Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB

the most fevere depredations on fuch animals as are its deftined food.'

XI. On the Feftuca fpadicea, and Anthoxanthum panicu latum, of Linnæus. By James Edward Smith, M. D. F. R. S. Prefident of the Linnean Society. The events of this grafs's botanical history are various and figular. It firft occurred in Burfer's Herbarium to Linnæus, who called it anthoxanthum floribus paniculatis, and afterwards anthoxanthum paniculatum, always keeping in view its refemblance with the arthoxanthum odoratum, and fufpecting it to be the fame fpecies, The plant was fuppofed to exift in the Hortus Dei at Montpelier, and many pilgrimages have been made, without fuccefs, to discover it. Botanifts at last fuppofed the whole to be an accidental variety of the odoratum. When Dr. Smith examined the first volume of Rudbeck's Campi Elyfii, which we have formerly faid was in the Sherardian Collection at Oxford, on looking on the fynonym of this grafs, he perceived it to be the poa gerardi of Allioni's Flora Pedemontana, which he had himself gathered on mount Cenis. Profeflor Gouan had difcovered the fame plant, and fent it to Linnæus, under the name of feftuca: Haller has defcribed it as a poa, and our author's fpecimen, fent without any remark to Gouan, was returned with the appellation of feftuca fpadicea: it is the nardus fpuria narbonenfis of C. Bauhine's Pinax 13; the nardus Gangitis fpuria narbonæ of Lobel, adverfaria 48. These fynonyms are applied by Linnæus to his nardus Gangites; but his own Herbarium fhows this to be a very different plant, and Linnæus, quoting erroneouily from Morrison, the last figure inftead of the laft but one, feems alfo to have copied inattentively the fpicâ recurvâ: unfortunately too, this nardus, and the nardus Thomæ, belong to the genus rottbollia. Our au thor concludes his article with an apology, fingularly well placed and candid for pointing out thefe errors. We have before obferved, that those who can discover the errors of Linnæus are alone capable of understanding his excellencies, and are among his warmest and most rational admirers.

[ocr errors]

XII. On the Migration of certain Birds, and on other Matters relating to the feathered Tribes. By William Markwick, Efq. Affociate of the Linnean Society. The migration of birds, a circumstance in their history little understood, and often difputed, can be only fettled by careful obfervations. Mr. Markwick's table contains various facts refpecting the first and laft appearance of different birds, fuppofed to be migra tory, and we truft he will continue his enquiries. We could with, however, that his tables were printed in a more distinct form, and accompanied with the direction of the winds, the

weather,

weather, and the height of the thermometer; in other words, with a meteorological regifter. The unconnected nature of thefe facts renders an abridgment impoffible; but we shall select an observation or two from the fubsequent remarks.

The first appearance of the woodcock, according to my journal during fixteen years, has been generally in October, never earlier than e 12th of that month; and as to its continuance with us, I never faw it later than the 10th of April. We have had two or three inftances, in this neighbourhood, of young woodcocks being shot in the fummer-time; and I think I once faw an egg of this bird taken out of a neft in the neighbourhood: but their breeding here is very uncommon, and owing, I suppose, to accident; the old ones perhaps having been wounded by sportsmen in the winter, and fo difabled from taking a long journey in the fpring.'

I will here beg leave to mention a few particulars refpecting other birds which have engaged my notice: the white water-wagtail, the grey water-wagtail, and the yellow water-wagtail.

How the water-wagtails difpofe of themselves in the winter, is the most difficult to account for of any birds I know; for though the generality of them difappear in the autumn, yet they are often feen in the middle of winter. If there happens to be a fine day, and the fun fhines bright, these bird are fure to make their appearance, chirping brifkly, and feemingly delighted with the fine weather: whereas, perhaps, they had not been seen for three wecks or a month before. In short, they are never feen in winter but on a fine day. Where do they come from? Certainly not from a far diftant country; there not being time for a very long journey in the space of a fingle day; and befides, they never feem to be tired or lifeless, but are very brisk and lively,'

The antipathy between the ravens and the rooks is faid to be fo great, that the latter have more than once been obferved to leave their nefts if a raven builds near them. These remarks are concluded with a description and a plate of the tringa glareola, the wood fandpiper of Latham.

XIII. The History and Defcription of a new Species of Fu cus. By Thomas J. Woodward, Efq. Fellow of the Linnean Society. This is a nondefcript, to which the trivial name of fubfufcus is applied: it is not peculiar, however, to the eaftern coafts, for it has been found on the fouthern.-The character is correctly drawn- Fronde filiformi, ramofiffima, ramis ramulifque fparfis, foliis fubulatis fubalternis, fructificationibus paniculatis, capfulis fuboctofpermis.' It ranks next to the fucus filiquofus.

XIV. Account of a fingular Conformation in the Wings of

fome

fome Species of Moths. By M. Efprit Giorna, of Turin, Foreign Member of the Linnean Society.-This fiugular conformation is a tendon, in fome inftances inferted in a ring, to prevent any accidental inte: mixing of the wings of the fphinxes and phalænæ. It is the evident defign of this part; for the females, whofe fights are not extenfive, and who confequently require no fuch precautions, have neither the tendon, which fupplies the place of a staff for the flag or wing, nor the ring, which confines the flag, but, in their room, have a bundle of little fibres. The fphynx of the poplar tree, which does not fly to any distance, has not the tendon. Our author thinks this part may be of ufe in arranging the fpecies of this confufed genus, and in diftinguishing the fex; but the fact itfelf is mentioned, as the editors properly obferve, in a note, by our countryman, Mr. Harris, in his Effay preceding a Supplement to the Aurelian.'

[ocr errors]

XV. Obfervations on the Language of Botany. By the Rev. Thomas Martyn, B. D. F. R.S. Profeffor of Botany in the University of Cambridge, and Fellow of the Linnean Society. In a Letter addreffed to the Prefident.-Profeffor Martyn propofed to retain the Linnæan name, where cuftom has not already established a fynonymous English ore, where the anglicifed term is not harsh nor ambiguous. His remarks, which we find it very difficult to abridge, fhould certainly be attended to by the English authors of botany.

XVI. Obfervations on the Genus of Begonia. By Jonas Dryander, M. A. Libr. R. S. and Member of the Royal Academy of Sciences cf Stockholm, Fellow of the Linnean Society. Mr. Dryander has collected from various Herbaria much information concerning this extenfive and ill-underflood genus. He gives a good hiftory of the obfervations refpecting the begonia, and deferibes 21 diftinct fpecies, of which he has feen 15; to thefe he has added fome account of 16 obfcure fpecies. Mr. Dryander feems to think that fince the parts of fructification are fo different as to make it difficult to form a proper generic character, it may be expedient to break this natural genus into different artificial ones.

XVII. On the Genus of Symplocos, comprehending Hopea, Alftonia, and Ciponima. By Mr. Charles Louis L'Heretier, of the Academy of Sciences at Paris, Foreign Member of the Linnean Society.-Unfortunately for the future fame of the Edinburgh botanical profeffors, M. Heritier has united the three genera, mentioned in the title, under the name of fymplocos. The fpecies are the fymplocos martinienfis, ciponima, arechea, tinctoria (hopea tinctoria L. Sup.) and alf

tonia.

XVIII. On

XVIII. On the Genus of Calligonum, comprehending Pterococcus and Pallafia. By Mr. Charles Louis L'Heritier, of the Academy of Sciences of Paris, Foreign Member of the Linnean Society. The genus calligonum was formed from the polygonoides orientale, ephedræ facie of Tournefort. The pterococcus of Pallas, called by the younger Linnæus, Pallafia, is a fpecies of this genus. Another fpecies, the calligonum comofum, defcribed by Desfontaines, from Barbary, is alfo added: XIX. Obfervations on Polypodium Oreopteris, accompani ed with a Specimen from Scotland. By Mr. J. Dickson, Fellow of the Linnean Society.-The plant, which our author calls polypodium oreoptoris, is by all the different botanists ftyled polypodium thelypteris; and, in this article, Mr. Dickfon points out the circumitances which diftinguifh the two fpecies.

XX. Account of a fpinning Limax, or Slug. By Mr. Thomas Hoy, of Gordon Caftle, Affociate of the Linnean Society. A curious inftance in which the flug, like the spider, feems to have the power of fufpending itself by a thread fpun from its own bowels: the power is, however, lefs in degree, and the thread is more flowly fpun. The fuail feems to be a diftinct fpecies. Dr. Shaw faw a fimilar phænomenon in 1776.

XXI. Defcriptions of three new Animals found in the Pacific Ocean. By Mr. Archibald Menzies, Fellow of the Linnean Society. These animals are a fpecies of echencis, ftyled lineata; of the fafciola, viz. clavata, and of the hirudos branchiata.

--

XXII. Remarks on the Genus Veronica. By James Edward Smith, M. D. F. R. S. Prefident of the Linnean Society. This article contains remarks on the 3d, 10th, 12th, 15th, 28th, 30th, 32d, 33d, 37th, 38th, and 39th species of the veronica, in the 14th edition of the Syftema Vegetabilium; on the Veronica Biloba of the Mantifla, the Veronica Gentianoides and Filiformis of Tournefort. It is impoffible to give any adequate idea of our author's labour, without tranfcribing the remarks entire, which would be too long, and not generally interefting.

XXIII. Defcriptions of two new Species of Phalena. By M. Louis Bofc, of Paris, Foreign Member of the Linnean Society.-Thefe are the phalena pyralis tuberculana, and phaJena tinea Sparrmanella,

XXIV. The Botanical Hiftory of the Genus Dillenia, with an Addition of feveral nondefcript Species. By Charles Peter Thunberg, Knight of the Order of Wafa, Profeffor of Botany and Medicine in the University of Upfal, Foreign Member of

the

--

the Linnean Society. Our author defcribes fix fpecies of the Dillenia, and rejects the fynonym added by Linnæus to the Dillenia fpeciofa (the Dillenia Indica Lin.)viz.fongius rumphii. XXV. The Botanical Hiftory of Trifolium alpestre, medium, & pratenfe. By Adam Afzelius, M. A. Demonstrator of Botany in the Unverfity of Upfal, Foreign Member of the Linnean Society.-M. Afzelius is preparing a new edition of the Flora Suecica; but on his arrival in this country, he found many of the most common plants of Sweden, known by the English botanifts under different names, an error partly arifing from the precipitancy of our countrymen, and fome times owing to the obfcure concifenefs of the Swedish naturalift. This confufion the author of this article endeavours to remove, and with a minute accuracy, truly astonishing, and an extent of botanical erudition moft carefully employed, fhows how these three species of trifolium have been mistaken for each other, as well as the method which he has followed in correcting the errors: he next quotes the fynonyms, which must certainly relate to these plants, and adds a proper fcientific defcription of each. This very excellent paper, as will be ob vious, can only be read with advantage in the work itself: it is full of the most minute and accurate botanical criticism, in a language fomewhat foreign and idiomatical, but fufficiently clear and correct.

XXVI. An Account of feveral Plants prefented to the Linnean Society, at different Times, by Mr. John Fairbairn and Mr. Thomas Hoy, Fellows of the Linnean Society. By the Prefident-Thefe are the coftus fpeciofus (Arabicus of Jac quin, which flowered in Sion Gardens laft year); the ftatica latifolia from Ruffian Tartary, which flowered in Sion Gardens in 1788; the fempervivum ftellatum, frequent in Chelfea Gardens; aftragalus leucophæus, from the fame place; mimofa myrtifolia, from New South Wales, which flowered in Sion Gardens in 1790; and the mimofa fwaveolens, from the fame country.

The volume concludes with an extract from the minute. book, containing a description of an incomplete buprestis from India, which had eat through a vaft bale of muflins; and an account of a fingular pigeon, of which we fhall transcribe the moft interefting part.

The peculiarity of this subject confifts in its not having a fingle complete feather on any part of its body, although entitled from its age to have been fully fledged; instead of which, every feather is ftill inclosed in a case the whole of its length; which in fome of the greater quills amounts to fix inches. Indeed a kind of fringe appears at the ends of most of the feathers; and, on diffecting a fea ther, the fhaft is found by no means deftitute of web, but the lat

ter

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »