The following plants were in flower in the parks during December :-Bellis perennis, with all its cultivated varieties; Heleborus niger, H. purpurescens, Poa annua, Cheiranthus Cheiri, Primula vulgaris, both single and double, in all its various colours, and Sambucus racemosa. The mildness of the close of the year is indicated by the fact that the common marygold, Calendula officinalis continued in flower to the latter end of December, when it was killed by frost between Christmas and New Year's day. Geraniums and fuschias remained in good foliage in the open air, in all the parks except the Green, until about 20th December. From the absence of sunshine during the spring months, flowering trees and shrubs were fully three weeks later than usual, and during summer the show of flowers was exceedingly meagre. The grasses, however, never lost their luxuriant verdure, and the foliage on the trees during summer was well maintained, and remained in good condition longer than usual; but the flowerbuds never became properly matured, and the present scarcity of them on the rhododendron may be attributed to the dampness of autumn and the want of sunshine. It is to be hoped, however, that the case of the rhododendrons may be an exception; and as last year was "long foul," we may expect, according to the Scotch proverb, that this year it may be "long fair." Copy of Meteorological Record kept at Queen's Park, Glasgow, for the last three years. 48.03 53 38 131 37 31 52 38 195 35 65 53 39 198 It will be observed from the above Record that the Rainfall for 1877 has been about in excess of the two previous years, the dry days being less, while the mean temperature is nearly equal. 2.84 43 33 22 3.83 44 33 16 3.37 42 29 18 MARCH 26TH, 1878. Professor John Young, M.D., F.G.S., President, in the chair. Messrs. William D. Gordon and James Burns were elected ordinary members. SPECIMENS EXHIBITED. Mr James Coutts exhibited a number of specimens of sclerobasic corals of different species, land and marine shells, pods and seeds of leguminous plants, sponges, and other objects of interest from Victoria, Western Africa, which had been forwarded by Mr George Thomson, corresponding member. The Chairman, in making some remarks on the collection, pointed out the distinction between the sclerobasic corals and the sclerodermic or calcareous-reef-building group. Mr James Lumsden, F.Z.S., exhibited two living specimens of Proteus anguinus, from the stalactite caverns at Adelsberg, near Trieste. These had been kindly forwarded by Mr G. A. Burns, who had also sent some interesting notes by the Rev. Canon Miles, containing observations on the habits of a specimen in his possession. He found that it remained quiet or asleep during the day, and only moved about during the night. Although supposed to be blind, the eyes being but imperfectly developed, it was very sensitive to light, and he thought that the great difficulty found in keeping them alive in confinement was owing to proper care not being taken to keep them in the dark and to prevent them from being disturbed during the day, which is their natural period of rest, together with the further difficulty of finding them proper food. The Chairman pointed out, from diagrams and preserved specimens of the salamander and newt, the place which this genus holds in the class Amphibia. He also explained its affinity to the Labyrinthodon of Triassic times, and to the Batrachia, and illustrated the transition of the tadpole of the frog into the perfect form by a series of models, which showed the tufted gills with great distinctness. Professor Young exhibited an Otter, Lutra vulgaris, Erx., found in the Botanic Gardens on the 11th of this month. This animal, which proved to be a female, had been seen frequently in the river opposite the Gardens for about a week, and was observed in the water about two hours before it was found on the land dead. It was in very poor condition, and had a rabbit trap on its right fore leg, which must have prevented it from procuring its proper food. A discussion took place as to the probable quarter from which this specimen had come, in which several members took part. Mr Lumsden read a letter he had received from Mr George E. Paterson, New Kilpatrick, stating that he had been making inquiry as to the occurrence of otters in the Kelvin, and expressing indebtedness to Mr Hendry, head keeper at Garscube, for much interesting information on the subject. Mr Hendry informed him that they were sometimes seen in the river at Killermont and Garscube, feeding no doubt on the trout, pike, and perch, which were still to be found there. Mr Harvie-Brown stated that otters were very common in the Carron, and they had been found to come from a considerable distance overland, their footmarks having been traced in the snow for nearly five miles. Other members thought that this animal might have come from the Endrick, where otters are often met with, and that some evidence as to the locality from which it had migrated might yet be forthcoming. Dr Young stated that the specimen was a very fine one, the fur being in excellent condition, and that its body had been of considerable use to one of his colleagues, in clearing up some obscure points in the anatomy of the species. Mr John M. Campbell mentioned, as showing that fish still frequented the Kelvin even in its lower reaches, that in the Aquarium at Kelvingrove they had three specimens of perch which were taken out of the river opposite the Museum. Mr John Young, F.G.S., exhibited a number of specimens of Carboniferous shale enclosing various organisms from the calciferous or cement-stone series lying at the base of the Carboniferous system in Ayrshire, and which had been sent him by Mr E. Denholm Young, M.A., Green Lodge, Ayr, for examination. The strata from which they were obtained are found cropping out on the shore, between the heads of Ayr and the "Deil's Dyke," an intrusive mass of dolerite which cuts through the strata. Mr Young stated that the lower calciferous strata of the West of Scotland are usually singularly barren of fossils. They underlie the bedded traps of lower Carboniferous age forming the range of hills which extend from near the town of Stirling to Ardrossan. Good sections of these rocks are to be seen in the several glens that traverse these hills in the Campsie, Strathblane, and Fintry districts, as well as in the valley of the Leven, and amongst the hills above Greenock, in the district around Loch Thom; but the only organisms yet found in any of these localities are a few plant remains, and fragmentary scales of fishes, both of which, however, are very rare. The tract of country from which the specimens under notice were obtained lies beyond the range of bedded traps referred to, and it is very probable that this fossiliferous group of the calciferous series is of newer age than that which underlies the trap of the hills. The shales are of a dark-grey colour, and are more or less arenaceous in their composition. They resemble very closely in this respect those found in the calciferous series of Fifeshire, which also contains similar groups of fossils. The following are the organisms which Mr Young had been able to identify-sphenoid bone of fish resembling that of Ctenodus, scales of a fish like those of Rhizodus, or Strepsodus, small tooth of fish, bivalve shells like those of Anthracomya or Modiola, impressions of the limb of a crustacean, entomostraca of various species with the valves often crushed. Amongst these he had found Beyrichia subarcuata, Leperditia Scotoburdigalensis, and a large species of Cythere. Spirorbis carbonarius is seen attached to the shells, and a layer of the shale is almost composed of the crushed shells of Spirorbis helicteres. In washing a portion of the shale containing this annelide he had noticed the interesting fact that in many of the specimens where the tube was filled with calcite, these tubes when broken across showed that they were often traversed by thin septa of a concave form like those seen in cephalopod shells, but not perforated with a siphuncle, as in these shells. These septa appear to occur in the tubes at irregular distances, one specimen showing two septa at about a line apart. This septate character had not, so far as he was aware, been noticed in connection with this annelide before, and he could find no specimens or descriptions of tubicolar annelides, recent or fossil, in which similar septa were found, although it was probable such did occur.* Spirorbis helicteres is found abundantly in one of the musselband ironstones in the upper coal measures of Lanarkshire, * Since this date Mr Young has discovered concave septa in two specimens of recent Serpula in the Hunterian Museum. but in these he had not been yet able to trace the septa. Probably this is owing to the different state of fossilisation of the organisms in the two deposits, those found in Ayrshire being preserved in a soft shale, in which the tubes are often found fractured in the line of the septa, as was seen in the specimens mounted for examination. Mr Young concluded his remarks by observing that the fossils were all apparently of a freshwater or estuarine character, and in this feature they agreed with what was already known of the cement-stone series of the West of Scotland. It was probable, however, that alternations of marine and freshwater strata might yet be found in this group on the Ayrshire coast, as is the case in the calciferous series of the East of Scotland. He also hoped that his friend Mr Denholm Young would be able more fully to explore this interesting group of strata, so that a fuller list of the fossils might be obtained. Mr David Robertson, jun., exhibited a fine specimen of the Whitetailed Eagle, Haliaëtus albicilla, got in Skye in the beginning of January this year. He stated that he was indebted to Mr M'Culloch, Sauchiehall Street, for sending the specimen for exhibition. It was a young bird, probably in the second year. This species is not so rare as the golden eagle, its eyries being found in the Hebrides and other parts of the western coast of Scotland pretty frequently, but like all the large birds of prey it is getting scarcer every year. It is the largest of the British rapacious birds, measuring about three inches longer than the Golden Eagle. Mr Robertson also exhibited albino varieties of several species of birds, including the Blackbird, Turdus merula, the Rook, Corvus frugilegus, the Bullfinch, Pyrrhula europaea, and a pair of white Sand-martins, Hirundo riparia, got at Hungryside on the Forth and Clyde Canal in August, 1876, by Mr Martin, residing there. White varieties of this species are rather uncommon. Macgillivray says he had heard of them, but had never seen them, and Mr Stevenson mentions a light cream-coloured variety got at Eaton in July, 1861, and another at Weasenham in the following September. A discussion regarding albinism followed, in which the Chairman, Mr Harvie-Brown, and others, took part. Mr James Lumsden remarked that there seemed to be two kinds of albinism common to birds and animals, in illustration of which he exhibited two specimens of the common Hare, |