Abstract
Eighty species of hydroids were obtained by the Terra Nova expedition, of which four only belong to the Athecata, a discrepancy which is not explained. Their geographical distribution is not considered, but judging from the list of stations there would seem to be about the same number of species on suitable bottoms from the surface to 300 fni. The present treatment of a group of beautiful little animals is in a hard systematic strain. The author restrains his soul, for there is scarcely a reference to, and not a single drawing of, any polyp. We wonder whether the classification almost solely on the external skeleton is sound and how far it is going to lead us. The British Museum alone of institutions in Great Britain has the material necessary to answer this question. Like all its publications, the work is well reproduced. We would, however, ask the director to consider the advisability of enforcing standard magnifications in all figures, one genus showing no less than thirteen different magnifications in the plates.
British Museum (Natural History).
British Antarctic (Terra Nova) Expedition, 1910. Natural History Report. Zoology, Vol. 5, No. 5: Coelenterata. Part 5: Hydroida. By A. Knyvett Totton. Pp. 131–252 + 3 plates. (London: British Museum (Natural History), 1930). 15s.
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British Museum (Natural History) . Nature 126, 273 (1930). https://doi.org/10.1038/126273a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/126273a0