11 MARKET STREET. Natural History and other Packages, all sizes, delivered any address in Britain, 9D. PER POUND. CONTINENT & AMERICA, Slightly Higher. Weekly. NO TROUBLE. NO OTHER CHARGES. LONDON OFFICE: W. R. SUTTON & CO., GOLDEN LANE, E.C. A. J. HALL (Twenty Years with PAUL THOMAS), IMPORTER AND MANUFACTURER OF FIRST-CLASS BOOTS AND SHOES. Ladies' and Gentlemen's Boots and Shoes made to Order. A SPECIALITY in Ladies' SENSIBLE Boots and ShoesLow Heels and BROAD TOES. New Shipments by every Mail, direct from the Manufacturers. 41 SWANSTON STREET (Between Flinders Lane and Collins Street), MELBOURNE. THE Victorian Naturalist. VOL. IV.-No. 10. FEBRUARY, 1888. No. 50. THE FIELD NATURALISTS' CLUB OF VICTORIA. THE monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 12th December, 1887. The president, Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., B.Sc., occupied the chair, and about seventy-five members and visitors were present. The hon. librarian reported the receipt of the following donations to the library :—" Iconography of the Acacias of Australasia," decades 2, 3, and 4, from the Government; "Proceedings of the Linnean Society of New South Wales," second series, Vol. II., part 3, from the society; " A Descriptive Catalogue of the Medusa of the Australian Seas," by Dr. R. von Lendenfeld, from the Australian Museum, Sydney; "Transactions of the Edinburgh Geological Society," from the society; "Journal of Pharmacy," November, 1887; and "Journal of Comparative Medicine and Surgery (New York)," from the editor. The following persons were duly elected members of the Club-Master P. V. Bevan, Mr. M. K. Dahle, Mr. F. N. Ingamells, and Dr. Lewellin. There were no papers down on the notice paper for the evening, the meeting being devoted to the reception of reports from the members of the recent expedition to King Island, which were as follows: 1. Mr. A. J. Campbell, as leader of the party, read the official report of the trip, giving particulars of the sub-parties organised, and the routes taken by them, etc., which were demonstrated on a large map of the island, presented by Mr. J. J. Shillinglaw, F.R.G.S. 2. Mr. D. Le Souëf read a list of the mammals, reptiles, and fish observed by the several parties, with short notes of interesting points 3. Mr. A. J. Campbell contributed a list of the birds and birds' eggs, noted or taken, and read some notes on the more striking species. 4. Baron F. von. Mueller, K. C.M.G., contributed a list of the plants collected by the members of the party. 5. Professor W. Baldwin Spencer, B.A., briefly summarised the scientific results of the expedition as tending to show that King Island was separated from Tasmania at a date subsequent to its separation from the Australian mainland. The exhibits of the evening consisted of the specimens collected at King Island, and were displayed in the lower rooms of the building, and consisted of animals, birds (mounted and skins), reptiles, including live snakes and lizards, insects, shells, marine objects, plants, etc. These were contributed by Professor Spencer, Messrs. Campbell, Cornwall, Chander, Dixon, French, Le Souëf, M'Kibbon, and others. A fine series of photographic views of the camps, notable spots, scenery, etc., were shown by Mr. L. Hart. After a very pleasant conversazione the meeting terminated. The monthly meeting of the Club was held at the Royal Society's Hall on Monday evening, 16th January, 1888. The president, Mr. A. H. S. Lucas, M.A., occupied the chair, and about forty members and visitors were present. The hon. librarian reported the receipt of the following donations to the library:-"Prodromus of Zoology of Victoria,” decade 15, from the Government; "Proceedings of Royal Society of New South Wales," Vol. XX., 1886, from the society; "Journal of New York Microscopical Society," Vol. III., No. 4, from the society; "Journal of Natural History Society" (Brunswick, Germany), from the society; "Papers on Ornithology of the Caroline Islands and Diego Garcia," by Dr. Otto Finsch, from the author; and "Journal of Pharmacy,' December, 1887, from the society. The hon. secretary read an account by the leader (Mr. C. French, F.L.S.) of the Club excursion to Berwick on Saturday, 19th November, who reported that insects were, as a rule, scarce. Of bee les, about twelve species of buprestidae were taken, but none of them particularly rare. Among the other beetles obtained, the best was Chrosis trisulcata, a fine member of the Elateridæ. A specimen of the handsome butterfly (Hipparchia abroma) was almost the only lepidopterous insect taken. Of flowering plants, the pretty Aster adenophorus, the white iris (Diplarrhena Moraea), the white variety of Bauera rubioides, Gompholobium Huegelii, Pimelea flava, and Grevillea alpina, and the orchids (Diuris oculata and Dipodium punctatum) were the most noticeable obtained. Specimens of the fern, Gleichenia dicarpa, were obtained for cultivation. An interesting account of the Club excursion to the Plenty River, at Bundoora, on Saturday, 17th December, was read by Mr. D. Best, the leader of the party. This locality, which is about 12 miles from town, is noted for the many and rare species of coleoptera to be obtained there, and on this occasion the members were fairly successful. The leptospermum scrub was in full bloom and quite alive with various insects. Among the beetles taken may be mentioned the longicornes, Macrones exilis, Eroschema Poweri, Amphirrhoe decora, Hesthesis cingulata, H. plorata, Uracanthus biritta, Tritocosmia Roei, T. paradoxa, Psilomorpha sp., Pempsamacra dispersa, P. pygmæa, and P. vestita; of buprestidæ about 20 species were obtained, also many representatives of the other families. Cicadas were, of course, plentiful, while some good lepidoptera, hymenoptera, and diptera were also taken. A fine specimen of the orchid Dipodium punctatum in full bloom was noted, and the pretty blue "pincushion" flower (Brunonia Australis) was very plentiful. Some fine specimens of the native cherry (Exocarpos sp.,) were noticed in full fruit. Unfortunately, the river was rather high, and the usual crossing places being covered, prevented the eastern bank from being thoroughly worked. The following persons were duly elected members of the Club: Mrs. M. H. Davies, Master Davies, Miss M'Gowan, and the Rev. G. Hay, M.A. The president announced that Mr. C. A. Topp, M.A., one of the vice-presidents of the Club, had been elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society of London. The president laid on the table, for the information of the members, an advance proof of the greater portion of part 1 of Baron von Mueller's "Key to the System of Victorian Plants," and remarked that the work would be a very great help to Victorian botanists, and as a local flora would probably be unequalled in the world. His remarks were endorsed by Messrs. C. A. Topp, F.L.S., and J. E. Prince. PAPERS READ. 1. By Mr. H. W. Hunt, on "The Coloration of Birds' Eggs." The author advanced three general rules for the colour exhibited by the eggs of various species of birds. Firstly, that eggs laid in dark situations or by nocturnal birds are, as a rule, white; secondly, that eggs laid on the bare ground or in exposed situations are usually coloured like their surroundings; and thirdly, that eggs laid in open nests are generally conspicuously coloured. He also made the suggestion that birds may have a love of the beautiful, and therefore make the power of laying of variously coloured eggs a point in the selection of their mates. The paper was well illustrated with specimens, and gave rise to an interesting discussion, in which Prof. Spencer, Messrs. Lucas, Topp, and others took part. 2. By Mr. H. T. Tisdall, F.L.S., "The Fungi of Victoria," part 1. The author pointed out several differences in the different groups of fungi, and gave a more detailed account of the structure of the genus Agaricus, and submitted a list of species mostly collected by himself in various parts of the colony. The paper was illustrated with dried specimens. |