little further along the same line to the Mundaring Weir, one of the show places of the State. The hne, originally built for the timber traffic, traverses a portion of the Darling Range which had been well timbered, but the best has long been cut out. One of the stations. Mahogany Creek, is the only place that I know of where the word " Creek " forms portion of the name of a locality, the words used in Western Australia being " Brook " or " Well " ; hence Chidlow's Well, a few miles beyond. The weir is on a branch line having a drop of 450 feet in five miles, and perhaps a few words about it and the reason for its exist- ence may be of interest. Earlier in the paper I spoke of Kalgoorlie and its mines. Well, early in the existence of the Coolgardie goldfield, of which Kalgoorhe is part, it was seen that without water the mines could not exist, as the rainfall (lo''), combined with an evaporation of from six to eight feet annually, was too small to provide for local conservation. The nearest permanent water was in the Darling Range, 350 miles away, but the Coolgardie table-land was 1,400 feet above sea-level, while the Helena River, which seemed the most likely to provide a regular supply of water, was less than 500 feet above sea-level. The problem was faced by the late Mr. C. Y. O'Connor, Engineer-in-Chief of the State, who decided that it could be solved by a huge pumping scheme. This was much ridiculed, but the late Sir John Forrest, knowing from his experiences as an explorer that water was everything in a case like this, backed him up, and, being Premier at the time, persuaded Parliament to adopt the proposal. The weir is 100 feet in height, and closes a pictur- esque gorge, somewhat resembUng the Yarra at Studley Park, and backs up the water for about seven miles. The reservoir can contain about 4,600 millions of gallons of water ; of this, about 3J milhon gallons, weighing about 15,000 tons, are 32 Bar-^ard, Notes of a Visit to W. A. [voTxxx** XXXVI. pumped every day and sent on the long journey to Kalgoorlie, taking about four weeks to accomplish the distance of 350 miles. For this task there are eight pumping stations, situated about fifty miles apart. The main is of the lock-bar type, and can be seen at many places along the line between Northam and Coolgardie. The neighbourhood of the weir is also a good collecting-ground. A beautiful Hovea was in full bloom when I was there, and a Hibiscus was another conspicuous shrub. A few words about the Darling Range, which has such an influence upon the vegetation of the Perth district, may help to a better understanding of this peculiar feature of Western AustraHa. Standing in King's Park and looking east, one can see the range extending for miles from north to south, occupying about the same position as the Dandenongs do to Melbourne. It extends for more than 200 miles, from about Moora, no miles north of Perth, almost to Cape Leeuwin, the south- western extremity of the State ; but it is not by any means a dividing range such as that traversing Victoria, for it is broken by valleys through which streams find their way from its eastern slopes to the Indian Ocean. Thus the Swan, known in its upper portion as the Avon, rises far to the east of its main ridge and flows into the ocean some thirty miles west of its face. Geologists tell us that the face of the Darhng Range presented to Perth is a fault scarp, and that the twenty miles or so of country lying between it and the seaboard consist of recent dune rock overlying Cretaceous and Pcrmo-Carboniferous strata. This stretch of sandy country is apparently saturated with water, and capillary attraction is perhaps accountable for the wealth of vegetation supported in what looks like a dry and unpromising region. That the depth of sand is immense was proved when the bore at the Zoological Gardens, used to supply warm baths, was put down through 1,500 feet of pure sand. Fremantle and some of the other suburbs depend for their water supply on artesian bores. The range consists of granites of several t\'pes, but does not rise to any great height. Mount William, about 1,600 feet, near Hamel, being its highest point. We have in the Brisbane Range, to the south of Bacchus Marsh, a very similar geological feature, but on a much smaller scale. To a visitor from Melbourne interested in geology the surroundings of Perth present little opportunity for the study, the absence of our famihar Silurian and Basaltic formations being at once apparent, the only rocks near Perth being the granite of the Darling Range and a soft limestone between Cottesloe and Fremantle ; this is used both for building and road metal, hardening considerably on exposure to the air. For basalt one has to go to Bunbury, 120 miles south, where there is an J""«'l B ARy; ART), Notes of a Visit io W. A: 3^ 1919 J ■' ^-^ exposure close to the sea, while there are few other occurrences in the State. Western Australia is a State of great distances between important places. A visitor must thus have plenty of time at his disposal if he wishes to see all types of country. Kalgoorlie is about the same distance from Perth as Mildura is from Melbourne, while Day Dawn and Laverton, two other important mining localities, are 525 and 586 miles respectively, the latter ])eing just the same distance as between Melbourne and Sydney. Albany is 340 miles away, almost as far as Mildura, while Katanning, the centre of the agricultural area, is 225 miles, or about as far away as Orbost. For timber one must go south to Karridale, 170 miles — nearly as far as Albury. Geraldton, the home of the Wax-flower and Sturt's Desert Pea, is 300 miles north of Perth, and bear in mind that each of the places mentioned is in a different direction. As I wanted to see a little more than the immediate sur- roundings of Perth, I decided to pay a visit to the Yallingup Cave, situated about thirty miles from Busselton, a journey altogether of some 170 miles. Busselton is the terminus of the South- Western Une, which also serves Bunbury, several timber Unes into the Darhng Range, the ColUe coal-field, and the sandstone deposit near Donnybrook. The line traverses that twenty-mile strip of sandy country between the Darling Range and the sea, sometimes approaching the range fairly close. I hoped to see some of the famous timber of the South- West, but found that to do so I should have made a trip along one of the branch lines mentioned. At Busselton tourists are met by the Caves motor and conveyed to their destination. The greater part of the road is close to the sea, and passes through a natural avenue of the Weeping Agonis, Agonis flexuosa, usually called " Peppermint " in the West. This district is its stronghold, and it certainly is a distinctive feature. Many of the trees were 25 feet in height, with stem diameters of 18 inches or more. Its drooping character gave a particularly pleasant effect to the drive. As we ascended the ridge forming Cape Naturaliste grass-trees and Zamias became more prominent. The country along the Hue from Perth reminds one very much of the Frankston country. Several good rivers — the Canning, the Murray, the Brunswick, and the Colhe — were crossed. Near the Bunbury junction Kangaroo Paws occurred in hundreds, and were a splendid sight. The Cave House at Yallingup is within sight and sound of the Indian Ocean. The fifty miles of hmestone country between Capes NaturaHste and Leeuwin are honeycombed with caves, the best being those at the Margaret River, about thirty miles south of Yallingup. I arranged to go on there, and started by motor on a lovely 34 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [v^!*^xxxvi morning with anticipations of a delightful trip, but dis- appointment soon came. After travelling about twenty miles through timber country — jarrah and karri principally — improving at every mile, at mid-day the motor struck, and nothing would induce it to move again. With miles to the nearest house, there was nothing to be done but admire the wild-flowers till help came. Just at dusk our chauffeur returned with a farmer's waggon and pair, and we made a start for home, which was safely reached about 9 p.m. So ended my visit to the Margaret River Caves ; but during my enforced stay I walked on a couple of miles or so and saw many interesting plants, especially a Hovea, a shrub of four feet or so, bearing flowers of the deepest purple — in some cases so abundant as to quite hide the stems and leaves. It was worth while to be able to see it so closely and pick it, which I could not have done had I motored past at twenty miles an hour. Then there were two or three species of Anigozanthos (Kangaroo Paws), with smaller flowers and of a tall, branching habit ; one of these was flowering in our Botanical Gardens last month. During my rambles around the Cave House I met with several interesting plants — a pink Pimelea growing almost within reach of the breakers ; a Thomasia (Sterculiaceae) very like one I had seen at Wilson's Promontory, the eastern limit of the genus. A fine leguminaceous flower was Templetonia retusa, with crimson flowers an inch or more in length. I was charmed with a very beautiful climber growing sparingly in the scrub near the entrance to the Yallingup Cave, which may have been another Kennedya. It would be an acquisition to any garden. Among the rocks here was a fern closely resembling Lindsaya linearis, of which I brought home plants. The list of Western Australian ferns is very meagre — only fifteen or sixteen species, only two of which are not found in Victoria. The paucity of ferns is rather remarkable, for there are many localities in the south-west where one would expect ferns to do well. The Yallingup Cave is entered from a sort of natural shaft on the side of a hill not far from Cave House, and, like most limestone caves, contains a number of beautiful formations bearing names more or less appropriate. At Yallingup the formations are remarkable for their very fine colourings. This is well exemplified in the " Arab's Tent " ; but perhaps the most noticeable formation of all is that called the " Folded Shawl." This has been selected by Mr. E. J. Brady for iUus- tration in his great work, " Austraha Unhmited." The shawl formations here are said to be the finest in Austraha, and why the "Folded Shawl" took its present shape is a mystery. There are about a mile of galleries, stairways, &c., lighted by electricity. The two hours we spent there went all too quickly, J""^'l Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. ^5 1919J 'J jy and whetted our appetities for the further beauties we were to see in the Margaret River Caves, which are considered much finer. Some misconception seems to exist in the minds of Victorians, who are used to big trees, as to the size of the Jarrah and Karri, two of the principal timber trees of the West, which are very restricted in their distribution. Quoting from the late Mr. J. Ednie Brown's report as Conservator of Forests (Western Austrahan Year-Book, 1900), he says : — " Consider- able areas of Jarrah {Eucalyptus marginata) forest exist in which many of the trees attain heights of 90 to 120 feet, with good stems 3 to 5 feet in diameter, and 50 or 60 feet to the first branch, but the average size of a good healthy tree would be 90 to 100 feet in height and 2J to 3J feet in diameter at the base." Regarding Karri, E. diversicolor, he says : — " In its young state it is a very ornamental tree. When mature an average tree may be put down at 200 feet in height, 4 feet in diameter at 3 to 4 feet from the ground, and 120 to 150 feet to the first branch." The finest tree he knew of was 11 feet in circumference at 3 feet from the ground and 160 feet to the first branch, where it was 56 inches in diameter. Two other excursions near Perth may be worth mentioning. One was to Kelmscott and then up the road to Martin's Hill. This put me very much in mind of the ascent of Mount Dandenong from Croydon. Many Victorian genera occurred along the road, such as Stackhousia, Daviesia, Pultenaea. A very fine Grevillea grew abundantly on the top of the hill. The track in many places was over ironstone gravel, which was remarkably heavy, and seemed to contain enough mineral to be of economic value, but on account of the expense iron ore has to be very pure to be worth treatment. In a fruit garden adjacent bananas seemed to be doing very well. This reminds me that the plantain is very common in gardens around Perth, and bears fruit. Another very common tree is a castor oil-tree, but whether the species which supplies the oil of commerce I cannot say. If it is, then an effort should be made to utilize it, for castor oil is in great demand at present as a lubricant. At Kelmscott I saw the Crimson Kangaroo Paws used with good effect as a border to a drive, having somewhat the appear- ance that clumps of gladioli would have. The final outing of my trip was another visit to the zig-zag on the Kalamunda fine. I slipped out of the train at the summit of the zig-zag (700 feet) and walked back to Midland Junction, collecting flowers nearly all the way. Just at my starting-point were hundreds of the charming Heliptenim {Rhodanthe) Manglesii, their pink flowers lasting for a long time as a table decoration. Many other flowers occurred all 36 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A: [ Vict. Nat. Vol. XXXVI. along the line as I descended, of which I am unable to give the names. I noticed here, as also in the open scrub land about Victoria Park, a southern suburb, quantities of Calectasia cyanea, the Tinsel Lily of our Grampians. The Western Wattle, Acacia saligna, was very fine about Applecross, where also that remarkable tree, Nuytsia floribttnda, known as the Christmas- tree (on account of its being covered with gorgeous orange blossoms about Christmas time) also grows, but I did not come across a specimen. There was also a brilliantly-coloured Banksia. Another good place for flowers was the open land close to the tram terminus at Mount Lawley, a northern suburb. Two other places I wanted to visit but could not, on account of the infrequency of the. trains, were the Serpentine Falls, beyond Armadale, and Gingin (50 miles), on the Northern (Geraldton) railway, where I would have seen a different class of country. Swan View (Darhng Range) is also a good wild-flower locality, but had to be omitted from my itinerary. A couple of days before I left Perth a wild-flower show for patriotic purposes was held in the Town Hall. Of course, I paid it a visit, but was somewhat disappointed. There were certainly quantities of Kangaroo Paws, Boronia (from Albany), Geraldton Wax-flowers, &c., for sale, but little attempt at a botanical display ; however, I saw many flowers which I had not met with in my short rambles, such as the red Leschen- aultia (which, I beheve, is somewhat rare),- the Verticordias, and quite a number of orchids, including the Porcelain Orchid, of which we had specimens at our recent display. It is possible that some of my listeners have been dis- appointed in the fact that I did not enter into greater detail than I have done regarding the flora of that part of Western Australia which I visited, but it must be borne in mind that I was a stranger in a strange land, and my visit was far too short in which to gather much detail of such a large subject ; and l^esides, Mr. Topp, in his paper previously referred to, has made so many comparisons between south-western and south- eastern plants that further detail is unnecessary now. For those who contemplate a visit thither I would suggest a study of the articles on the natural history of the State which have appeared in the Year-Book published by the State Govern- ment, particularly those in vols, ix.-xiii. (1894-1902). A useful article on the flora, by Mr. J. J. East, with references to previous writers on the subject, was published in the " Cyclopaedia of Western Australia," 1912 ; while the handbook published for use of the British Association meeting in 1914, together with the articles by Mr. J. H. Maiden, LS.O., F.R.S., in the Federal handbook for the same meeting, contain a vast Jg"^'] Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. ^7 amount of information not readily procurable elsewhere. Up to the present no work dealing exclusively with the botany of Western Australia has been published, but I have been informed that Mr. Oswald Sargent, of York, is collecting material for such a publication, which will no doubt be greatly appreciated, for, as Mr. Maiden says regarding Western Austraha, " its pre-eminence as a botanist's paradise is without question." The natural history of Western Austraha has attracted the attention of naturalists for more than two hundred years, for had not Vlaming in 1696 visited the Swan River and captured there actual specimens of the fabulous Black Swan of Juvenal, and managed to take three of them ahve to Batavia. Three years later WilHam Dampier visited Western Australia for the second time, and, landing at Shark Bay, was disappointed with the barren appearance of the country. He referred to the kangaroo as " a strange creature like a raccoon, which used only its hind legs, and, instead of walking, advanced by great bounds or leaps of twelve or fifteen feet at a time." In 1791 Archibald Menzies, naturalist to Vancouver's expedition, spent some time at King George's Sound making extensive botanical collections. In the following year Mons. Labillardiere, naturalist to the French expedition under D'Entrecasteaux, visited the south-western coast, while in 1801 came Matthew Flinders in the Investigator, and with him was Robert Brown, the father of Austrahan botany, who made rich hauls in the neighbourhood of King George's Sound. In 1801-2 another French expedition under Baudin searched the west coast for traces of La Perouse, without success. The botanist to this expedition was Mons. Leschenault, after whom that beautiful member of the Goodeniaceae was named, and which, so far as I could learn, bears no vernacular name, being always referred to by its scientific appellation. After my all too short acquaintance with the Swan River flora, I could quite understand the pleasure and curiosity with which early botanical explorers must have wandered about the sandy surroundings of the Swan River and secured for friends in England and elsewhere specimens of its wonderful flora. Probably the man who did most to make Western Austrahan plants known to the world was James Drummond, who arrived in Western Australia as " agriculturist " with the first Governor, Capt. Stirhng, 1829, and was placed in charge of a garden for introducing useful plants into the colony. He devoted a considerable portion of his time to collecting native plants and forwarding specimen plants and seeds to England, where they became quite a rage, and for years New Holland plants, as they were termed, were grown in glass-houses by 38 Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. [voTxxxvi. wealthy folks. His name has been used as a specific name for some hundreds of Western Australian plants. Another man who spread the fame of New Holland plants was John Lindley, who was Professor of Botany in the University of London in 1829. In 1839 he published in Edwards's " Botanical Register," vol. xxxii., " A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony." This contains coloured figures of eighteen species. A copy can be seen in our Melbourne Public Library, and the faithfulness of the figures remarked. Our own grand old man, the late Baron von Mueller, did a great deal towards the elucida- tion of the Western Austrahan flora, and, I believe, showed considerable partiality towards it, which perhaps may be ac- counted for by the fact that in 1856 he accompanied, as botanist, the A. C. Gregory Exploring Expedition in North-Western and Northern Australia, and in 1867 and 1877 made visits to Western AustraHa for purposes of botanical research. In this connection it may be mentioned that a society for the study of the native flora — the Mueher Botanic Society — was founded in Perth in 1897, which published eleven parts of its pro- ceedings, dated September, 1899-April, 1903. In April, 1903, it became the Western Austrahan Natural History Society, publishing proceedings at irregular intervals. On 17th August, 1909, the title of the society was altered to Natural History and Science Society of Western Australia, and it commenced the publication of a quarterly journal. In 1914 the society became the Royal Society of Western Australia. Unfortunately, the set of the society's proceedings in our library is far from complete, but it contains many useful articles. Probably in the early days of the society, a piece of land lying between Leederville and Subiaco, two of the western suburbs of Perth, was dedicated as a public park, under the name of Mueller Park ; but as one of the far-reaching effects of the late war I found that this is now shown on the official plan of Perth (October, 1917) as Kitchener Park, the name " Mueller " having been discarded, probably on account of its German flavour. These notes will hardly be complete without some reference to the Western Australian Museum, which is housed in a fine building a little to the north of the railway station and over- looking Central Perth. It was opened on its present site in 1891, and contains a creditable lot of specimens. Western Australian birds are well represented, but I was very much struck, while glancing at them, with the prevalence of sombre tints in their colourings, even the parrots making a poor show. This, probably, is an indication of the type of country which they inhabit. Among a number of interesting large cases was one containing a group of the common sea and shore birds found J""M Barnard, Notes of a Visit to W.A. 1919 39 near Perth. The authorities are proud of their mounted whale skeleton, 80 feet long. Fossils, minerals, and the other items of a museum make up a very interesting collection. The ethnological display was not so extensive as I had expected from such a large area as Western Australia, still having a large aboriginal population ; but I learned that from want of room many valuable exhibits are unable to be displayed. The Public Library occupies portion of the same building, and the Royal Society has the use of a room there. The monthly meeting of the society took place while I was on my Caves trip, so I unfortunately missed meeting some of the kindred spirits of the West. The Zoological Gardens at South Perth were not seen at their best. The dry season was affecting them, and during the previous winter there had been numerous deaths among the animals and birds ; but more serious than all was the falling-off in revenue, and consequently the difficulty of upkeep. This, unfortunately, is the result of a universal monetary depression in Western Australia, of which we have seen evidences in the papers during the past week, mainly due to the falling-off of the gold yield and the agricultural and other industries not being sufficient to fill its place. Perhaps as shipping gets more plentiful there will be a greater induce- ment to turn to the land, for from the land can be the only certain income. Western Austraha occupies about one-third of the island continent of Austraha, and it should be borne in mind that my remarks have referred only to a few localities in that part of the State which, partly for the sake of brevity and partly to revive its first designation. Dr. Griffith Taylor has aptly termed " Swanland " in his exceedingly interesting memoir on " The Austrahan Environment." Swanland is also a set-off to Gippsland, in the south-eastern corner of the continent, and saves the use of that longer designation, " South- Western Western Australia," which was previously necessary. His eastern boundary of Swanland, which is practically the 10" rainfall line, runs from Shark Bay in the north to Israelite Bay in the south-east, crossing the Eastern railway between Southern Cross and Coolgardie, and the Coolgardie-Norseman line about midway between those two places. On my return to Adelaide I broke my journey for three days, and filled in my time with friends and by taking two of the Tourist Bureau char-a-banc trips, which are very popular. The first was through Magill and up the road to Norton's Summit, past the Morialta Falls — a spot that is worth anyone's while to visit. The falls are in a magnificent gorge after the character of the Werribee Gorge, and are visible from the road. Then on through Piccadilly to Craters ; here there was 40 Bar-nard, Notes of a Visit to W. A. [vd'*^xxxvi a stoppage of half an hour for afternoon tea. In chatting with a lady and gentleman on the car they said " they would like to take some of the wild-flowers home to their daughter, who belonged to a naturalists' club." I naturally was inquisitive enough to ask, " What club ? " when I was informed " The Melbourne one." " Well," I said, " I probably know your daughter, and she is sure to have spoken of me," so I introduced myself. The member referred to is Miss M. Johnson, Miss G. Nethercote's companion on her Baw Baw trip. On leaving Craters we went up to the summit of Mount Lofty, from whence there is a fine view of the Adelaide plain, and then took the road down to Adelaide through the Glen Osmond valley. A beautiful trip, but the hills were very dry, and few flowers were to be seen, PnltencBa daphnoides being the most noticeable. The war has even affected the vegetation of these hills, for, owing to the scarcity of shipping, the Broken Hill mines have not been able to get their regular supplies of Oregon timber from America, so they have had to fall back on local timber, and, as South Australia is very short of forest timber, the Mount Lofty Ranges are being stripped of their gums, and the logs sent to Broken Hill. The face of the range is also being deeply scarred by the extension of the quarries which supply the stone for building and road-making purposes in the city and suburbs. These scars can be seen from a distance of six or eight miles, so they are fairly extensive. The second trip, on the next afternoon, in which Mr. and Mrs. Johnson also joined, was southerly via Happy Valley Reservoir to Clarendon, on the Onkaparinga River, returning to Adelaide by the Coromandel Valley and Blackwood — another very picturesque trip, and, had the country not been so dry, would have been more enjoyable. No visitor to Adelaide should fail to take one or more of the Tourist Bureau trips. Most of them touch the Mount Lofty Ranges in one part or another. My final day was terribly windy and dusty. I visited the Zoo in the morning. The collection of animals and birds is more modest than ours, but everything is very nicely housed and w^ell kept. While there I noticed two or three specimens of the Larger Wanderer Butterfly lazily flying about. All too short visits to the Botanical Gardens, South Australian Museum, and the Public Library filled up a busy day, and left one wishing for a few more days in " The City of the Plain." The ethnological exhibits at the museum are very extensive and particularly interesting, and deserved a much longer time than I had to spare for them. My holiday was nearly over, and I returned to Melbourne next (the thirtieth) day, well pleased with the experiences of my trip, for is not all travel educative. the Uicforfan naturalist Vol. XXXVI.— No. 3. JULY 10, 1919. No. 427. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The thirty-ninth annual meeting was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, i6th June, 1919. The president, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., occupied the chair, and about 120 members and visitors were present. CORRESPONDENXE. From Mr. W. H. D. Le Souef, C.M.Z.S., thanking the members for their expression of sympathy in his recent assault by foot- pads, and stating that he was almost himself again. REPORTS. A report of the excursion to Studley Park on Saturday, 17th May, was given by the leader, Mr. A. D. Hardy, who briefly out- lined the extent of the ramble and the objects noted, pointing out what a valuable asset Studley Park is, both for the study of botany, in the shape of metropolitan representatives of some of our forest trees, and for the study of sedimentary rocks. He said that the party, which was a large one, had been kindly invited to afternoon tea by Mr. and Mrs. J. Gabriel, whose residence adjoins the park. On the motion of Messrs. Barnard and Cox, a hearty vote of thanks was passed to Mr. and Mrs. Gabriel for their hospitality. A brief report of the visit to the Geological Museum on Saturday, 31st May, was given by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, who said that there had been a good attendance of members. Mr. R. A. Keble, who was the guide for the afternoon, devoted some time to the mode of occurrence in Victoria of some of the rare minerals, such as wolfram and molybdenum, and pointed out specimens of the different ores. He then dealt with various other economic mineral productions of Victoria, according to their geological age, and made the visitor realize what a wealth of information can be derived from the examination of the specimens in the museum. A report of the excursion from Evelyn to Montrose, on Monday, 9th June (King's Birthday), was given by the leader, Mr. G. Coghill, who said that there had been a good muster of members, but, unfortunately, the day turned out most un- pleasant— at first very windy, afterwards smart showers. From a botanical point of view the excursion had not been the success that he had hoped, for, where the previous season the native heath, Epacvis impressa, had been in abundance, on this occasion 42 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [voI"^xxxvi. it was very poor, partly owing to fires during the summer, and partly to the extraordinary autumn just experienced, when both native plants and introduced trees, &c., apparently misjudged the season, and flowered at a time when they should have been resting. He remarked that along part of the route followed, the bank of the Lilydale water-race, numerous seedlings of about a dozen species of ferns were easily obtainable. They were just the size for moving, and their removal was in no way detrimental, for at intervals the race was cleaned out, and most of the young ferns were destroyed. Luncheon was taken at his week-end cottage, where the party arrived just in time to avoid a wetting. During the afternoon a visit was paid to the neighbouring Olinda Reservoir, but the fine view usually obtainable from that elevated spot was marred by rain clouds. The members of the party, however, seemed to enjoy the outing, and returned to Mooroolbark station laden with heath and gum leaves for home decoration. Mr. J. L. Robertson said that he had brought the excursion under the notice of the officers of H.M.S. New Zealand, but he supposed their oflicial duties could not be set aside, for no one responded to the invitation. ELECTION OF MEMBERS. On a ballot being taken, Mr. W. H. Ingram, '' Swainton," Clowes-street, South Yarra, was duly elected an ordinary member ; Mrs. J. Findlay Fraser, Sunnyside, via Drouin, as a country member ; and Miss Oonah Hardy, Studley-avenue, Kew, as an associate member of the Club. ANNUAL REPORT. The hon. secretary, Mr. E. S. Anthony, read the thirty-ninth annual report for the year 1918-19, which was as follows : — *' To THE Members of the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria. " Ladies and Gentlemen, — In presenting the thirty-ninth annual report of the Club, j-our committee feel that it is a matter for great thankfulness that the year just closed has seen also the conclusion of the greatest conflict in human history. For over four years the nations of the world have been engaged in the deadhest strife, and it is little wonder that, amid the unprecedented events of this period, a Club such as ours should have been content with quiet, unostentatious work rather than with movements of an aggressive nature. " In reviewing the past year, it is pleasing to record the loyal support your committee and officers have received from members despite the distracting factors alluded to. J"'y'l Field Naturalists'- Club — Proceedings. 43 " The Club year had a good send-off at the annual meeting. This usually formal business meeting was made attractive by the addition of a general exhibition of natural history speci- mens, to the success of which a large number of the members contributed. His Excellency the Governor-General, Sir Ronald Munro Ferguson, K.C.M.G., himself a member of the Club, attended the meeting, and, in addition to unveiling the honour board so generously donated by Messrs. J . Gabriel and P. R. H. St. John, made a close examination of the individual exhibits, and showed genuine interest in this demonstration of the Club's varied operations. " Throughout the year, with the exception of the month of February, the monthly meetings have been held regularly, the one omission being due to the Board of Health's restrictions prohibiting public gatherings on account of the prevaihng epidemic of influenza. " These monthly meetings have maintained the standard so long upheld by the Club in regard to scientific interest, variety of subjects, and popular character. The attendances have averaged between 50 and 60 persons each month. It has always been considered of paramount importance to encourage members at these meetings to place on view specimens of interest, and there has been no lack of exhibits during the past year. Brief explanatory notes have greatly enhanced the value of this part of the programme. Lectures have been delivered and papers read dealing with botany, entomology, geology, meteorology, ornithology, and zoology. Several of these were illustrated by excellent lantern views and diagrams. The authors' names and titles of their lectures and papers are as follows :— Mr. J. Hatch, lecture (illustrated), * The Bird-Life- of Macquarie Island ' ; Dr. Griffith Taylor, B.E., B.A., F.G.S., lecture (illustrated), ' Science in Antarctica ' ; Mr. F. Chapman, A.L.S., lecture (illustrated), ' Geological History of Austrahan Plants : Mesozoic Flora.' Papers. — Mr. Thomas Steele, ' Tracks of the Garden Snail ' ; Mr. F. P. Dodd, ' An Ento- mologist's Trip to New Guinea ' ; Mr. F. E. Wilson, * An Ornithologist's Notes in the Mallee ' ; Mr. J, W. Audas, F.L.S., ' Nature in the Serra Range ' ; Mr. J. Gabriel, ' Destruction of Mutton-Birds at Phillip Island ' ; Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, ' Notes on a Trip to Western Australia ' ; Mr. H. B. Williamson, ' Notes on the Census of the Victorian Flora ' ; Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., 'A Week Among the Seaweeds at Portsea ' ; Mr. J. Booth, M.C.E., B.Sc, 'About Pet Peter, a Flying Phalanger.' Your committee expresses its thanks to the con- tributors named. '' The Club excursions, always regarded as a special feature of its many activities, still continue their popularity. The 44 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [^ Vict. Nat. oi. xxxvr. majority of these were half -day visits to localities easily access- ible on the Saturday afternoon, but several whole-day outings further afield were also conducted, and a five days' visit to Marysville at Christmas time proved a very successful under- taking. The famous Grampians were visited in September by a party of Club members in conjunction with the excursion arranged by the Tourists' Bureau. The thanks of your com- mittee are extended to those ladies and gentlemen who have acted as leaders and organizers of these field excursions. " The annual wild-flower exhibition as a public show has become a regular institution. This year it was again held in the Melbourne Town Hall, and the proceeds devoted to the Soldiers' Fund of the Y.M.C.A. The hall was found none too large for the fine display of native flowers generously forwarded by members and friends from all the States of the Common- wealth. The microscopical display, which was a noteworthy feature of the show, was due to the generous assistance of the Microscopical Society and the painstaking labours of Mr. J. Searle. Many lady members and friends gave of their time and work unsparingly, and the ladies' committee, under the capable management of Miss A. Fuller, has your committee's congratulations. Many other workers, both before and at the show, are deserving of more than passing mention for their voluntary assistance in ways too numerous to refer to. The net result of this one-day exhibition was £141 2S. gd., which must be considered satisfactory, especially having regard to the unpropitious weather. " In addition to these more prominent operations of the Club, a number of other matters of not less importance have been dealt with. " Strong support has been given to the department ad- ministering the Fisheries and Game Act, particularly in relation to the close season for quail and other game. " In connection with the National Park, during the year the Government received applications to throw open this proclaimed sanctuary for the preservation of the native fauna and flora for purposes of tin mining. A large and influential deputation (on which this Club was strongly represented) waited on the Minister of Mines to oppose this application, and their efforts were partially successful. The Club's support was also requested by the naturahsts of South Australia in their endeavours to secure a reserve for the protection of native fauna and flora in that State, and it is understood that the request is likely to receive favourable consideration. " A good deal of pubhcity was given to Macquarie Island and the destruction of its bird-life during the period under review, and a representative was selected by this Club (and J^'j''] Field Naturalists* Cluh — Proceedings. 45 afterwards approved of by the Tasmanian Government) to pay a visit of inspection and report to the Club. Owing to the lateness of the season, and other reasons, the visit of this representative was deferred for the time being. " The Plant Names Committee still pursue their labours, and are at present dealing with the final revision of the vernacular names. " The Club's monthly journal, the Victorian Naturalist, under the able editorship of Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, is a far greater asset to the Club than may be generally known. Besides recording the meetings and excursion reports, the lectures and papers read before the Club are published in extenso, and your committee are pleased to report that inquiries from the other States and overseas are frequently made for copies containing certain scientific matter regarded as important. Your com- mittee desire to place on record their appreciation of the untiring devotion to duty of the honorary editor, who has not spared himself in bringing the Naturalist to the high standard it has now reached. " Another officer who has served the Club voluntarily for many years, but who this year seeks retirement, is Mr. George Coghill. As hon. treasurer for 15 years or more, he has con- trolled the finances of the Club in a very capable manner. His business ability and systematic methods have assisted your committee in no small degree, and they much regret that he feels that he is unable to continue in the office. " The hon. secretary (Mr. E. S. Anthony) finds it impossible to continue in office, and has reluctantly to retire this year also. To Mr. W. Glance, who has for some years acted as hon. assistant secretary and hon. assistant librarian, your committee express their thanks for his regular attention to the duties of these dual offices. " Your committee are greatly indebted to Messrs. Coghill and Haughton for the continued free use of their office for the committee meetings each month. These central, well-lighted premises have been of great convenience to the committee. " The library is still in the capable hands of Mr. P. R. H. St. John, and a recent list of publications regularly received into the library by purchase or exchange should be of advantage to members. Membership. — The year commenced with a roll of 229 members, and at the close of the year the number was 233, showing an increase for the twelve months of 4, after allowing for resignations and elections. A list of the members was published in the last number of the Naturalist for the year (April, 1919). " Your committee are pleased to welcome back those 46 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [voi!'^ xxxvi. members who have been on active service, and trust before very long that all those members who have been so engaged will be back to their homeland once again. " To those of the members (and they are many) who have during the year been bereaved your committee tender sincerest sympathy. " The finances of the Club are in a sound position, and, as indicated in the hon. treasurer's statement, despite the increased cost of paper, printing, and postages, there is a credit balance at the close of the year of £58 15s. gd. " In conclusion, your committee trust that, with the altered condition of national affairs, members will be enal)led to devote their energies more whole-heartedly to the pursuit of natural history, and by so doing assist the incoming officers and com- mittee to promote the best interests of the Field Naturalists' Club. " On behalf of the Committee, " A. D. HARDY, President. " 28th May IQIQ." " ■^- ^- ANTHONY, Ho}i. Secretary. On the motion of Mr. E. Cox, seconded by Mr. P. R. H. St. John, the report was received and adopted. FINANCIAL STATEMENT. The hon. treasurer, Mr. G. Coghill, presented the financial statement for 1918-19, which was as follows : — Receipts. To Balance, 30th April, 1918 ... ... ... ;^6i 8 8 ,, Subscriptions — Ordinary Members ... ;!{^I20 17 6 Country Members ... 30 16 o Associate Members ... 3 12 6 Victorian Naturalist — Subscriptions and Sales 8 i i Advertisements ... 3 15 o Reprints ... ... i 10 9 l^SS 6 10 Sales of Badges .. ... ... 080 Special Subscriptions and Donations ... i 10 o Interest, Savings Bank and War Loan ... 131 Library — Overpaid on Periodicals ... 118 o Wild-flower Exhibition — Admissions ... ... ... 126 o 6 Sales ... ... ... ... 51 II 4 Refreshments ... ... ... 4 18 11 173 II II 182 10 9 A17 II 4 •Subscriptions :— Arrears, ;^29 5s. ; 1918-19, ;^I2I 15s. ; 1919-20, £^ 6s.— total ;^I55 6s. July,] 1919J Field Naturalists' Cluh ' — Proceedings •• EXPENDITU] IE. B) r Victorian Naturalist — Printing £93 17 9 Illustrating ... 4 19 6 Free Reprints 7 0 0 Reprints charged 0 II 0 ^106 8 3 j> Victorian Naturalist — Wrapping and Posting 15 7 3 ?) Rooms — Rent and Attendance ... 13 15 0 Library — Books ... 2 12 "6 Periodicals ... ••• 3 10 6 Insurance ... 0 7 0 6 10 0 1) Hire of Lantern 2 15 0 Printing and Stationery ... 16 14 6 ,, Postages, &c. 8 4 4 >> Subscriptions and Donations Wild-flower Exhibition — 6 10 6 n Rent of Hall, &c. ... ... 20 I 0 Expenses ... ... ... 21 7 0 Cheque to Y.M.C.A. Fund 141 2 9 5 J Balance in Savings Bank 51 3 I )> ,, London Bank 7 12 8 47 176 4 10 182 10 58 15 9 ;^4i7 II 4 G. COGHILL, ZTf?;/. Treasurer. "'^~~~"~" 15//^ J/aj, 1 91 9. Audited and found correct. F. WISEWOULD,) . ,., 2lrdMay, 1919. F. KEEP, ^Auditors. The following statement of assets and liabilities was also presented : — Assets. Balance — Savings Bank and London Bank ... ... £^^ 15 9 War Loan Bond ... ... ... ... ... 20 o o Arrears of Subscriptions (^^58), say... ... ... 40 o o Library and Furniture (Insurance Value) ... ... 150 o o i:268 15 9 Liabilities. — ^— — Subscriptions paid in advance ... ... ... £a^ 6 o On the motion of Mr. G. Coghill, seconded by Mr. P. R. H. St. John, the statement was received and adopted. A vote of thanks to the officers for the past year was proposed by Mr. E. Cox and seconded by Mr. J. Stickland. The motion was supported by Mr. F. Keep and carried unanimously. On the motion of Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, seconded by Mr. H. Whitmore, a special vote of thanks was accorded to Mr. G. 48 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [voT.'^xxxvi. Coghill in recognition of his valuable services as hon. treasurer for the past 15 years. ELECTION OF OFFICE-BEARERS, I919-2O. The following office-bearers, being the only nominations received, were declared duly elected : — President, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S. ; hon. treasurer, Mr. F. Pitcher ; hon. librarian, Mr. P. R. H. St. John; hon. editor, Mr. F. G. A. Barnard; hon. secretary, Mr. P. C. Morrison ; and hon. assistant secretary and librarian, Mr. W. Glance. On a ballot being taken for two vice-presidents, Messrs. J. Gabriel and J. Searle were duly elected. On a ballot being taken for five members of committee, Messrs. F. Chapman, A.L.S., G. Coghill, C. Daley, F.L.S. , J. A. Kershaw, F.E.S., and Dr. C. S. Sutton were duly elected. DEATH OF A LIFE MEMBER. The president referred to the recent death, at the ripe age of 91, of Mr. B. R. Patey, one of the early members of the Club, who, in September, 1882, availed himself of a new rule then passed, and became the first life member of the Club. He, however, did not take a very active part in the work of the Club in the succeeding years, and therefore was unknown to most of the present members. It was resolved, on the motion of Messrs. F. Pitcher and C. French, to forward a letter of condolence to his relatives. EXHIBITS. With the view of making the annual meeting more than usually attractive, members had been requested to make a special display of interesting exhibits, and the response was seen in the fine exhibition of various natural history objects in the lower hall, while several members exhibited specimens under microscopes in the adjoining room. The following is a brief list of the principal exliibits : — By Mr. E. S. Anthony. — Collection of aboriginal stone imple- ments, &c. By Mr. F. G. A. Barnard. — Growing fern, Polypodium pus- tulatuvi, Forster (syn. P. scandens), from Tidal River, Wilson's Promontory, December, 1914 ; also Australian bird-skins. By Mr. D. Best. — Case of Victorian beetles. By Mr. C. C. Brittlebank, on behalf of Science Branch, Depart- ment of Agriculture. — Four cases of pathogenic fungi ; 12 spirit specimens of Australian phalloids, (Exhibits continued in August Naturalist.) After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. J"Jj'^] Booth, A Flying Phalangev. 49 ABOUT "PET PETER," A FLYING PHALANGER. By J. Booth, M.C.E., B.Sc. (Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 12th May, 191 9.) Some workmen felling gum-trees near Croydon found and secured a small furry animal, which they brought up t6 the house and gave into the care of the housekeeper. She placed the little creature in a box crowded with fresh gum leaves, and fed it on bread soaked in milk and plastered with sugar. The men were first interested, then experimental, and later some- what annoying to the httle animal ; and though it had become very friendly with the housekeeper, on whose shoulder it would perch, and hide in her dress, she decided to send it away from its tormentors, and asked me to take it home with me. This I was very pleased to do, and " Pet Peter " remained with us in Hawthorn till the day of his death. " Pet Peter " was a phalanger — the Lesser Flying Phalanger • — genus Petaurus, species breviceps, Waterhouse, of the group Phalangeridae of the order Diprotodontia in the sub-class Metatheria of the Mammalia. Hence our pet was a climbing marsupial, with fore and hind feet prehensile, with an opposable thumb and prehensile tail, and had also " lateral folds of skin extending from fore to hind limbs " which act " as a parachute,"* and with a proper supply of diprotodont teeth. On arrival home '' Pet Peter " was put in a large deal box and provided with plenty of gum leaves ; but gum leaves were not very readily obtainable, and seemed to be but little valued by " Pet Peter," and gradually they were discontinued, and a smaller box, with straw and pieces of cloth, substituted to provide warmth, shelter, and retreat. He quite approved, and was fond of both the larger and the interior box. Later he was removed to a wire-net cage or room, 6 x 4 x 10 feet high, overgrown with Virginia and other creepers. Here he lived while hfe lasted. He is now in the possession of the National Museum, and by the kindness of the Curator, Mr. J. A. Kershaw, F.E S., he or one of his kind is on the table here this evening. Being a nocturnal animal, his periods of activity, and so opportunity for observation, did not coincide with ours, and only overlapped by an hour or so in the evening. In these hours he was often introduced to the family, and allowed at large in the house. He rarely left the room in which he was set free, and showed no tendency to abscond. He treated us to very few demonstrations of " flying," although we have seen some fairly long " jumps." But his climbing powers * Parker and Haswell, " Text Book of Zoology," ii., p. 468. 50 Booth, A Flying Phalanger. [ Vict. Nat. Vol. XXXVI. were astonishing. Not only did mantlepieces, high shelves, picture frames, and even the picture-rail present no more difficulty than floor or table, but picture or blind cords formed perfect surfaces for all the manoeuvres of advance, sudden retreat, and active gyration. Human beings neither attracted nor repelled. He had no fear of them ; if they happened in his way he ran over them. For him they simply were not. Come for calling ? No. Easy to catch ? Not much ; but if caught it was no trouble at all to " Pet Peter." When picked up in the evening, or approached in his nest in the day-time, he had no objection to being handled. You could stroke him, curl his tail round your finger, examine his graceful little paws, and he was neither nervous nor com- plaining ; but on one point he was sensitive — very. Try to examine, spread out, or display his " wings," and " Pet Peter " manifested at once the greatest objection. His voice, which was usually a subdued hiss, became a very Liliputian snarl, while he wriggled, backed, and twisted in his most vigorous manner to avoid the desecration. " Pet Peter " had another characteristic : he was a king of malingerers. To " sham dead " is not uncommon with animals ; but " Pet Peter" to all intents and. purposes was dead. Pity and interest and thoughts of the museum were the only things that prevented his burial the first time he treated us to an exhibition of his powers in this direction. Limp, eyes staring, and breathless, he exhibited no "response to stimuh," lying flaccid in the hands or on the table for a period of perhaps five or ten minutes ; then, with scarcely a sigh of recovery, he would dart to a far corner and continue the romps of the evening. This sham death, which occurred some four or five times, seemed sometimes to be brought on by apparent fright of a cat or dog, but at others without any assignable cause — just a breathing spell in his activities ; otherwise, during waking hours, " Pet Peter " took no rest. He played hide-and-seek well. He was not always ready to be put away into his own apartment when the family were retiring^in fact, it was not always easy to find him, and even finding was not always getting, and so he was often left till the morning. Only once did we fail to get him, and then after an absence of a week he composedly turned up in one of the upper bedrooms ; otherwise we never failed to find him eventually, but we had many a long search, and discovered him in strange places. A deep, narrow-necked vase in the centre of the top shelf of an overmantel hid him for a long time the first time he made use of it — I said first time, but I don't think there ever was a second. I am sure there was no third, for " Pet Peter " had no fancy for any particular cranny ; but, though J"'^'] Booth, A Flying Phalanger. 51 his hiding-places were rarely the same, they were all pretty uniformly good. At times we brought him out in the day-time, but he was, naturally, very lethargic, and, though we could trick him into running about a bit to show him off to visitors, he seemed very uncomfortable, and tried to burrow at once into the pockets or folds or sleeves of one's clothes. Nevertheless, at any time he was willing enough to wake up sufficiently to take a lump of offered sugar, and eat it in the same pretty manner as he did cockroaches. Yes, our pet was quite fond of sugar. One day we found in a drawer of envelopes and stamps a clean round hole through the papers to a small bag of boiled lollies. The stationery department made a debit of sixpence after patching up as many of the stamps as could be used. Otherwise, in the day-time he preferred quiet, and would be pleased to curl up in the lap for any length of time while sewing or the like was being done. He used occasionally to lick the hands of people with his long, thin tongue ; with imagination one might construe it into a caress. When he was at large, or almost at large, in his wire house, he was only to be caught during dormant hours, his activity in it, even if he ran almost through your hands at times, rendering it impossible when he had once woke up for the night. It was the practice to feed him when in the wire house once a day in the early evening. He would then answer to a call by name with a hiss, and drop on to the shoulder of the one bringing food. This was practically always the same person, and we certainly think that he came in a way to know her. At these feeding times it was curious to watch him drinking, when he did not perch on the shoulder or hand for a square meal. At these times he would suspend himself over the saucer of milk and drink freely, vertically upwards, gravity and its laws notwithstanding. For diet, " Pet Peter " liked cockroaches. They were treated as delicate morsels. Chitin was of no use to him ; after he had had five minutes with a member of the Blattidae it all remained — but nothing, quite nothing, else. Every limb was removed, every femur emptied, and the dry dissected pile left in a neat patch where the meal was partaken of. It was most inter- esting to watch him, squirrel-like, holding these creatures in his miniature hands, and performing the dissection with skill and rapidity. He also had a taste for millipedes, and did not always spurn Oniscus. On one occasion a number of milli- pedes had been gathered for him, and he had been fed with a few, the rest being left in the bottom of a glass tumbler to serve for the next meal. " Pet Peter " took the next meal very shortly, inverting himself in the tumbler to take it, and wiped 52 ■ Booth, A Flying Phalanger. [v^!^xxxvi. the platter clean. We tempted him with various other refec- tion, animal and vegetable. Most he would have nought to do with ; now and again he would taste a little fruit, or animals other than cockroaches and " milHes," but they were all side- lines with him. His one stock and staple diet was the original milk-soaked bread and sugar, or perhaps we should say sugar and milk-soaked bread, for, though he ate the bread and drank some of the milk, it was the sugar, plenty and thick, that he seemed to regard as the essential. The small size and perfect build, the curious " wings " and squirrel-like hands, so small and cold and naked, the rich, deep fur and dehcate tissue-paper-thick ears, the spherical, pro- minent, bead-like eyes, the tiny pointed mouth and dainty little tongue, with his friendly but independent character, made him a universally admired pet. He was a cleanly animal, and had no noticeable parasites. I do not know what toll of years would make a breviceps feel aged. But one evening, after some cold, wet weather, " Pet Peter " failed to answer to the call for supper, but took it readily enough when offered to him in his nest. He seemed to be lethargic, and the lethargy increased day by day, and his limbs became stiffer. One day his immediate caretaker reported that he seemed to be ill — had caught a cold, or got some rheumatism. He was brought indoors and given an extra good nest, and was fed attentively. But, though his appetite failed but little, his Hmbs continued to get stiffer, and on the 7th June last year his corpus was transferred to the National Museum. We had brought him down from Croydon on the i6th November, 1912. He had then been about four months in captivity, making his age nearly six years, in addition to whatever time he had hved in his native bush. " Science and Industry." — ^The first number (May, 1919) of this new publication, which is the official journal of the Com- monwealth Institute of Science and Industry, is to hand. Its aims, as set out in the " Foreword," are good, and we trust in due time will become accompHshed facts. Many diverse subjects are dealt with. In an article, which shows the effect of environ- ment on plants, Dr. J. B. Clelland deals with the terrible " prickly pear " pest in Queensland and northern New South Wales, the illustrations showing the widespread effects of the scourge. Fortunately Victoria is free from this plant as a pest, but the planting of sweetbriar and African boxthorn as hedge plants in this State should be absolutely prohibited, if we are to remain free from a similar menace. The journal is to be published monthly, at one shilHng per copy. tH Uictorian naturalist. Vol. XXXVI.— No. 4. AUGUST 7, 1919. No. 428. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 14th July, 1919. The president, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., occupied the chair, and about sixty-five members and friends were present. REPORTS. In the absence of the leader. Prof. Sir W. Baldwin Spencer, K.C.M.G., D.Sc, M.A., F.R.S., a report of the visit to the National Museum (Ethnology branch) was given b}^ Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., who said that about twenty-two members had attended. The Professor first gave an outline of the course he proposed to follow, dealing firstly with the everyday life of the aboriginal, and secondly with their sacred rites. In viewing the exhibits, special interest was shown in the case showing Australian stone implements of different kinds along with exactly parallel examples from different parts of Europe, thus demonstrating in a striking manner the similarity between present-day tribes in Austraha and the people of the Eohthic, Palaeolithic, and Neolithic periods in the old world before the dawn of history. Canoes, weapons, and samples of native weaving with bark, hair-string, &c., were also sources of attrac- tion to many, and a much longer time could have been profit- ably spent under the guidance of Sir Baldwin, but another engagement compelled him to curtail his remarks. ELECTION OF MEMBERS. On a ballot being taken, Mrs. C. Barlow, 95 Raglan-street, St. Kilda, and Mrs. M. M. Cochrane, P.O., Murrumbeena, were duly elected as ordinary members ; Miss K. Currie, Lardner, Mr. J. C. Goudie, Sea Lake, and Rev. W. W. Watts, F.L.S.i as country members ; and Miss Valmai Cochrane, P.O., Murrum- beena, as an associate member of the Club. GENERAL BUSINESS. The president welcomed Dr. (now Major) W. Macgillivray, of Broken Hill, who had just returned from the front. Major jMacgillivray, in acknowledging the welcome, gave some interesting particulars of the sea-birds which he had seen on his way to England, notably those around South Africa. He said that Petrels had been seen 1,200 miles from the nearest land. He also mentioned the Terns, of which several species 54 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [v^!^xxxvi. were seen, the most abundant being Sterna vielanophrys. Calling at Sierra Leone, he found it full of interest, the streets and parks being gay with gorgeous butterflies. In England he had met Mr. Gregory Mathews, who has, for some ten years past, been making an exhaustive study of Austrahan birds. He mentioned also that, in his opinion at least, Australian birds compare favourably with those of the old world in the matter of song, in spite of the poetic protestations of English writers. In concluding, he thanked the members for their kind welcome. Mr. G. A. Keartland mentioned that a new park was in course of preparation at Preston, near Reservoir station, and that it would be a splendid opportunity for the creation of a bird sanctuary, as game was sure to seek the lake which is now being constructed, and would afford excellent material for study if unmolested. Mr. Keartland said that he beheved that the shire council was favourable to the proposal, and moved that it be urged by the Club to have the park declared a sanctuary. In seconding the motion, which was carried unanimously, Mr. F. G. A. Barnard mentioned the part the Club had taken in having Wattle Park, near Burwood, declared a sanctuary, as a precedent for action in the present instance. REMARKS ON EXHIBITS. Mr. C. L. Plumridgc exhibited fronds of a tree-fern, Dicksonia antarctica, garden grown, showing abnormal frondage, stating that when planted it was wholly normal, and remained so until its fourth year, when a slight crimping manifested itself on one of the fronds. This crimping has become more pronounced in successive seasons, until now some of the fronds are wholly crimped, while in very few is it wholly absent. From this specimen he hoped to be able to propagate a new tree-fern, wholly crimped. He also showed a tailed spider which had not come under his notice before. It builds a cylindrical nest or shelter, from which it appears never to emerge, but lives therein permanently, with its head just projecting from the front of the shelter. On being disturbed it spins rapidly round, apparently hoping thereby to escape detection. The specimen was identified by Mr. F. Spry as Arachnura higginsi, L. Koch. Mr. G. A. Keartland called attention to a very old male Grey-backed Goshawk, Astitr darns, which had lost the barred markings on the breast. This specimen was difficult to identify on account of this fact, which is not recorded by either Gould or Mathews, but is stated by North. PAPER READ. By Mr. J. Searle, entitled " Gleanings of a City Naturalist." The paper, which dealt with the various insects, &c., which '^"*''] Field Naturalists*- Club — Proceedings. 55 had been noted during several months in a ColUns-street office, proved very interesting, more especially as it was illustrated by a series of lantern slides, among which were many excellent micro-photographs of insect anatomy. The chairman said that the author's remarks were of rather a novel nature, although there was no reason why this should be so, as the work was not only extremely interesting, but also inexpensive, and hence within reach of all. He suggested that other members should make lists of insects, &c., noticed by them at various times in their houses, as he considered that these would make very interesting reading when collected from the different suburbs. He desired to thank the author for the introduction of such an enticing subject. Messrs. J. L. Robertson and F. G. A. Barnard also expressed their thanks to the author, the latter mentioning that some years ago a specimen of the rather rare beetle, Schizorrhina Phillipsi, had been taken in a banking chamber at Kew, and, a year later, another specimen of the same species was found in the same office — a circumstance which he had not heard equalled. NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. Mr. A. L. Scott said that he had a hazy idea of what glow- worms were like, and thought that those he had seen were the larva of one of the diptera. He saw one of these lately, and, after what Mr. H. B. Wilhamson had said on this subject, had taken particular notice of the area to which the glow was confined. This area, he found, was about three-quarters of the length of the back, the anterior and posterior and the whole of the ventral surface not being illuminated. He suggested that the phosphorescence may have been caused by micro-organisms. Mr. Williamson referred to phosphorescent earthworms, of which he had had specimens at different times. One par- ticularly, when washed and placed on a damp cloth, glowed when stroked, and the finger also glowed when this was done, thus pointing to the explanation which was offered concerning bacterial agency as a cause of the phosphorescence. The chairman spoke of the firefly of the tropics — a small beetle, perhaps a quarter of an inch in length and a sixteenth of an inch broad. These exhibited phosphorescence only on the ventral surface of the terminal segments of the abdomen, and then only in flashes, and not continuously. The light is of a brilliant electric blue colour, and a number (usually twenty or more) are put together under a tumbler to give a continuous light. In Japan, according to Mr. Robert Hall, this is the only form of illuminant used in the third-class compartments on the Japanese railways. He called attention 56 Field Naturalists'- Club — Proceedings. [voT.'^xxxvi. to a helpful paper on the subject of phosphorescence, by Miss F. Bage, M.Sc, to be found in the Victorian Naturalist for November, 1904 (vol. xxi., p. 93). Dr. Macgillivray mentioned that he and Mr. Keartland saw numbers of fireflies in North Queensland. Their light was visible for a distance of at least 300 yards. Their flight was slow, and there were many thousands in one swarm which was observed. He also referred to the bacterial phosphorescence so often noticed by voyagers in the tropics, although the phenomenon is by no means confined to the Torrid Zone. EXHIBITS. By Mr. G. A. Keartland. — Specimen of an old male Grey- backed Goshawk, Astiir darns, which had lost the barred mark- ings on the breast, shot at Kew. By Miss G. Nokes. — Specimen of branching red coral, Coral- Hum riibnim (?). By Mr. C. L. Plumridge. — Fronds of Valley Tree-fern, Dick- sonia antarctica, showing abnormal growth, in illustration of note ; spider, Arachmira higginsi, L. Koch, with shelter, taken at Kew. By Mr. J. Searle. — Specimens under microscope, in illustration of paper. EXHIBITS AT JUNE MEETING. (Continued from p. 48.) By Mr. J. Carter. — Swan-neck moss and insect preparations (under microscope). By Mr-. J. Cronin. — Growing Victorian ferns in pots, from Melbourne Botanic Gardens, also branches of Lilly-Pilly and leaves of Cabbage Palm for decoration of hall. By Mr. F. Chapman, A.L.S. — Under microscope, a series of extra large rock sections prepared to show structure, including Oolitic limestone from Chfton, England ; contorted gneissose structure from Alaska, &c. Fossils from elevated beach deposits and the tertiaries of Ooldea Well, Trans-Australian railway, collected by Mr. L. Chandler, including representatives of the genera Area, Venus (Chione), Pecten, Pinna, Mytilus, Fusus, and Bulla. By Mr. H. Clinton. — Bird parasites, &c. (under microscope). By Mr. C. E. Cole. — Australian Coleoptera. By Mr. C. Daley, M.A. — Minerals found in conjunction with gold in Victoria, also quartz crystals and various varieties of quartz. By Mr. J. E. Dixon. — Victorian Coleoptera — families Tene- brionidae and Curculionida^. By Mr. C. French, on behalf of Science Branch, Department of '"^"s-.l Field Naluyalists* Clttb — Proceedings. 57 Agriculture. — Cabinet drawers of Australian coccids (scale insects), including a number of new species from the Mallee, collected by Mr. J. E. Dixon, and elsewhere ; cabinet drawer of Australian and British butterflies and moths. By Mr. J. Gabriel. — Polyzoa, &c., under microscope. By Mr. C. J. Gabriel. — Victorian marine Mollusca, with their egg-capsules. By Mr. R. A. Keble. — Morwell brown coal and its distiUation products. By Mr. F. Pitcher. — Mounted specimens of twelve rare Vic- torian ferns ; collection of Victorian mosses ; and collection of Victorian marine algae. By Mr. C. L. Plumridge. — Growing Victorian ferns — viz., Adiantum hispidulum, Davallia duhia, and Lomaria fliiviatilis. By Mr. A. L. Scott. — Rock sections, plain and polarized, under microscope. By Mr. J. Searle. — ^Type specimens of Copepoda, also flower of Riippia maritima (first time exhibited), under microscope. By Mr. P. R. H. St. John. — Fruit specimens of Gaiiltheria hispid a, R. Br. ; " Wax- cluster or Snowberry," from Mt. Buffalo, collected by Mrs. J. Lang ; also bag made from inner bark of the Red Stringybark, Eucalyptus macrorhyncha, by Mrs. F. Walker, of Ringwood. By Mr. J. Stickland. — Vorticella, &c. (under microscope). By Dr. Griffith Taylor, F.G.S. — Three new wall maps of Aus- tralia, from the Oxford Press, showing {a) vegetation zones, {h) population, (c) political features ; geological specimens from South Victoria Land, East Antarctica, obtained during 1910-13 expedition ; kenyte lava from Mount Erebus, showing large fel- spars, weathered out by frost and wind ; basalts from Observation Hill, with curved joints ; striated dyke rocks from Granite Harbour ; weathered beacon sandstone from Mount Svess. By Mr, L. Thorn. — Victorian butterflies, collected at Wandin and Ferntree Gully. By Mr. J. Twyford. — Examples of the Brownian movement (under microscope). By Mr. H. B. Williamson. — Collection of dried plants made by scholars of Hawkesdale school. By Mr. J. Wilcox. — Melicerta ringens, &c. (under microscope). After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. Victorian Fisheries. — The report by the Royal Commission appointed to inquire into the fishing industry has just been pre- sented to Parhament. One of the principal decisions arrived at is that properly organized biological research must take the place of guesswork in ascertaining the life-histories of our food fishes. 58 Excuvsion to Studley Park, Kew. [voTl'^xxxvi. EXCURSION TO STUDLEY PARK, KEW. Quite a large party assembled for the outing to Studley Park, Kew, on Saturday, 17th May, and, though listed for the study of eucalypts, the Park, covering rather more than 200 acres, and possessing about four miles of river frontage, offers so many opportunities to the naturalist that it was hard to keep the attention of the twenty-five or so who attended directed to the object of the afternoon. Near the meeting-place at Johnston-street bridge the contorted Ordovician strata exposed along the roadway leading to the pumping station first attracted attention. Ascending to the high ridge overlooking Bight's Falls, the fine view of the city was greatly admired, and attention was called to the fact that, as occasionally chipped stones may be picked up there, at one time the aboriginals probably frequented it when on fishing excursions to the neigh- bouring Yarra, and in support of the fact one of the party secured a characteristic flake. Descending the pathway towards the boat-houses, specimens of Eucalyptus leucoxylon, the Yellow Gum, were pointed out encroaching on the territory of the River Red Gum, E. rostrata, which dehghts in river flats with deep soil. Several old Yellow Gums were of exceptional interest, for from the convex side of their bent trunks the bark had been removed scores of years ago by the natives in order to construct canoes. Though the Yellow Gum here is a somewhat crooked, straggUng tree, in the Western District, where it has been cultivated by the Forest Department, it provides fine, straight stems, suitable for telegraph poles, &c. We then followed up a little valley, and soon left the riverside vegetation behind, getting among the Manna Gums, E. viminalis, the Swamp Gums, E. ovata, and the Yellow Box- Gum, E. melliodora. Here a little time was spent in noting the differences in the juvenile and adult foliage of the three species. Near the top of the ridge was seen a young Yellow Gum struggUng for existence. It had been truncated some years ago at about ten feet from the ground, a few inches above a point where a mistletoe (Loranthus) had established itself ; this was balanced on the opposite side of the trunk by an equal quantity of branchlets bearing " reversionary " fohage. At the time of our visit this latter had survived and the parasite was quite dead. Not far from this, and nearer to Studley Park-road, there is an old Yellow Box, about four feet in stem diameter and some thirty feet high. This tree forks into rather large limbs at ten feet from the ground, and growing from a cavity in the fork is a licalthy specimen of the Light- wood, Acacia implexa, now about fifteen feet high, having a stem diameter of about six inches. Evidently a seed of the Lightwood had germinated in a decayed part of the host tree, ^"^•'1 Excursion to Studley Park, Kew-. 1919 J ■' 59 where it had Uved a more or less parasitic or saprophytic existence until the roots had penetrated to the ground through the decayed heart-wood of its host. Among some planted trees along the northern side of the road it was noticed that the Mahogany Gums, E. hotryoides, had done well, while the Sugar Gums, E. cladocalyx, were a poor lot. The Blue Gums, E. globulus, had long lost their vitality, and should be removed, to the benefit of their neighbours, as they form a breeding- ground for timber-destroying insects. At a pool in a disused gravel-pit a White-fronted Heron was undisturbed by our presence when passing close hy, and continued its scrutiny of the pool, though separated by only a post and rail fence from a main road bearing much traffic. This portion of the park contains a few Sheokes, Casuarina suberosa, and Cherry Ballarts, Exocarpos ciipressiformis, besides Manna Gums and a number of well-grown exotic trees. We then visited the surroundings of the abandoned fish-hatcheries, and made our way towards Mr. Gabriel's house, Mr. Gabriel pointing out some gum-trees which horses had barked, a somewhat unusual practice. We were then kindly invited by our vice-presieent to partake of afternoon tea prepared by Mrs. Gabriel and family, which we greatly appreciated, and before separating a vote of thanks was enthusiastically tendered to our enter- tainers.— A. D. Hardy. A New Isopod. — In the report of the excursion to Lake Corangamite, at Easter, 1918 [Vict. Nat., June, 1918), mention is made, on page 27, of the discovery of an isopod, wliich would probably prove new to science, by Mr. J. Searle, in the shallow water on the western side of the lake. In a recent letter to Mr. Searle from Dr. Chilton, of Christchurch, N.Z., to whom speci- mens were sent for identification, he says : — " The isopod proved to be of considerable interest. I have made a new genus for it, and in your honour have named it Halonisciis searlei, sp. nov." Type specimens of the new crustacean, which closely resembles an ordinary woodlouse, have been deposited in the National Museum, Melbourne. Australian Wattles. — Mr. E. E. Pescott, F.L.S., in con- tinuation of his articles in the Victorian Journal of Agriculture on " The Australian Flora from an Ornamental Aspect," deals with the wattles in the July journal. He lists about fifty species which are worthy of garden cultivation, mentioning their several features. He also gives some particulars of the pests to which the trees are subject, as well as hints about pruning, which should be undertaken when the trees are in flower, or shortly after. 6o - Lucas, Among the Seaweeds at Porisea. [vol.'xxxvi. A WEEK AMONG THE SEAWEEDS AT PORTSEA. By a. H. S. Lucas, M.A., B.Sc. (Hon. Member). {Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 12th May, 191 9.) Feeling, early in the year, that I would be the better for a change of scene and air and activity/, I bethought me of the seaweeds I had gathered 16 years ago in Victoria, and decided to put in a week's collecting at Anglesea, where I had once had good hunting with Mr. H. T. Tisdall. I could not secure a room at Anglesea, however, and so thought I would try ground new for me, at Portsea, not far from Port Phillip Heads, for with ocean and bay shores one ought to be able to see a good many kinds ; and had not Mr. Tisdall written in the Victorian Naturalist (vol. xiv., pp. 7, 86) enthusiastically on the sea-flora of Sorrento, and had not Mr. Bracebridge Wilson dredged the sea-floors of the whole neighbourhood, with magnificent success ? So Portsea it was. On my return to Melbourne I paid a visit to my old friend the editor, and, after he had recognized me, he claimed a paper for the Naturalist. As seaweeds are not aggressively botanical, he seemed to think that members would be pleased to hear something of them. The steamer left Port Melbourne an hour after the usual time, and as I had gone a little early to arrange for the luggage, which included a formidable looking and weighing Sydney Herbarium press, I had time to inspect the sandy beach. Good plants of Sargassmn Gunnianiim, J. Ag., 5. bracteolosum, J. Ag., and S. leptopodum, J. Ag., were being floated in, and with them the two Cystophoras, C. uvifera (Ag.), J. Ag., and C. cephal- ornithos (Lab.), J. Ag. — the former with spherical and the latter with barleycorn-shaped floats. Small boys with bare legs proved handy, and were interested when they were shown that the floats were not fruits (sea-currants), but served to keep the growing plant erect in the water. I should say that careful gathering on this beach would yield quite a number of Sargassa — I got 5. undiilattim, J. Ag., at Sandringham — and Sargassa are troublesome plants to collect on the ocean coast ; they live in water just too deep as a rule, and too near the rocks to allow of safe dredging. The trip was a comfortable one, with smooth sea, moderate temperature, and clear air. I could almost see the famihar odour of the onions as we passed Portarhngton. I did not notice mucli floating weed. We called at Queenscliff. The wharf piles were covered above with green and lower witli brown alg^e, as the text -books prescribe. The green — vivid green — streamers of Ulva l^tevirens, Aresch., must have been over two feet long. I was rather surprised to find that Brace- ^"S"] Lucas, Among the Seaweeds at Portsea. 6i bridge Wilson did not include it in his *' List of Algae from Port Phillip Heads and Western Port." I suppose it was too near land to engage his sympathy. \Miat the browns were I cannot say, but at Portsea pier we had little green but a great deal of the long trails of Macrocystis pyrifera (Turn.), Ag., which there reaches to a dozen feet in length. We circumnavigated to Sorrento, and after many mysterious and hieroglyphical curves we were placed alongside the pier, at the base of which we were crowded (Sargassa and all) into a 'bus which rolled us into Portsea. At the big boarding-house I was provided with a corner of the verandah curtained off, and here and hence for a wTek I conducted my phycological investigations. My fellow-boarders seemed to take a kindly interest in my pro- ceedings. Some of the boys were eager to present me with specimens, and in this way I obtained a very fine example of Caulerpa Sonderi, F. v. M. One little lady assisted me to mount the weeds, and was very proud to float out some by herself and for herself. The first thing was to learn the topography and the second to find the times of the tides. I first made for the Back Beach — i.e., the one which fronts the ocean. The whole of the peninsula between the Sorrento-Portsea road and the Back Beach is covered with tea-tree scrub of the most uncom- promising character. The width is only about a mile and a half, but it would be good going t'o make your way across the scrub, using the tomahawk freely, in a day. Fortunately, a good narrow road has been made, so that one can reach the Back Beach in half an hour's walk. Where the road has been cut in the sand the sides are held up by tea-tree. I saw very few plants in flower as I passed, but at the point where the road ended on the top of the slope to the sea the bushy Composite, Calocephalus Brownii, F. v. M., was full of heads of blossom. A curved track, ending in a broken ladder, led down to the shore, but it was easy enough to go down any- where, and later on I saw the advantage of the ladder, for some visitors were using parts of it to light a fire for their " billy." Just in front of the foot of the descent the sands w^ere in contact with a flat reef stretching out for 50 to 100 yards, ending in very ugly-looking rocks over which the seas were breaking, and hollowed out irregularly in shallow and deeper rock-pools. To the east a long sand stretch without reefs, but to the west the reefs grew higher and more numerous, and were interrupted by ridges of the land running out in miniature promontories. The first of these ridges has been hollowed out in a tunnel by the waves, and is accordingly termed '' London Bridge." The next is similarly perforated, but I heard no 62 Lucas, Among the Seaweeds at Portsea. [v^.'^xxxvi. name for it. Thereafter the Quarantine Ground commences. My Back Beach work, then, was to catch the rock-pools at the lowest tide available, and to hope for a mighty swell to come and pile up the inaccessible treasures growing about the outside reefs in a convenient form for sampling. However, I may say that no swell came, and that all I gathered was by persistent work. I stayed long enough that day to note the run of the tides. The most charming of the rock-pools were those largely occupied by Caulerpas. I found seven species growing, and picked up two others. Wilson dredged twelve kinds in his limits. C. scalpelliformis (R. Br.), Ag., and the rare C. trifaria, Haw., were nestling under Sargassum and Cystophora in shallow pools a foot or two deep. There was a beautiful grove of C. Muelleri, Sonder, covering the floor of a pool eight or nine feet deep. They looked like fir branches waving, for the tide communicates with most of these deeper pools. C. cadoides (Turn.), Ag., sent long rhizomes into rock crannies at an inter- mediate depth. The others were C. Brownii, Endl., C. sedoides (R. Br.), Ag., both bright green, and C. Sonderi, F. v. M., very much darker in shade. Everyone is struck with these marvellous Siphonese, plants assuming the forms of cactus, fir, club-moss, stone-crops, plumes, and serrated scalpels, each plant practically one huge all, without subdivisions, and because, though observed in hundreds by botanists all over the world for at least a hundred years, no organs of reproduction have been discovered in any of the seventy-five known species. Others of the pools were occupied by a brown tenantry. In one small pool I noted Cystophora spartioides, J. Ag., with flat stem, the branches coming off the edges ; Hormosira Banksii (Turn.), Decaisne, with its necklace-like fronds ; Seirococcus axillaris (R. Br.), Grev., with fruit receptacles growing along the edges of the frond ; Cystophora iivifera (Ag.), J. Ag. ; Ecklonia radiata (Turn.), J. Ag., like prickly brown rhubarb ; and young Macrocystis. I found, thrown up, several plants of Ecklonia lanciloha, Sonder, which has a midrib three inches or more broad, and pinnate linear lobes on each side, perhaps a foot long. It has quite a distinct appearance from its congener, but apparently no one has recorded it from Victoria before ; Sondei's specimens were from South Australia. Padina pavonia (L.), Lamx., seemed to prefer to reserve small pools for itself in which to display its wavy iridescent fans. In several pools Cyniodocea antarctica, Endl. (according to Bcntham), was growing, but not, as I saw it, luxuriantly. It is a phanerogam with a wiry stem and stiff, cut-out, green leaves at the summit, and is usually covered with green, '\^f''] Lucas, Among the Seaiveeds at Portsea. 62, brown, and coralline seaweeds. It is a good rule never to pass a thrown-up plant of Cymodocea without looking it over to see what is growing on it ; you gain all sorts of treasure trove in this way. Thus, I found Mychodea pusilla (Harv.), J. Ag., and Pollexfenia crispata (Zan.), Falk., on Cymodocea — neither of them recorded by Wilson. At Anglesea the elegant form of Corallina Citvieri, Lamx., predominated on the host, but at Portsea I did not see this form at all, its place being taken by the condensed and hence coarser-looking ''forma /3." The Stellate Coralline, " Amphiron stelligera " of Harvey, was common, but the other two species, graiiifera and charoides, did not appear. A plant of Cymodocea bearing sprays of this pink coralline is a beautiful object. Tisdall, in his paper in the Naturalist, stated that the algae only attach themselves to the nodes of the Cymodocea. While the nodes afford the firmest attachment, the internodes are sufficiently firm, and the smaller algae attach themselves anywhere along the stem. Attached to the sides of the big rocks bordering the tidal channels, great fronds of Sarcophycus potatorum (Lab.), Kuetz., and Macrocystis are tossed to and fro in the advancing and retreating waves. The former has broad (to a foot) leathery- looking fronds, with a thick, solid stipes, and is the stoutest of Australian algae. In Tasmania, where it attains a much greater size, fishermen will moor their boats to the strong stems. The attachments of these kelp-forming brown weeds are interesting. Sarcophycus has a single broad disc. Macro- cystis is attached by a number of spreading holdfasts, like the adventitious roots of Ficus ; these branch several times, and each branchlet ends in an adhesive disc. The pattern varies again in Ecklonia and Phyllospora. These are our chief kelp plants, and from them can be obtained good percentages of potassium chloride and mannitol. On the surface of the reef, exposed at low water, there was abundance of Splachnidmm rugosum (L.), Grev., the plants growing gregariously where they get the splash of the waves. The plant looks like a diminutive branched sausage ; the branches are but half an inch in diameter, and have a trans- parent, slimy, jelly-like content, which makes the plant a troublesome one to mount with effect. It grows near Sydney, but I have never seen so fine a specimen as Harvey figures in his " Phycologia Australica." The average height is not much more than four inches. Another plant usually growing in such situations is Laiirencia ohtitsa (Huds.), Lamx., one of the most puzzling algae because of its infinite varieties of form. In the pools, and captured by the tufts of Hormosera, one finds, even without the great swell, a number of drifted algae. 64 Lucas, Among the Seaweeds at Portsea. [v^'^xxxvi. At Portsea the Plocamiums were, as all along the ocean coast, in great evidence, and are the plants most generally admired l)y amateurs. Their fern-like shape and briUiant crimson colour make them universal favourites. I gathered four species at Portsea. To my surprise, P. Preissianitm, Sonder, segments in threes, seemed to be the commonest. P. angitstum (J. Ag.), H. and H., was also abundant. P. Mertensii (Grev.), Harv., with serrated segments, was more common than P. procernm (J. Ag.), Harv., with entire segments. Probably the two are just forms of the same species. I did not meet with P. coccineiim (Huds.), Lyngb., which is the common British species, and occurs in most Antarctic dredgings, and is not uncommon off southern Australia and Tasmania. I only saw one frag- ment of P. costatiim (J. Ag.), H. and H., though it was plentiful at Anglesea and Barwon Heads. I was very glad to obtain specimens of Dictyota nigricans, J. Ag. It seemed to be not uncommon, and I had found it at Barwon Heads. I was also lucky to secure a good plant of Bellotia eriophorinn, Harv., showing its umbels of feathery, globular tassels. I made four trips to the Back Beach altogether, but, as I did not expect, made more captures on the shore of the Bay. Just below the fort I struck a small, low breakwater of big stones which served to arrest and divert the incoming alg?e. Here I found several algae of rarity and interest, including Scinaia furcellata (Turn.), Bivon., Pollexfenia crispata (Zan.), Falk., Binder a splachnoides, Harv., with a new Herposiphonia. Cymodocea gave abundance of Dicranenia GreviUei, Sond. — an alga which never grows on anything else — of Pachydidyon paniculattim, J. Ag., and Lobospira bicuspidata, Aresch. Two or three plants of Nitophylhini Gimnianum, Harv., and dozens of N. affine, Harv., were thrown up, as also Champia affinis (H. and H.), J. Ag., Wrangelia clavigera, Harv., Haloplegma Preissii, Sonder, Delisea elegans (Ag.), Mont., Cronania australis (Harv.), J. Ag., and Mtiellerena insignis (Harv.), De Toni. On some rocks exposed at low water grew Helminthora lumens, J. Ag., and Ceramiinn claviilatinn, Ag. In all, I collected over 100 species at Portsea. Victoria is singularly well off for algae. There is good collecting in the Bay at Sandringham and Williamstown, close a,t hand ; and for a holiday in summer, when the algae are fruiting, the whole coast of Bass Strait is a seaweed paradise. Probably nowhere else in the world are the algae more numerous in species and individuals. They are beautiful objects. There is some sport in their capture, and the study of them, their structure, and their physiology, throws striking light on the nature of plant life in general. Will not some members of the Club help by taking up the study ? Cbe Uictorian naruralist. Vol. XXXVI.— No. 5. SEPTEMBER 4, 1919. No. 429. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The ordinary monthly meeting was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, nth August, 1919. The president, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., occupied the chair, and about 35 members and visitors were present, the curtail- ment of train and tramway services, owing to the seamen's strike, being doubtless responsible for the small attendance. CORRESPONDENCE. From the Town Clerk, Preston, stating that the Club's suggestion that Edwardes Park should be proclaimed a bird sanctuary had been adopted, and the necessary steps initiated. The president remarked that in the course of a few years the park would probably make a good excursion locality. REPORT. A report of the excursion to Hurst Bridge on Saturday, gth August, was, in the absence of the leader (Miss A. Fuller), given by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, who said that there had been a good attendance of members, but that, owing to the lateness of the wattle season, the excursion was at least a fortnight too early, as hardly a Silver Wattle was fully in blossom. The party had rambled up the picturesque Arthur's Creek valley for a mile or so, and enjoyed the outing very much. Very few other plants were found in bloom except the lowly, sweet-scented Drosera Whittakeri. The Cootamundra Wattle, Acacia Bailey ana, was, however, making a fine show in private gardens. The chairman said that it might be better in future years to defer fixing the date of the " wattle excursion " until it was seen at what date the Cootamundra Wattle blossomed, as this species was generally two or three weeks earlier than the Silver Wattle. Mr. C. C. Plante supported this idea. Mr. F. Pitcher said that at Belgrave (Dandenong Ranges) the Silver Wattle would not be in full bloom before the end of the month. WELCOME. The chairman took the opportunity of welcoming back to Victoria one of the Club's members, Mr. F. A. Cudmore, after three years' service in the British Army during the Great War. ELECTION OF MEMBER. On a ballot being taken, Mr. Chas. Lambert, Bank of New 66 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [vd!*^ xxxvi South Wales, Melbourne, was duly elected a member of the Club. EXHIBITION OF WILD-FLOWERS. The chairman drew attention to the forthcoming annual exhibition of wild-flowers to be held in the Melbourne Town Hall on Tuesday, 30th September. It had been decided to divide this year's profits between the Anzac House Fund and a fund for publishing the common names of Victorian plants as determined by the Plant Names Committee. Owing to pressure of work Miss A. Fuller had been unable to again act as convener of the ladies' committee to undertake the sale of flowers, &c., and Mesdames Coghill and Edmondson had kindly consented to act instead. Owing to the uncertainty of the season, he urged members to use every effort to secure flowers from country friends, and so ensure the success of the exhibition. EXCURSION LIST. Mr. E. Cox drew attention to the omission of pond-life from the objects of the excursion to Cheltenham on Saturday, 23rd inst. Mr. C. Daley, M.A., said that the Railway Department's excursion to the Grampians would start on the 20th September, not the 22nd, as printed in the list. REMARKS ON EXHIBITS. Mr. H. B. Williamson called attention to his exhibit of fossil marine shells obtained from a bore at Croydon, near Adelaide, South Australia, over 400 feet from the surface. They were of great interest from the fact that the bed is of Upper Pliocene age, and about 150 feet in thickness in that locality. PAPER. By Miss C. C. Currie, entitled " The Birds of a Gippsland Garden." In the absence of Miss Currie, the paper was read by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard. It gave an interesting account of the various birds which visited from time to time a well-sheltered garden situated in the Lardner district, about five miles south of Drouin. Miss Currie's remarks caused considerable discussion. Mr. F. E. Wilson thought that there must be some mistake about the Bell Miner being heard as far as three miles from the main colony, as it was very unusual to find these birds more than a few hundred yards from their nests. He also had never heard of Mountain Thrushes partaking of a vegetable diet such as acacia seeds, and suggested that they may have been searching for insect life on the trees. Mr. C. Daley and Mr. J. A. Kershaw supported Mr. Wilson's remarks about the Bell Miners. Mr. Kershaw said that he did ^^^P^-'l Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. 67 not think the parent Swallows threw the young out of the nest to avoid the heat, being of opinion that the young birds throw themselves out in their efforts to escape the heat of an adjacent roof. Mr. H. B. Williamson desired to congratulate Miss Currie on her paper, and suggested that, in view of the great variety of birds to be met with in the district, an excursion be arranged for the locality. Mr. F. Keep asked whether the statements made from time to time about the cruelty of the Kookaburra were true. Mr. P. R. H. St. John, in reply, said the Kookaburra fully deserved all the hard things said of it. He had not heard before of the Brush Wattle-bird mimicking other birds. Mr. J. Gabriel said that he had recently seen numbers of Zosterops at his grape-vines, but, as they continued visiting the vines long after all the grapes had been picked, he con- cluded they were searching for insects. He remarked that he had recently seen a Brush Wattle-bird in the Botanic Gardens, where they had become very tame, taking sugar from one of the tables near the tea-house. . Mr. E. E. Pescott said that the Kookaburra was of consider- able service to gardeners on account of its practice of kilhng Miners, &c. ; at the same time he had to admit that it is a very destructive bird among the smaller native birds. Mr. J. Gabriel mentioned the rather unusual case of a White- fronted Heron making its home in Studley Park. Mr. J. Searle considered this was due to the Heron having found a pond well stocked with tadpoles and yabbies (fresh- water crayfish), and mentioned the peculiar habit these birds have of disembowelhng tadpoles before eating them. Mr. St. John remarked on some unusual bird visitors to the Botanic Gardens, and said that he had recently shot a fine Darter on the lake. Only the second time this bird had been seen in the vicinity. In reply to a question by the president as to the difference between the Bell-bird and the Bell Miner, Mr. F. E. Wilson said that the Bell-bird is never seen in Gippsland, its habitat being the north-western parts of the State. He imitated the notes of the two birds, showing the difference between them, and said that the common Starling was an excellent mimic, and its powers are such that if Starlings are known in the locality no ornithologist should record a bird on hearing the note only, as it may only be a Starling amusing itself, and he was inclined to think that the Bell Miners mentioned by Miss Currie as visiting her garden, being very shy birds, were recorded by the note alone, which was probably produced by a Starhng. 6S Field Naturalists'' Chih — Proceedings. [voT-'^^xxxvi. The president considered the discussion which had ensued on the reading of the paper a most instructive one, and regretted that Miss Currie was not present to support her remarks. NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. The president said that a returned soldier who had taken part in the Palestine campaign had told him that in Egypt mosquitoes had been seen twelve miles from the nearest water, and asked if this did not clash with the present ideas regarding these insects, as the average flight is considered to be less than a mile. Mr. J. Searle said that there was probably some small pool of water somewhere in the vicinity, and remarked that in the case of the mosquito pest at Panama it had been found that the water collected in hoof marks or a broken bottle was sufficient to provide a breeding-place for them. EXHIBITS. By Mr. A. S. Blake. — Specimens of Eucalyptus melliodora, bearing pecuUar galls. By Miss C. C. Currie. — Specimens of giant club-moss, Lycopo- ditmi densum, from Lardner, Gippsland. By Mr. F. Cudmore. — Clams and triton (sp.) from Suva, Fiji ; lava and hat-bands made of shells (Pecten, sp.) sewn together, from Hawaii ; serviette rings made of bamboo and plant fibres interwoven, from Hawaii. By Mr. J. Searle. — ^The new crustacean, Haloniscus searlei, Chilton (genus and species new), from Lake Corangamite, taken by exhibitor, April, 1918 ; 53 lantern slides, about 30 micro, preparations, and also mounted specimens of various insects, in illustration of paper. By Mr. L. Thorn. — Top and lower jaws, showing teeth, of the Bull-dog Shark, Cestracion phillipi, commonly known as Pig- fish, caught in Port Phillip Bay, off Aspendale. The egg cases of this shark are common objects on the beach, being leathery, spirally-twisted structures. By Mr. H. B. Wilhamson. — -Fossil shells from bore at Croydon, near Adelaide, S.A,, and dried specimen of Pimelea Williamsonii, J. M. Black, new species, collected by exhibitor at Murray ville, N.W. Victoria, December, 1916. After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. A Sign of Spring. — A freshly emerged specimen of the Australian Admiral Butterfly was seen flying at Kew on 13th August.— F. G. A. B. ^^P'-'l Sutton, Growth of the Sea Tassel. 6q igig J J ^^ ON THE GROWTH, &c., OF THE SEA TASSEL, RUPPIA MARITIMA, Linn. By C. S. Sutton, M.B., B.S. At Easter, 1914, some dry mud was brought from Phillip Island for examination for crustacean life and placed by Mr. J. Searle in a bottle with water on a shelf at his business premises. Two years later a plant with slender, filiform stems and leaves, which had been noticed growing from the mud, showed signs of flowering. Developments were carefully observed and noted by Mr. Searle until the completion of the seasonal cycle of the plant when he concluded it was Ruppia maritima, or Sea Tassel, belonging to the Naiadacese, or Fluviales, an inhabitant of brackish and salt water in temperate and sub-tropical regions throughout the world. Although urged to do so, Mr. Searle would not directly communicate his most interesting notes, but handed them to me, suggesting I should give them instead. Thinking this might be better done after I had myself continuously observed the plant under more favourable conditions, Mr. Searle gave me a portion, which I planted in sand in a flat glass tank filled with fresh water. The following description of the interesting performances of the Ruppia, is then, really a relation of what Mr. Searle previously noted and what I have confirmed by my own observations. The stems of the plant arise from a creeping rhizome, and are slender, filiform, finely-grooved, and very long, lying at length on the surface of the water, but not projecting above it. At the beginning of October, about six weeks earlier than in the previous season (perhaps on account of the more favourable conditions as to light and heat), flower- spikes were noticed developing apparently within the thickness of the stems, which were dilated just above certain of the nodes. These spikes, as they increased in size, separated the leaves nearest to the nodes, showing them to be axillary, transparent sheaths from base of leaf and stem remaining, through which the spikes and their commencing stalks could be now more plainly seen. (Fig. i.) The stalks or peduncles quickly length- ened, eventually somewhat abruptly bringing the spikes to the surface, or even projecting them some distance above it, where they finally lay. The spike appeared to consist of two flowers, each of four anthers or pollen sacs in superimposed pairs, with the carpels clustered on one side of the rhachis between the four lower and on the opposite side between the four upper anthers. The latter were kidney-shaped and of a brownish- green, with light green bands. Viewed from the side, the spikes appeared to consist of four superimposed cassock-shaped 70 Sutton, Growi/rof the Sea Tassel. [ Vict. Nat. Vol. XXXVI. masses. The female elements were dark green, sessile, and very inconspicuous, but seemed to be six: in number in each flower. No perianths were noticed. A couple of days after their appearance on the surface the pollen sacs were found detached and broken, apparently along the outer surfaces, and masses of creamy pollen were lying on the water, some being in contact with the spikes. The pollen grains are about four times as long as broad, more or less angular and rounded, slightly dilated and retractile at the ends and at the knees of the angles. In a day or two after the shedding of the pollen — sometimes before this occurred — the lower parts of the ped- uncles became convoluted into tangles, eventually drawing the spikes below the surface. (Fig. 2.) (In the '' Flora Australi- ensis "it is stated that the spirally-coiled peduncles bring the spikes to the surface, but from our observations the convolutions do not occur until some time afterwards.) The day after the flower-heads have been drawn under they become inverted by the bending of the straight parts of the peduncles, and one was seen actually to suddenly and quickly swing through an arc of about 45°, and soon after through a lesser angle, until it pointed almost vertically downwards at about the level from which it originated. (Fig. 3.) All this time one or more of the carpels from each cluster were growing on lengthening stalks, the others remaining aborted, and in nine days or so had attained the length of about an inch. The carpels are ovoid, brownish, and slightly beaked, and as the stalks lengthened spread out and became separated one from another by an inch or more. Ultimately, about three weeks after fertilization, the stalked fruits, measuring in one instance just on two inches in length (fig. 4), separated and fell, with their stalks, head downwards, into the mud and remained upright. Probably the motion of the water swaying the stalks enables the fruits to penetrate the mud so far that after germination the young plants can effectively root themselves. At a later date it was noticed that the upright stems began to bend and throw out roots from the upper nodes ; these roots finally reached the mud, and ultimately drew the stems to a horizontal position some little distance above it. (Figs. 5 and 6.) I am indebted to Mr. J. Searle for photo- graphs of the plant in different stages. EXPLANATION OF PLATE. 1. Ascending bud. 4. Ripe fruits. 2. Stem contracted and convoluted. 5 and 6. Stalk being drawn down _ . . by adventitious roots. 3. truit, with head nivcrted. THE VICTORIAN NATURALIST, Vol. XXXVI. Plate i. September, 19 19. Photo, by J. Searle. STAGES IN THE GROWTH OF THE SEA TASSEL. RUPPIA MARITIMA, LiNN. ^jgPg'] Searle, Cleanings of a Cily NaHiyalisL 71 THE GLEANINGS OF A CITY NATURALIST. By J. Searle. (Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, 14th July, 191 9.) When advocating the claims of natural history as a desirable hobby, one often receives an answer something like this : — " Oh, yes ; it must be a delightful pastime for those who can get out into the country and collect specimens for study, but I am in the office all day, and have no opportunity to engage in such an interesting pursuit." The object of this paper is to show such a city dweller how he may indulge a taste for natural history even if he is " cribb'd, cabin' d, and confin'd " in a city offtce. The building in which these notes were written is in the busiest part of Collins-street. My office, on the third floor, is 15 feet by 12 feet, and has two windows facing the north, and overlooking the surrounding roofs and chimneys — as unlikely a collecting-place for nature study specimens as could be imagined ; yet quite a lot of material for study is to be found there from time to time. I 'have frequently thought of making a list of the various insects, &c., that visit this office in the course of the year, but for some cause or other the project was never carried out in its entirety. But in January of last year I placed a bottle containing spirits of wine on the bench, and specimens of the various objects presently to be described have been captured and placed therein. They consist of Diptera, Coleoptera, Hemiptera, Lepidoptera, Hymenoptera, Arachnidae, and — would you have thought it possible ? — Crustacea. Lepidoptera. — ^The most common specimens of lepidopterous insects that visit a city office are the Tineae, or clothes moths — a pale yellow coloured species, with burnished scales, at times being rather a nuisance through the havoc its larvae makes of the baize covering the bases of some instruments, the lining of jewel cases, &c. A frequent visitor is the Bogong Moth, Agrotis spina, a sombre-coloured insect with beautiful antennae. It is a strong flier, but shows very little judgment, dashing into every obstacle to its headlong flight. They hide in dark corners during the day, coming out to enjoy their nocturnal flight as evening advances. At times they invade the city in great numbers. The '' Old Lady " Moth, Dasypoda selenophora, is occasionally seen resting on the ceiling, and the beautiful little Cosmodes elegans, most appropriately named, has been taken. In the months of November and December of last year the city was invaded by swarms of the handsome brown butterfly, Heteronyrnpha merope. Numbers of them perished by being trampled on by pedestrians along Collins- 72 Sbarle, Gleanings of a City Naturalist. [voT."^xxxvi. street. The sexes differ so in size and colouring in this insect that by many they were regarded as different species ; the larger insect with black markings on the wings is the female. Pyranteis kershawi, the " Painted Lady," is another butterfly to be found in the city streets, and occasionally visits the office by way of the open window. The wings and bodies of all moths and butterflies are covered with minute scales, gener- ally placed in rows, and lapping over each other like the slates on a roof ; each scale has a short stalk, and they are inserted into little holes or cups in the membrane of the wings. It is these scales that give the wonderful colouring to these beautiful insects. The scales vary in size and shape with the position they occupy on the wings or body of the insect. Some of these scales are ruled with lines of such fineness that at one time they were used by microscopists as test objects in trying the quality of their lenses. Permanent mounts of the wings and scales may be made in various ways. A small piece of the wing may be placed in a cell and mounted as an opaque object, or samples of the scales may be brushed off various parts of the insect on to a slide ; over these a cover glass is placed and the edge cemented with gold size. Another easy and effective mount can be made by placing the wing on a smooth surface and pressing the finger, with a rocking motion, over the selected part of the wing and then repeating the movement on the centre of a 3x1 slip. If carefully done the transferred scales will retain their natural position, and may be viewed either as an opaque or transparent object. If the entire head of a small moth be detached from the thorax and mounted on an opaque disc in a deep cell and examined under a low power it will be found to be an object of great beauty. The hemispherical compound eyes of some species have a brilliant metallic lustre, the numerous facets of which they are composed shining like gems. Some of these small moths have feathery antennae, like beautiful plumes ; others just a plain filament. The proboscis of the lepidoptera is an organ of wonderful con- struction, than which nothing better could be imagined for the purpose for which it is used — extracting honey from the nectaries of flowers. It is composed of two maxillae, and strengthened by muscular bands. They are convex on the outer side and concave on the inner, and when joined together form a tube through which the nectar is conveyed to the mouth of the insect. When not in use the proboscis is coiled up like the hair-spring of a watch, and hidden between a pair of palps beneath the head. Coleoptera. — With regard to Colcoptera, the Ptinidae seem to have a home in our building. They arc nocturnal in their ^19^/''] Searle, Gleanings of a Cily Natuvalisi. y^ habits. One or two specimens of three or four species are frequently found in the wash-basin of a morning, having fallen in during the night, and, being unable to climb the smooth sides of the basin, remaining captives. Another beetle, Meziiwt afflne, is also trapped in the wash-basin ; it has a globular body, of a blood-red colour, perfectly smooth and polished. It has no trace of wings. The thorax, head, legs, and antennae and the ventral surface of the abdomen are thickly clothed with flattened hairs or scales. The commonest of the Ptinidae is, I believe, a wood-borer ; it has a slightly flattened oval body, and is covered with long, stout hairs, some straight, others curved. Its legs and beaded antennae are also hairy. The elytra are fused together, and there are no under wings. The visitors noted for the year were an occasional elater, or click-beetle, two or three small brown chafers, one large cockchafer, a longicorn, Phoracantha, and others listed at the end of this paper. All of these are worthy of careful study, either as whole insects or the examination of their parts, many of which make fine permanent mounts for microscopical study, such as the antennae, head and mouth parts, spiracles, eyes, &c. The eye of a beetle is a favourite mount for showing multiple images. of objects placed between the mount and the source of light — generally below the iris diaphragm. The larva of one beetle, Anthrenus or Trosoderma, is frequently found in dark corners of drawers. It is an object of special hatred to most entomologists, owing to the havoc it plays if it gets into a collection of insects. It will devour animal matter of any description, even whalebone and tortoiseshell. It is a soft, fat grub about three-sixteenths of an inch in length ; each segment is furnished with a ring of hairs, those on the last two segments being very long and brush-like, and capable of erection " like the quills of the fretful porcupine " when the insect is disturbed. These hairs vary in shape, and are very beautiful objects for the microscope, one form in particular being barbed on the shaft and tipped with an ornament somewhat resembling a closed umbrella. These " umbrella " hairs were a puzzle to naturalists for a consider- able time. They were put up as slides by London mounters and labelled " Hairs of Dermestes Beetle," on no species of w^hich beetle could they be found when sought for. Figures of these hairs with their false title are still occasionally seen in books on popular science. Diptera. — The most numerous of the insects found in a city office belong to the order Diptera, or two-winged flies, and, contrary to what might be expected — notwithstanding the fact (or, perhaps, owing to it), that there is a cafe on the ground floor of the building — Musca domesHca, the common -^4 Searle, Gleanings of a City Nahtralist. [vd.'^xxxvi. house-fly, is only a very occasional visitor. The common yellow blow-fly, Calliphora villosa, is far more numerous, and the dark blue one, C. erythrocephala, a frequent visitor.. When attempt is made to capture these annoying insects, the yellow fly, after buzzing excitedly around the offlce, attempts to escape through the window-pane, on which it is easily captured and exterminated ; but the slower-flying blue insect, C. erythrocephala, will invariably fly to some dark corner near the floor or behind some object, and immediately rest there until it thinks the danger is past, when it will again emerge, only to repeat these tactics if again pursued. It may be of interest to note the change in the breeding habits of some of these flies. Formerly they deposited their eggs or larvae on some dead animal, the "higher" and more " gamey " the better, though not averse at times to a fresh joint of butcher's meat or poultry ; but of late years they have developed into a great pest, since they acquired the habit of breeding in the thick greasy fleece of living sheep. Enormous sums of money have been spent, and is still being expended, in trying to eradicate this pest. When Musca domestica visits the office it flies directly to the window, and appears to be as anxious to again leave as I am for it to go. Smaller diptera of elegant forms — many, perhaps, undescribed — are to be seen occasionally on these same windows, and on two occasions immense clouds of very minute flies invaded the city and filled every office. On one occasion, I remember, a building had been newly painted when an invasion of these tiny flies occurred, and in a short time the front of the building was ornamented with millions of these insects, which had stuck to the fresh paint. Mosquitoes and Chironomus are found occasionally, and two or three crane- flies were captured. The structure of a dipterous insect is very remarkable, and the material collected in my office was sufficient to keep a naturahst busy for many months examining their micro- anatomy. As an example of what the city naturalist may find to interest him in a dipterous insect, we will glance briefly at the anatomy of one of the commonest — the house-fly. In examining a fly we notice at once that it is divided into three parts — the head, thorax, and the abdomen. The head contains the eyes and mouth parts, the thorax the organs of locomotion, and the abdomen the digestive system and the reproductive organs. The head is connected with the thorax by a slender neck that permits it to undergo semi-rotation. We observe that its greater part consists of a pair of hemi- spherical compound eyes, made up of a number of small facets ^cr 4,000 have been counted; each facet consists of a ^/^i*"'] Searle, Gleanings of a City NaturalisL 75 lens at the end of a cone, which is lined with a dark pigment and ends in a tiny nervelet. All these unite into one large nerve, connected with the ganglia or brain. In addition to these compound eyes the fly has three small ocelli, or simple eyes, placed in a triangle on the top of the head. The width of the space on the top of the head between the eyes is greater in the female than in the male. In the front of the head is placed the antennae, which are the principal means of classifying flies ; they are composed of four joints, the third of which is very much enlarged. That these are sense organs there can be no doubt, though whether of touch, hearing, or smell it is not possible to definitely say. The first three joints fit into a recess, and are generally out of sight, only the plumose end, the arista, being visible. Microscopic examination of the enlarged third joint reveals the fact that it is covered all over with little sacs or cells closed by a membranous covering. At the base of the joint are a few larger apertures which lead into cavities furnished at the bottom with hairs. Now, it is quite clear that these latter structures have to do with some sort of sensation, since each cavity is connected with the brain by a fine nerve. From their general analogy to the ear of higher animals, and by comparing their form in different kinds of insects, it has been inferred that they are organs of hearing ; probably they are endowed with a special sense of which we mortals know not. Situated on the under side of the head is the extensible proboscis. It is adapted for the absorption of fluid food. It tapers slightly from above downwards, and consists of three parts. First, a truncated, cone-shaped portion, called the rostrum, attached to the under side of the head ; to the front of the rostrum is attached a pair of palps. The second and lower half of the proboscis, which is called the transtellum or proboscis proper, is narrower. On the front of this portion is hinged a narrow triangular appendage called the labium -epipharynx ; it covers a groove in which a hollow, stylet-like tongue or hypo-pharynx lies. The proboscis is ter- minated by the oral disc, or sucker, which consists of a pair of lobes or labella, which, when distended, form an oval structure, the two halves being united by a bead and groove joint. The surface of each labella is traversed by about 36 small canals, the channels of which are kept open by small, incomplete rings. Between these canals, which are called pseudo-tracheae, on account of their ringed appearance, there are a number of nipple-like openings, which are probably gustatory sense-organs. The pseudo-tracheae converge into a small oral pit. When a fly alights, say, on a lump of sugar, you will see the proboscis protruded, when the tip will unfold into two broad, fan-like leaflets. A small portion of the sugar 76 Searle, Gleanings of a City Naturalist. [voi.'^xxxvi. is grated off by the teeth and dissolved by a salival fluid which the fly pours upon it from its saHvary ducts, and then the sweet solution is sucked back again. When the food is first swallowed it passes into a crop or sucking stomach. But it does not remain there very long. It is soon brought back again and is swallowed once more. This time it goes down the alimentary tube proper, and flows on till it arrives at the spherical-shaped proventriculus, which has sometimes been described as a gizzard. The proventriculus is capable of being closed during the early part of a meal, in order that the food may not enter the intestine, but pass into the crop. It also opens when it is necessary to allow material to pass into the intestines. These observations, made by Graham-Smith, seem to indicate that the proventriculus acts as a valve, and not, as stated by Lowne, " a gizzard and nothing more." The long vessel called the ventriculus is the true digesting stomach. This tapers off into a coiled intestine, and ending in the rectum, or receptacle for waste material. In the second of the chief divisions — the thorax — we find ourselves able to gain a better conception of the shape of these smaller segments, joints, or rings which are the final sub- divisions of the bodies of insects. If the middle part of the thorax be examined there will plainly be seen all the parts of which an insect segment can consist. On the upper surface is the dorsal plate, at the sides two lateral plates, and under- neath the ventral plate. The openings at the top show where the wings are attached, while beneath are the attachments of one pair of legs. The wings are made up of a double membrane, and are, in fact, a kind of flattened bag or sac, which is strengthened at places by folds called veins or nervures, and the areas between are called cells. The main veins run longitudinally from base to the top of the wing, but there are some cross veins. The differences in the arrangement of the veins afford ready means of distinguishing M. domestic a from other flies often found in houses. On the hind margin of the wing, near the base, there is a more or less free lobe called the alula. Internal to the posterior lobule of the wing are placed smaller membranous plates known as squama and antisquama. The squama is thicker than the rest of the wing, and is attached posteriorly to the wing-root. Possibly these facilitate the opening and closing of the wings. Behind the wings the pair of halteres — commonly called balancers or poisers — is placed, the most characteristic of all dipterous structures. Tliey are l)elievcd to be the homologues of the hind pair of wings, though their exact .functions are far from clear. Each consists of a conical base provided with a number of sense organs ; on this base is mounted a slender rod ; at the ^iTig'J Searle, Gleanings of a City Naturalist. yy end a small hemispherical knob is attached. They are pro- vided with muscles at the base, and can, like the wings, execute most rapid vibrations. The squama covers the halter like a hood. A typical insect has three pairs of legs, which are attached to the thorax. Each leg consists of five parts — the coxa, trochanter, femur, tibia, and tarsus or foot. In the case of the fly this foot is subdivided into five joints. It is furnished with a pair of formidable claws, and between them a pair of membranous pads or pul villi. The pulvilli are covered on their ventral surfaces with innumerable closely-set secretory hairs, from which a sticky fluid is given out, and this enables the foot to adhere to any slippery surface over which the fly is walking. By means of the claws the insect is enabled to cling to the httle irregularities of the ceihng when walking upside down. As may be expected from the at- tachment of the wings and legs, we, of course, find within the thorax a highly-developed set of rapidly contracting muscles. The resulting movements have this further sig- nificance : that they help in the respiratory exchange of gases and in the circulation of the blood. The respiratory or tracheal system of the fly is very highly developed. Altogether, it occupies more space in the body of the fly than any other set of organs. It consists of three parts : the spiracles, or breathing pores, situated at the sides of the body ; air-sacs, and air-tubes (or tracheae). A large pair of spiracles is situated on the bases of the first pair of legs. Above and behind the bases of the last pair of legs is another pair of spiracles, and, in addition to these thoracic there are a number of pairs of spiracles at the sides of the abdominal segments. All these spiracles communicate with tracheae which ramify among the various organs of the fly's anatomy. The abdomen or hindermost division of the body is composed of several segments — eight in the male and nine in the female. The segments succeeding the fifth are greatly reduced in the male, and in the female form the tubular ovipositor, which, in repose, is telescoped within the abdomen. The blood system of the fly is simple. The body cavity forms a blood cavity, so that all the organs and muscles are bathed in the blood fluid, which is colourless, and contains fatty corpuscles. There is a muscular tube, a heart, lying in a cavity immediately under the dorsal side of the abdomen. It extends from the posterior end to the anterior end of the abdomen, and is divided into four chambers, each having a pair of openings into which the blood is sucked, so to speak, from the pericardial cavity. If it is in the warmer months of the year that we are making our dissection, and the fly happens to be a female one, the abdomen will be found practically filled 78 Searle, Gleanings of a City Naturalist. [voi!^xxxvi.^ with white cylindrical eggs, closely packed together in two large bundles. Each of these bundles, which are the enlarged ovaries, contains about 70 strings of eggs in various stages of development, and the ovaries open into two ducts which join together to form a central oviduct opening into the telescopic ovipositor. The mosquito also is worthy of minute examination. The wings, covered with handsome scales, the halteres, legs, and tarsi display their structure wonderfully well, while a well- mounted head and mouth parts is worthy of a place in any cabinet of sUdes. In the mosquito — as is sometimes the case with a higher order of animals — it is the female that is the cause of all the trouble. It is she that has developed the habit of sucking blood from living animals, the male contenting him- self with a vegetable diet, from which, some naturalists say, he never departs. I am sorry to throw doubt on such a good reputation, but truth compels me to state that I have undoubted proof of a male mosquito of the genus Stegomyia sucking human blood. If the head of a female mosquito is placed in dilute liquor potassa for an hour or two, then washed in warm water until all the potash is removed, it can be placed on a glass slip, and with a couple of needles mounted in handles the mouth parts can be drawn from their sheath and carefully displayed on the slip. It is then covered with another slip, taking care not to disarrange the parts, and dehydrated in alcohol, cleared in clove oil or cajaput, and mounted in balsam. The largest of the mouth parts is the labrum or tongue. Slightly smaller than the labrum is the labium, which forms a sheath for the maxillae and mandibles, four in number. Two of them are sharp-pointed and are used for piercing ; the other two are armed with fine serrations, which are used, probably, to enlarge the wound made by the lancets. At either side of the tongue are the maxillary palps, and outside these are the antennae. The rest of the head is taken up with the two hemispherical compound eyes. The same mouth parts, but less highly developed, are found in the male, but his antennae are most beautifully plumose. It has been stated that the use of these beautiful appendages is to guide him to the female. Experiment has proved that when a high note is sounded, of the same pitch as that produced by the female mosquito, the setae on the antennae of the male, pointing in the direction of the sound, vibrate in unison with it. It is asserted that the buzzing of the female mosquito causes certain of the setae on the antennae of the male to vibrate. The male then flies in the direction from whence the vibrations come, and is so led to the presence of the female. Hymenoptera. — The Hymcnoptera is represented by two Sept-»"| Searle, Gleanings of a City Naturalist. 79 specimens each of wasps and ichneumon flies. The usual habitat of one of the wasps — blue in colour and of sturdy build — is a sandy paddock or heathy patch. What spirit of adventure led him to visit the top floor of a city building it is impossible to say ; but, like many another who left rural delights for the lure of the city, alcohol and the bottle ended his career. Attention may be drawn to two objects in Vespian structure. When the insect is at rest, the wings, of which there are four, lie horizontahy upon the body. If we examine the hinder wings we will see a row of small hooks on the upper or outer edge of the wing. We will also notice a fold along the inner edge of the fore wing. The use of these structures is at once apparent when the insect raises its wings for flight. As the fore wings pass over the posterior ones the hooks on the latter engage with the fold on the fore wing, securely locking the two together and adding to their efflciency as an organ of flight. The sting may be regarded as a modified form of ovipositor. The piercing lancets are encased in a sheath, which seems to act as a director and also to keep the fine lancets from bending when the powerful muscles with which they are furnished are applied to drive them into the object attacked. A duct conveys poison from the gland to the lancets, and is by them deposited in the wound they inflict. Unlike the bee, the wasp does not lose its weapon of defence. Arachnidce. — Spiders of various species are frequently found in the city offices. The small money-spider appears to be a life tenant, and is to be found in all sorts of places — in boxes and drawers, and even in the steel safe. What it finds in the way of food I cannot tell. It will suddenly appear from nowhere, race across the bench or desk, taking cover from every object it comes in contact with, and finally disappear again as mysteriously as it made its appearance. The slight web of another species is sometimes found between the wall and a nest of drawers, should the latter be shifted. The other spiders are simply " strays," but all make interesting objects for study. The cephalothorax of the money-spiders varies in a remarkable manner, and takes on all sorts of peculiar shapes. Most spiders are furnished with eight eyes, generally arranged in two rows across the cephalothorax. Systematists make use of the eyes of spiders in determining species. The number may be reduced to six, four, or even two only. They vary in colour and shape as well as number. The feet, with their claws and combs, falces or jaws, the spinnerettes, are all of interest, but the most remarkable organ is, perhaps, the lung- book, which seems to point to the relationship between the spiders and the crustaceans. We saw, when examining some of the insects, that they breathe by means of spiracles opening 8o Searle, Gleanings of a City Naturalists [voTlxxxvi. directly into tracheae which ramify through the insect's body. The respiratory organ of a spider is different, inasmuch as the pulmonary stigma leads into cavities which are practically filled with plates attached at the front and sides, but having their posterior edges free. These plates are the leaves of the so-called lung-book. Each leaf is hollow, and its cavity is continuous with the blood sinus, into which ' the blood from various parts of the spider's body is poured. There are similar gill-books in the king crab, Limulus, into which the blood enters, while, externally, the water carrying oxygen in solution circulates between the leaves. Crustacea. — ^\Vhen I mentioned Crustacea as a visitor to a city office, some of you, perhaps, had visions of a " cray and chips " supper ; but the crustacean I captured was a living Isopod — one of the wood-lice, or slaters. I cannot account for its presence otherwise than from the fact that my neighbour uses pot plants for decorative purposes, and the stray Isopod, thus, perhaps, introduced into the building, wandered into my office. These notes might have been extended to a much greater length, but as they are I think they are sufficient to show that even in a city office there is plenty of material to engage the attention of anyone with a love for natural history if they care to use their eyes, and there is nothing to deter the city dweller from taking up this delightful and intellectual recreation and enjoying the pleasure to be derived from it. In putting these notes together free use has been made of "House-Flies," by C. G. Hewitt, D.Sc. ; "Flies in Relation to Disease," by G. S. Graham-Smith, M.D. ; " The Cambridge Natural History," &c., but the facts stated therein have been checked wherever possible by observation and dissection. The dissections so made, and from which the photo- micrographs illustrating the paper have been made, are on exhibition under the microscope this evening. The following is a list of the insects noted during the last six months : — I.epidoptera : Heteronympha merope, Pyrameis kershawi, Dasypodia selenophora, Agrotis spina, A. infusa, Cosmodes elegans, Tineus (sp.) Coleoptera : Anoplognathus velutinus, Phoracantha (sp.), Tenebrio moli- ter, Elater (sp.), Mezium affine, Trosoderma froggatti, Quodius fulgidus, Attagenus pallens, Doretaphrus bakewelli, Ptinus fur, Silodrepa paniceum. Diptera : Calliphora villosa, C. erythrocephala, Pollenia stygia, Unastello- rhina dorsalis, Pvcnosoma rubifacies, Limnophila (sp.), Trimacra (sp.), Chironomus (sp.)", Stegonica (sp.), Culex (sp.) Hymenoptera : Camp- someris anthracina, Ichnenminida (sp.) Hemiptera : Nasius vestitis ; with others not identified. CDc Uittorlan nafurallst. Vol. XXXVI.— No. 6. OCTOBER 9, 1919. No. 430. FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. The ordinary monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 8th September, 1919. The president, Mr. A. D. Hardy, F.L.S., occupied the chair, and about fifty members and visitors were present. CORRESPONDENCE. From the "R. M. Johnston Memorial Fund " Committee, Hobart, soliciting subscriptions to the fund being raised to commemorate the memory of the late Mr. R. M. Johnston, I.S.O., F.L.S., Government Geologist of Tasmania, and one of the foremost workers for natural science in that State. Subscriptions will be gladly received by the hon. sec, Mr. CUve Lord, Tasmanian Museum, Hobart. REPORTS. A report of the excursion to Cheltenham on Saturday, 23rd August, was given by the leader. Dr. C. S. Sutton, who said that there had been a good attendance of members, who were favoured by a bright afternoon. The party visited the area in the neigh- bourhood of '' The Springs," but found few flowers of note, owing to the fact that the scrub had been burned some months before, and the new growth had not become sufficiently established to provide the floral wealth for which the district is celebrated ; but ' later in the season it would doubtless be worth visiting. Owing to the absence of Mr. J. Searle, the pond-Hfe results of the excursion were not commented on. Dr. Sutton and others deplored the rapid extension of building in the Cheltenham and Sandringham districts and the con- sequent extinction of the most proHfic and interesting flora near Melbourne, and regretted that no public park had been set aside so that future generations might have some idea of what our heath lands had been. In this connection mention was made of the recent gift by Mr. Theodore Napier, of " Magdala," North Essendon, of a considerable area of well- wooded land to the Essendon City Council for the purposes of a public park, on condition that none of the original trees be disturbed. On the motion of Messrs. F, G. A. Barnard and F. Keep, it was resolved to forward a letter to Mr. Napier, informing him of the Club's appreciation of his action. A report of the excursion to Ringwood on Saturday, 30th August, was given by the leader, Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, who said that the large party was favoured by a delightful after- noon. Taking a different route than usual, the Dandenong Creek was reached by way of the Wantirna-road in about two 82 Field Naturalists' Club — Proceedings. [vd"^xxxvi miles. Some uncultivated ground was traversed on the way, where many of the usual spring flowers were noticed, Acacia myrtifolia being particularly fine. A few early orchids, such as Caladenia carnea and Diuris maculata, were fairly common. At the creek were some nice young trees of the Silver Wattle, Acacia dealhata, well covered with blossoms. The return journey was made mostly through uncleared paddocks, where numerous other flowers were added to the collections. The best find of the day was a plant of Hovea heterophylla bearing white flowers instead of the usual lilac, this reversion to albinism on the part of H. heterophylla being of very unusual occurrence. Some discussion followed on the subject of albinism and reversion from type in flowers, the chairman mentioning that he had recently had sent to him a flower of Early Nancy, Wurmhea dioica, w^hich was of a purple colour instead of the usual white. Mr. J. Booth suggested that the alteration in colour might be due to the presence of iron in the soil. Mr. Hardy said that this was perhaps the reason, for the ground where the flower had been picked was littered with disused portions of machinery, all of which were encrusted with rust. Mr. H. B. WiUiamson mentioned that a white specimen of the Common Centaury, ErythrcBa australis, had recently been forwarded to him, which he considered very unusual. Mr. P. C. Morrison said that last spring he found a cream-coloured Spider Orchid at Ringwood. In this case he considered the lack of colour was due to the situation in which the plant was growing being deficient in sunhght. GENERAL BUSINESS. Mr. C. L. Barrett, C.M.Z.S., referred to the intention to devote portion of the proceeds of the forthcoming exhibition of wild-flowers to the publication of a list of common names for Victorian plants, and asked whether the idea was a bare list or something in the way of an informative booklet giving hints for the recognition of the flowers. Dr. Sutton said that details of the proposed publication had not yet been worked out by the Plant Names Committee. In any case it would be impossible to bring out a book whereby anyone not acquainted with botany could accurately ascertain the species of any wild-flower he might come across. Mr. F. Keep suggested that at any rate a column giving the usual colour of the flower might be included. Mr. Barrett said that something popular was badly needed, and that a botany along the lines of Dr. Leach's " Australian Bird Book " would pay for itself many times over if introduced into the schools. Mr. C. C. Plante concurred with Mr. Barrett's remarks, saying that at present, unless one were a botanist, or devoted the whole of his spare time to plant study, it was impossible to recognize ^*^5'' 1 Field Naturalists* Club — Proceedings; 83 with any certainty even a very few native flowers, owing to the want of a non-technical guide on the subject. Mr. F. G. A. Barnard pointed out that there could be no comparison between a bird book and a botany, as the whole list of Australian birds numbered only some 400 species, while a botany for Victoria alone would enumerate over 2,000 species, . and for Australia over 8,000. The latter would be too great a task for any one society to undertake. He saw great diffi- culties in the way of simple, brief descriptions, because so many of our genera comprised species of greatly diverse characters. Mr. H. B. WilUamson supported Mr. Barnard, and pointed out the impossibility of the determination of some species, and even igenera, in the field, or by the tyro, taking for example the Dillwynias, Pultenaeas, and Daviesias, which require dissection and microscopical examination to definitely distinguish between them. Mr. J. A. Kershaw said that illustrations were of primary importance if the list was to be of any service. Mr. F. Pitcher suggested that the matter be left in the hands of the Plant Names Committee for consideration at its next meeting, and moved to that effect. He mentioned that, with regard to illustrations, Mr. E. E. Pescott's work, " The Native Flowers of Victoria," contained a large number of illustrations, and seemed to him to be suitable for the purpose. Mr. Barnard asked to be allowed to speak again, and said that, as the originator of the suggestion of common names for our plants, which he had made in a paper read before the Club some ten or twelve years before (see Victorian Naturalist, vol. xxiii., p. 136), he then had no idea of naming more than the more prominent species to be found in certain areas ; but the committee had thought it desirable to include every Vic- torian species. The chairman said that whatever was done should be done quickly, for if any other work of a similar nature should come out before that of the Club the chance of making the publica- tion a success would be greatly lessened. On being put to the meeting, Mr. Pitcher's motion was carried unanimously. PAPER. By Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., B.Sc. (hon. member), entitled " Ferns Grown in the Open." The paper was read by Mr. F. G. A. Barnard, and detailed the methods adopted by the author, who is a resident of Gordon, one of the northern suburbs of Sydney, to grow his favourites in as nearly as possible natural conditions, unsheltered by covering of any description. He found that, while some species suffered to some extent during the summer, though copiously watered, nearly all recovered when cooler weather came, while 84 Field Naturalists* Club — Proceedings. [vo^.'^^xxxvi. many species, so long as the watering was not forgotten, seemed to revel in the conditions provided. Mr. F. Pitcher, in congratulating the author on the interest of his notes, expressed surprise that more had not been done in the way described. He could name twenty Victorian ferns which are quite easily cultivated in the open so long as they are sheltered from the north winds. Regarding tree ferns, he advised the use of the Alsophila in preference to the Dicksonia for outdoor situations, and said that in most gardens tall tree- ferns are out of place — that rather ones with stems not more than two feet high should be selected. Mr. J. Gabriel complained of the destruction of tree-ferns in the Dandenong Ranges, Perrin's Gully, which was the show place of the district, being now a mere wireck of what it was. Mr. J. Stickland considered the paper an excellent one, but would have hked to hear how the author dealt with the slug pest. He said the best growth he had had of a tree-fern was from a piece about two feet long sawn from the top of a tall specimen. Mr. F. G. A. Barnard said the paper was a most interesting one. He had been surprised at the large number of ferns mentioned. He could not understand the difficulty the author met with in growing the King Fern, Todea harhara, for here it was readily grown as a pot plant. Mr. A. D. Hardy said that, sheltered from the hot north wind, he had grown several species in the open very successfully. 2. By Mr. J. C. Goudie, entitled " Notes on the Coleoptera of North-Western Victoria," Part VH. In this part the author recorded about sixty species belonging to the families Cucujidae, Cryptophagidae, Lathrididae, Der- mestidae, Byrrhidae, Heteroceridae, Lucanidae, Scarabaeidae, and sub-family Cetonides, many of which are found only in that portion of Victoria. Owing to the lateness of the hour, the paper was taken as read. EXHIBITS. By Mr. F. Keep. — ^Flowering specimens of Acacia cardio- phylla and A . buxifolia, grown at Camberwell ; also dried speci- mens of Hovea heterophylla, and white variety collected at Ringwood excursion by Miss Carter. By Miss M. T. Johnson. — Seeds of Mahogany Bean, Afzelia Africana, from South Africa. By Miss G. Nethercote. — Flowering specimens of Boronia anemonifolia, A. Cunn., from Bendigo. [Several other members exhibited specimens, but omitted to hand in particulars.] After the usual conversazione the meeting terminated. ^919] CuRRiE, The Birds of a Gippsland Garden. 85 THE BIRDS OF A GIPPSLAND GARDEN. By (Miss) C. C. Currie, Lardner. {Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, nth Aug., 1919.) Nestled close in the shelter of the tall timber and original bush, this garden is crowded with EngUsh and native trees, shrubs, and tree-ferns, which makes it a perfect shelter for many kinds of birds. With a well-stocked larder beside it, a young Boobook Owl, Ninox boobook, sits in the shadiest part until its parents return in the evening. Of Honey-eaters we have not a few. The Spinebills, Acanthorhynchus tenuirostris, rarely leave the garden. They are old favourites, and depend upon us to help them in the continual feud with the Wattle-birds, who question their right to the garden. The flowering eucalypts are doubtless responsible for so many Honey-eaters. The Wattle-birds, Acanthochcera caritn- culata, had their nest in a Western AustraUan E. calophylla, over a gate, so they are not shy. The Tawny-crowned Honey- eater, Glyciphila melanops, lives amongst some banksia trees about a mile away, and visits us from time to time. The Brush Wattle-bird, Anellobia chrysoptera, is a particularly noisy visitor, mimicking a great many birds, and is known in many parts as the " Mocking-bird." Another visitor, the White- eared Honey-eater, Ptilotis leucotis, is particularly quiet, though not at all shy, and flits gracefully through the plum-tree at the door, his taste for plums fully equalling his taste for flowers. To-day I hear a Bell-Miner, Manorhina melanophrys. There is a colony of these birds about three miles away, and occasion- ally we hear one in the tall timber near the house, and hope he will stay. A very great favourite is the White-shafted Flycatcher, or Fantail, Rhipidura albiscapa. It often flies in at the house door catching flies, regardless of our presence. A' pair have their nest in a tea shrub, Thea sinensis, in the flower garden, where three young were reared in the tiny nest, while the incomparable nest of the Black-and-White Fantail, R, motacilloides, is in a gum-tree just outside the garden fence, and in the same tree, a few feet above it, is a Mud-Lark's {Grallina picata) nest. Near by there are several more Mud- Larks' nests. The birds are great friends since one season we shot a Magpie which had destroyed six nests, one after the other, as the Mud-Larks built them, throwing the eggs out. The Grallinas used to shriek each time, but we were always too late to save the nest. Welcome Swallows, Chelidon neoxena, are here all the year round. They nest in the barn, and it is interesting to note 86 CuRRiE, The Birds of a Gippsland Garden, [voi'^ xxxvi that on very hot days they throw their young out of the nests when the iron roof gets too hot. Fortunately for them, we know of this action, and in the evening look for the birds and replace them, or the cat would account for them. The Mountain Thrush, Oreocincla liimdata, is very shy as it runs about quickly in the garden in its search for acacia seeds, slipping out of sight on the approach of footsteps. One feels anxious for the bird when cats are about. The Harmonious Thrush or Grey Shrike-Thrush, Colhiricinda harmonica, delights in the scraps we give him, and which he takes away to a splintery log to hold them while he picks them to pieces. In the bush, not a minute's walk from the house, are the Spotted Ground-Bird, Cinclosoma punctatiim, and the Whip- bird, Psophodes crepitans. The latter are to be seen to great advantage on an evening after rain has been falling and all the bush is damp. One evening four were to be seen ; the hen bird scolded me while her mate was cracking his whip, while two smaller ones were hopping along the path before me. Then she finished up his " crack " in fine style, but I think he manages it alone sometimes. That dear little favourite, the Superb Warbler or Blue Wren, M alums cyanochlamys, marshals his family around the garden, and it is very ridiculous to see a pair respond to the shrieks of a great lazy Bronze-Cuckoo, Chalcococcyx plagosus, which they have reared in the garden. The Fantail Cuckoo, Caconiantis riifiiliis, was seen for a few days only ; we suspected the Spine- bills were responsible for its rearing. The Palhd Cuckoo, Ciiciilus inornatus, can be heard uttering its plaintive notes a little further afield. With the Wrens there sometimes comes quite a flock of small birds to the garden, such as the Shrike-Robin, Eopsaltria australis, Fire-tailed Finch, Mgintha temporalis, and the Little Tit-Warbler, Acanthiza nana. Out in the fields in front the White-fronted Chats, Ephthianura alhifrons, have their nest amongst a patch of bracken, and a little away is the Goldfinches' first nest of the season, the second being in an apple-tree in the garden. Lovely to watch is the Nankeen Kestrel, Cerchneis cenchroides, circling round over the grassy fields during the high east wind. The Pipit, Anthus australis, which runs among the grass, and a brace or two of Quail, Synoicus australis, are in danger from the destructive desires of this inhabitant of the air. The Little Falcon, Falco Innulatus, keeps the Rosella Parrots, Platycercus eximius, active in their efforts to keep out of the way, while a pair of Allied Harriers or Swamp Hawks, Circus gouldi, work over the swamp, and go home to where they nest, about six miles away, every evening. Oct., 1919 ] CuRRiE, The Birds of a Gippsland Garden. ^y That handsome bird, the Crimson Parrot, Platycercus elegans, known also as Pennant's Parrakeet and Red Lory, sits upon the wheat-stack all day long, one now and again falling a victim to the cat. The red-plumaged (adult) birds are far more wary than the younger green-plumaged ones, and fly across in numbers. In the garden the Gang-Gang Cockatoos, Callo- cephalon galeatum, come and search for acacia seeds and bright berries, and later in the year share with the Spotted Bower-Birds, Chlamydera maculata, the holly berries. A flock of White-eyes, Zosterops coerulescens, remember us while the mulberries and sweet plums are ripening. White- browed Wood-Swallows, Artamus super ciliosits, or Summer- birds, are at home round a small spinney, and Starlings attend to the grasshopper pest, while Crows occasionally fly over at this season. A Rufous Flycatcher, Rhipidura rufifrons, paid us a visit also, but was very shy. While the flax is being loaded a Kookaburra, Dacelo gigas, or Great Brown Kingfisher, balances himself on an extra fork handle, and swoops down from time to time when he sees a mouse, never faihng to secure it. In the bush alongside Thickheads, Pachycephala nifwentris, and Tree-creepers, Climaderis picumna (brown) and C. scandens (White-throated), are to be seen, sometimes even on the posts supporting the barn. The Bronzewing Pigeon, Phaps chalcoptera, is also (though rarely) a visitor to the garden, where it searches for wattle seeds. We know its haunt, which is on our way to the swamp, not more than ten minutes' walk away, where there is a colony of Emu- Wrens, Stipiturus malachurus, numbering about twenty — such dear little birds, with such ridiculously long tail feathers. From there we go on to see the White-fronted Heron, otherwise Blue Crane, Notophoyx novce-hoUandicB, of which, during last February and March, there were ten to be seen. We have been delighted to have all these birds about us at one time. Soon some will leave us, while others — the Robins, the Bower-birds, and the Gang-Gangs — will come and steal the holly berries ; but all are sure of a welcome and protection in this sanctuar}^ of a Gippsland bush garden. Miss C. C. Currie, being a country member of the Club, and unable to be present at many ordinary meetings, was afforded the opportunity of replying to the criticism on her paper as recorded on pages 66-67 o^ the September Nahiralist. She writes : — "I would like to say, in reply to the criticism on my paper 88 CuRRiE, TJic Birds of a Gippsland Garden. [voT.''xxxvi. in the last Naturalist, that all the birds mentioned in my paper were seen during February and March of the present year. There is no mistake as to the presence of the Bell-Miner. On a previous occasion we had observed them at a distance of not more than twelve feet, and had passed the field-glasses back and forth from one to the other while doing so. Furtlicrmore, we have been used to these birds all our lives. Though they did leave the district when the swamps were cleared, they returned some years ago from the timber further back. As regards the ]\Iountain-Thrush, Mr. Wilson is correct ; I don't know how I made such a silly mistake as to write * acacia seeds ' for ' insects.' I must have been thinking of something else at the time. Lovers of nature, spending their lives among birds which come around them, liave a great advantage over students of ornitliology who make occasional visits to localities where birds arc plentiful to study their habits, wliich generally ends in shooting the birds to make skins for their collections, or to make sure of its identity by counting its feathers. Thus, with the Bell-Miner, if we had shot the prospector we would never have had a colony established here as we desired. With reference to the mimicry by the Brush Wattle-bird, we fully expected to see a Starling when we went to look whence the bird-notes came, because the Starling's note was among those heard. Others were the Black-faced Cuckoo-Shrike, the Grallina, and a Parrot. There was no doubt as to which was the guilty bird, for he was perched on the top of a lemon- scented gum in full view of our field-glasses, and was in no wise disturbed by my sister calUng me to see him. Many differ- ences of opinion regarding birds depend on the nature of the observer, and only persons who live their lives among birds, and take particular notice of their ways, get the opportunities to record remarkable facts. For instance, the Grallina never adds mud to its nest after lo o'clock each morning, no matter how fine the day is. How does the bird know \\iien it is ten o'clock ? Though wc would be delighted to have a visit from a party of bird-lovers, we fear the distance is rather too nuich for one day. Besides, we do not like the birds disturbed, and, of course, could not allow any collecting." Correction. — In the report of the August meeting in the September Naturalist the locahty of the fossil marine shells exhibited by Mr. H. B. Williamson is wrongly given on pages 60 and 68 as " Croydon " ; it should be " the Abattoirs," a new locality for this deposit, and alwut five miles north-easterly from the Croydon bore. ^^^•> 1 Lucas, Ferns Grown in the Open. 89 1919 J ' FERNS GROWN IN THE OPEN. By a. H. S. Lucas, M.A., B.Sc. (Hon. Member). {Read before the Field Naturalists' Club of Victoria, Sth Sept., 19 19.) The monsoonal rains arc now falling, and the long drought and scorching days are over ; so we can take stock of the damage and see how our ferns have stood the long time of severe trial. Probably many members of the Club have grown ferns under the friendly shade of the bush-house, and by ordinary care have brought their favourites safely through the summer. They may be interested in the experiment of growing these plants out in the open and a few degrees nearer the equator. The situation of my house is at Gordon, on the line between Milson's Point and "^Hornsby, about 8 miles from the first- named station, and 380 feet above sea-level. During 1918 I converted a part of my ground still occupied by gum-trees and native bushes into an open-air fernery. The plot is well sheltered, especially from the westerly winds — with us some- times red-hot in summer and icy cold in winter. It is practi- cally untouched by frosts, and shaded by trees from the morning sun, but fully exposed to its mid-day rays. It was divided up into a number of quasi-vockencs. Stone is abundant in the heads of the gulHes near the house. The ground of each was worked up, a guard wall of large stones built around it, and the space filled up nearly to the level of the stones with leaf -mould, light earth, charcoal, and small bits of sandstone and a Httle manure. On this, a foot or so within the outer wall, another similar wall of smaller radius was built, and the ground formed as befoic. Mostly I stopped here, but the largest and most central bed — a circular one — had three concentric zones around the central elevated circle. The topmost bed of this was occupied by a large Bird's Nest Fern. One of the zones was filled up entirely with Maiden Hair Fern, Adiantnm cethiopiciim, which grows wild in our neighbourhood. The other zones and all the other beds were filled rather closely with ferns, with a few mosses and liver- worts in between them. Visits to Illawarra, the Kurrajong. and the Blue Mountains provided most of the plants, and no place knew that it had been robbed. A hose was available for watering, and this was necessary most evenings in the hot, dry summer. Very few indeed of the ferns have died right down, though a good many began to look brown in patches. Among the tenderest seemed to be the Lindsayas. L. microphylla, the most beautiful, is very hard to keep, though sheltered among ^o Lucas, Ferns Grown in the Open. [ Vol. XXXVI. stones and protected by a bark roof over its nook. It grows in deep, extremely sandy, loose soil under or at the foot of big rocks in our sandstone gullies, where it does not seem to get much nutriment, but is kept moist by its situation. It is not easy to devise means to provide for it sufficient moisture and shade away from the seepage of the gully sides. One group of plants has survived, but the other has disappeared. It can be grown well in a glass frame. L. trichomanoides, growing in good soil in deep gullies, also seems to resent the excess of light of the lowlands. We are here about 400 feet above sea level, but I obtained it growing wild in the Kurrajong at 2,000 feet. Even L. linearis, common in swampy heaths, is a little diffi-cult. It has long, thin rhizomes, which must be very carefully transferred. The plants, however, after foxing in the summer, are now coming on well. The Adiantums have done splendidly. A . cethiopicum always withers off the old fronds in the summer, but young ones replace them, and the plants now make a bright green girdle round the throne of the Birds' Nest. A . formosimt never turned a hair, but has grown so fast and so big as to threaten its neighbours ; it runs rapidly. A. affine is much more tricky; has just held its own, without much more to boast of. A. hispidukim is more delicate, but, planted in sheltered nooks, is bright and green, as is also its ally, A. neo-caledonicum, obtained in the markets. It is a more dwarf and bushy fern, and does not need so much shelter. Both large-segmented forms of A. capillus -veneris and small-segmented forms of other imported species surprised me by flourishing much better in the open than they had done in the bush-house. They all seem to revel in the freedom allowed to their rhizomes. Doodia aspera and D. caudata, both common in this district, just rioted in the good Water supply. They go off in the bush in a drought, but with plenty of water defy heat or wind. Growing with these two we sometimes find a form which seems to be identical with the D. connexa of Kunze. It resembles D. aspera in the size and shape of the frond and pinnae, but most of these are detached, as in D. caudata, and the sori are more like those of D. caudata. As the two species grow in company with this form, it may be a hybrid between them. It is as hardy as they. Under the shelter of the big Crow's Nest in the central bed grows a plant of D. AtkinsonicB, which is usually considered a variety of D. caudata. The fronds are exceedingly variable, taking all shapes in the lower part, but nearly all end in tails, which may reach a foot or more in length. It is a descendant — or rather derivative — of a plant gathered in the Kurrajong, on the spot where Miss Atkinson noted it. It is so rare that, if a variety, it must have been a ]^[-^ ] Lucas. Fevns Grown in the Open-. 91 " sport." It has maintained its characters with me for about nine years. Blechnum cartilagineum is a local fern, and naturally very hardy, but in the bush it always shows the effect of the summer, and many of its fronds wilt. It makes up for this by the delicate reddish-purple of the young fronds. My plants, though not in special soil, fared better than those in the bush. B. serrulatmn is a swamp plant, with creeping underground rhizome ; it has responded well to the good soil and good water supply. It is a little slow in starting after it is shifted, but once it takes hold it goes ahead consistently. B. Icevigatum is referred to below. The alhes of Blechnum, the Lomarias — (N.B. — I have not employed Christensen's classification, because I thought that the old names as given by Bentham would be more familiar to fern-growers) — have been very unequal in their heat- resisting powers. L. Patersoni, growing wild by creeks in deep gullies, came off rather badly, losing most fronds completely and having the residue half-withered. The plants show signs now of recovery. It is very tender in the matter of shifting, likely looking young plants with a bole of earth enclosing their roots going back for a time without any apparent reason. They seem to be very shy of new soil. L. lanceolata is quite hardy, even fairly large plants soon recovering after trans- planting. The young plants, put in a year ago, have formed large green rosettes without any throw-back. One is now sending up its first fertile fronds. The rachis does not become black until the plants are quite old. I discovered L. alpina last Easter in the highest part of the Blue Mountains. We regarded it as a Kosciusko or Mount Wellington plant, and had not looked for it so far north. The plants settled down at once in their new beds at the low altitude, and have spread more rapidly than any other of my ferns. When exposed to an exceptionally full hot sun they wilted and browned, but have quite recovered. Others, in the shade, never went off. L. capensis, usually growing near or in water, found things trying, but was not killed out. I had been rather sceptical as to the validity of Blechnum Icevigatum as a species, thinking it a form of L. capensis. Hooker regarded it as ''a very distinct species," but Baron von Mueller admits that it can hardly be known from the Lomaria in the fruiting stage. The young plants are certainly different in appearance ; the Blechnum is always green and smooth, with short, rounded pinnae, while the Lomaria is red and scaly, the fronds less erect, and ter- minating in a long, flat segment. Aspleniitm nidus is the king of the fernery, seated on its central throne. With plenty of water it has developed fresh 92 Lucas, Ferns Grown in the Open. [v