Notoscolex equestris, an Earthworm from the Poor Knights Islands.* Equestris—according to Smith's Latin-English Dictionary, “belonging to the order of Knights.” By W. B. Benham, K.B.E., F.R.S., University of Otago, N.Z. [Read before the Otago Branch, June 9, 1942; received by the Editor, June 24, 1942; issued separately, December, 1942.] During November, 1940, I received from Mr. R. G. Turbott, of the Auckland Memorial Museum, two phials containing earthworms—one phial from the Chatham Island Group, the other from the Poor Knights Group, which is situated off the north-east coast of the North Island of New Zealand. The smaller of the two phials contained those collected by him in leaf mould and loose soil on the South-east Island of the Chatham Group. In it are four earthworms. The two largest belong to the species Rhohodrilus huttoni (Benham)† Benham, 1900. On some Earthworms from the Islands around New Zealand. Trans. N.Z. Inst., vol. 33, p. 140. —formerly placed in the genus Microscolex, this species was removed by Michaelsen (1907, p. 142), as it possesses a gizzard, which is absent in the former genus. The two other worms are much smaller, and are some species of the introduced genus Allolobophora, but owing to the state of immaturity and to the poor condition of preservation, it is impossible to be more precise. It is with the contents of the larger phial from the Poor Knights that the present article is concerned. This phial contained two large earthworms collected in leaf mould by Majors G. A. Buddle and R. A. Wilson, on Tawhiti Rahi, the northern island of the group. They are excellently preserved in strong alcohol, and are now in the Auckland Museum. Notoscolex equestris n.sp. (Pl. 17.) External Features: The length of the larger of the two, which forms the subject of this article, is 210 mm., with about 150 segments, all of which are practically of the same length. The diameter is almost uniform throughout the length, the worm being thus almost cylindrical, scarcely tapered posteriorly; for at a distance of 20 mm. from the anterior end its diameter is 14 mm., and at the same distance from the posterior extremity it is 10 mm. The greatest diameter at a short distance in front of the clitellum is 16 mm. The pigmentation, or rather the plan of pigmentation, is very striking. A broad band of dark chocolate brown crosses the dorsum of each segment, and is separated from its neighbours by a narrower, pale cream-coloured intersegmental band. The appearance is thus somewhat zebriform. Such a scheme of colouration is unusual, but not unknown in earthworms from other parts of the world, and