situated one on each side, attached to the anterior septum in their respective segments. There are three pairs of spermathecae, a pair in each of vii, viii and ix. Each spermatheca consists of a conical sac, opening by a muscular duct to the exterior, and a small spherical diverticulum opening by a very slender duct into the spermathecal duct. (Plate 12, fig. 3.) The prostates lie one on each side of the ventral nerve cord beneath the intestine and are very long, slender, tubular organs. The left prostate originates from a slender duct passing through xviii and xix and extends back from xx to xxxiv, turns and passes forward again through xxxiii into xxxii, where it terminates. The right prostate passes back only as far as xxxiii, where it terminates. There are two pairs of small, racemose, vesiculae seminales, a pair in ix and a pair in xii.

There are micronephridial tubules in each segment except the first. They form a compact mat of tubules on the lateral aspects of the body-wall in each segment.

Remarks. M. parvus closely resembles and may actually be identical with M. huttoni (Benham, 1904) The inadequacy of Benham's description makes it impossible to positively distinguish the present species from M. huttoni, but the following points of difference are noted:

(i) The male pores of M. parvus are situated on low, rounded papillae on xviii; those of M. huttoni are in slight circular depressions on xviii.

[The section below cannot be correctly rendered as it contains complex formatting. See the image of the page for a more accurate rendering.]

(ii) M. parvus has a median oval tuberculum pubertatis at 19/20; M. huttoni has a similar tuberculum on the hinder margin of xviii.

[The section below cannot be correctly rendered as it contains complex formatting. See the image of the page for a more accurate rendering.]

(iii) The spermathecal pores of M. parvus are intersegmental, in the grooves 6/7, 7/8 and 8/9; those of M. huttoni are on the hinder margin of vi, vii and viii.

(iv) The gizzard of M. parvus is short and thick-walled; that of M. huttoni is long, narrow and thin-walled.

(v) The micronephridia of M. parvus commence in ii; those of M. huttoni commence in iii.

(vi) The prostates of M. parvus extend straight back from xviii to xxxiii or xxxiv; those of M. huttoni extend forward from xviii to xvi.

None of these characters is of specific value, since none of them is invariable, but M. parvus does not show sufficient similarity to the scanty description of M. huttoni to be positively identified as M. huttoni, and I prefer to establish a new species for it.

Megascolides raglani n.sp. (Plate 13, figs. 1–3)

[The section below cannot be correctly rendered as it contains complex formatting. See the image of the page for a more accurate rendering.]

Two specimens were collected, one from a forest remnant near the crest of the Raglan Range, south of the Hamilton-Raglan road, and the other from native forest near Moerangi, beside the Raglan-Kawhia road. Superficially the species is easily mistaken for Spenceriella shakespeari (Benham). It is about the same size and colour and has prominent, transversely disposed tubercula pubertatis, one at 17/18 and another at 18/19, similar to those found in S. shakespeari. However, the possession of only eight chaeta on each segment as compared with 48 in S. shakespeari readily distinguishes the two species. The strong similarity between the two species may be interpreted as an indication that S. shakespeari has been derived from M. raglani as a local variant.

[The section below cannot be correctly rendered as it contains complex formatting. See the image of the page for a more accurate rendering.]

The specimen on which this description is based is 81 mm. in length and 5 mm. in diameter and has 101 segments. It is brick red dorsally and pale ventrally and has a buff clitellum which completely surrounds xiii–xviii. The clitellum is not greatly developed over xiii and xviii and the intersegmental furrows 13/14 and 17/18 are quite well marked. The prostomium is epilobous.