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IV. Note on syringammina, a
new type of arenaceous
rhizopoda
Henry B. Brady, F. R. S.
Proc. R. Soc. Lond. 1883 35, 155-161, published 1
January 1883
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jgg£ i On Syringammiiia.
on April 16, 2018
of dark lines in the coronal spectrum , th a t doubt is. now com pletely
^ The6 results have am ply proved th e value of th e p h otographic
method employed, and i t h a s been show n how an eclipse of only
seventy seconds’ d u ratio n can be m ade to yield im p o rtan t inform ation.
IV. Note on S yrin g a m m ina, a New T ype of Arenaceous Rhizo-
poda.” B y H enry B. B rady , F.R .S. Received April 10*
1883.
[P liA T E S 2 , 3 .3
- The specim ens to w hich th e follow ing n o te re fers w ere dredged in
the Faroe C hannel in th e au tu m n of la s t y ear, d u rin g th e cruise of
H.M .S. “ T rito n ,” a n d w ere sen t to m e fo r exam ination by M r. Jo h n
M urray, F .R .S .E ., u n d er whose direction th e scientific observations of
the expedition were carried out.
I t is now a w ell-know n fa c t th a t th e region ly in g betw een th e n o rth
coast of S cotland an d th e F aroe Islan d s possesses ce rta in fe atu res of
unusual in te re st ow ing to th e existence, side by side, of tw o sh arp ly
defined areas, of w hich th e bottom te m p e ra tu re differs to th e e x ten t
of 16° or 17° F a h r. T he d ep th of th e tw o areas is very sim ilar, ra n g in g
from 450 to 640 fathom s, a n d th ey are sep arated by a n arro w rid g e
having an average d ep th of about 250 fathom s. T he physical aspects
of this phenom enon have been th e subject of m u ch discussion, an d
the biological conditions a tte n d a n t th e re u p o n are of alm ost equal
im portance ; indeed, so fa r as th e R hizopoda are concerned, th e re are
few areas of th e sam e ex ten t th a t h av e so w ell re p aid th e labour of
investigation. O n th e 44 L ig h tn in g ” E x p ed itio n of 1868, su p ei-
intended by D r. C arpenter an d S ir W y v ille Thom son, th e cold area
furnished am ongst o th er in te re stin g organism s, th e larg e L ituoline
F oram inifer Reophax sabulosa, a form w hich h as since been obtained
near th e sam e po in t on th e cruise of th e 44 K n ig h t E rra n t, b u t has
never been m et w ith elsewhere. T he w arm area yielded a t th e sam e
tim e Astrorhiza arenaria, a larg e sandy species previously unknow n to
B ritish n atu ralists. On the 44 P o rcu p in e ” *E xpedition of 1869, an o th er
modification of th e la tte r genus, A strorhiza crassatina^ was obtained in
the cold a r e a ; and n ear th e boundary line an en tirely new arenaceous
type was dredged, to w hich th e generic nam ed Rotelliua has been
assigned by D r. C arpenter. F rom th e fact th a t all th e specim ens of
the form appeared m ore or less broken, i t has been inferred th a t th e
tests were ad h e ren t w hen living ; b u t th e frag m en ts were a b u n d a n t/
and consisted of sto u t tubes, m any of them upw ards of an inch
in length, th e in terio r being subdivided by a lab y rin th of irreg u lar
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B. Brady. [Apr. 19 ,
sandy partitions. More recently, in 1880, on the cruise of the “ K nighl
E rra n t,” * the rare genus Storthosphcera was found in th e warm region ’
an d in the cold area specimens of Cornusjpira w hich m easured more
th a n an inch in diam eter, riv allin g in size th e finest of th e tropical
O rbitolites, and therefore am ongst th e larg est know n Porcellanoug
Foram inif e ra .
T he bottom -dredgings obtained on th e cruise of the “ T rito n ” in
A u gust and Septem ber, 1882, have n o t been fully exam ined, b u t tbe
surface-gatherings m ade by means of th e tow -net are rem arkable for
tlm abundance of th e curious pelagic type H adigerina. This genus
h ad not previously been found liv in g in th e B ritish seas, and the
specim ens procured w ere equal in size and beauty to any of those
collected in southern latitu d es d u rin g th e “ C h allen g er” voyage.
O f th e R hizopoda contained in the dredgings, by far th e m ost note
w o rth y is th e arenaceous form w hich I propose to describe in the
presen t paper. I t m ay be sta te d a t th e outset th a t two specimens were
secured, b u t ow ing to th e excessively fragile n a tu re of the organism,
both were in a m ore or less frag m en tary condition, though sufficient
rem ains to indicate th e ir principal stru c tu ra l features.
T he general appearance of one of the specimens, draw n to the
n a tu ra l size, is show n in PI. 2, figs. 1, 2, 3 ; th e second was too m uch
broken to be of service except for purposes ot dissection. The figured
specim en is about an inch a n d a half (38 m illim s.) in diariieter, and
ab o u t eig h t-ten th s of an inch (20 m illim s.) in thickness, b u t it is
probable th a t th e la tte r dim ension m ay n o t be m uch more th an half
th a t of th e en tire o rg a n ism ; indeed, it is ev id en t th a t the test when
com plete was a rounded mass, w hich if developed w ith any degree of
sym m etry, m ust have been a sphere of about an inch an d a half
diam eter. T he stru c tu re revealed by th e fractu re d surfaces is th a t of
a congeries o f bran ching an d inosculating tubes ra d ia tin g from a
common centre.
T he frag ile n atu re of the in v estm en t is due to the fact th a t the
walls are com posed of fine sand w ith scarcely a trace of inorganic
cem ent. In th is resp ect th e organism bears a close resem blance to
several w ell-know n arenaceous Rhizopods, notably to Astrorhiza
arenaria, b u t the difference in size ren d ers th e absence of incorpo
ra tin g cem ent a m uch m ore noticeable feature ; for w hilst th e te st of
th e la tte r species, th o u g h loosely arenaceous, has sufficient stren g th
and substance to bear han d lin g w ithout injury, th a t of th e present
form w ill scarcely su p port its own w eight w hen tak en out of w ater,
and crum bles into a m ass of sand on the g en tlest attem p ts a t m anipu
lation. I t is hard ly possible to lift even sm all fiag m e n ts by means
of forceps, and th e specimen would have been in less satisfactory
* “ Proc. Roy. Soc. Edinb.,” 1882, vol. xi, pp. 708-717,
Onfrom
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1883.] on April 16, 2018
K dition th an th e y are, w ere i t n o t t h a t th e d isin te g rated por-
H n s formed a lay er of sand in th e bottom of th e bottle, p a rtia lly
embedding th e la rg e r pieces. O w ing to th is w a n t of cohesion it
has been found im possible to p re p are th in sections of any p a rt of
^ The inferio r aspect of th e specim en, rep resen ted in P l. 2, fig. 1, is
entirely a fractu re d surface, a n d is p robably som ething ap p ro ach in g a
m edian sectio n ; b u t i t is m uch too un ev en to show a n y re g u la rity of
structure, except a t some p o in ts n e a r th e p eriphery. T he only p o rtio n
rem aining of w h at was orig inally th e ex terio r of th e te s t is show n in th e
side view, fig. 3, a t th e p o in t m arked a. T he convex o r “ s u p e r io r”
aspect of th e specim en, as it stan d s on th e plate, ex h ib its chiefly th e
open ends of th e tran sv e rsly -b ro k e n tubes.
The different p o rtio n s of th e stru c tu re exam ined in d etail reveal
little beyond w h a t m ay be realised a t th e first glance.
The “ inferior ” surface of th e specim en displays som ew hat m ore
regularity in th e rad ial a rra n g e m e n t of th e tu b e s th a n could be m ade
apparent in th e draw ing, ow ing to th e unevenness of th e fractu re.
The organic cen tre ap p ears to have been b ro k en aw ay, a n d i t is
impossible to say w h e th e r th e re has been o rig in ally any tru e nucleus,
in the shape of a w ell-defined p rim o rd ial cham ber. T h e c e n tra l
portions, so fa r as th ey are left, consist of a n e tw o rk of b ra n c h in g a n d
often co n to rted tu b es, of som ew hat sm aller diam eter th an those of th e
exterior, and less re g u la rly disposed (P I. 3, fig. 8).
N earer th e p erip h e ry th e system of tu b es tak es a d istin c tly ra d ia l
character, an d in a favourable section appears divided in to con
centric layers o r tiers of g ra d u ally in creasin g d e p th (fig. 6 ). T he
concentric “ p artitio n s ” ex h ib ited in th e ra d ia l section of th e test,
fig. 6, d.d., are not, like th e “ la b y rin th ic la y e r s ” o f Parheria, con
tinuous septa of cancellated stru c tu re , b u t are form ed by la te ra l
branches, given off a t in terv als, w hich u n ite so as to produce a m ore
or less re g u la r n etw o rk (fig. 7). A s n early as can be m ade out,
there m ay h av e been te n or eleven such re tic u la te d “ p a rtitio n s,” a t
intervals v ary in g from inch (L 2 6 m illim s.) n e a r th e centre, to
Tl5 inch (2 -5 m illim s.) n e a r th e p erip h ery .
As already stated th e tu bes are n o t of u n ifo rm diam eter, those n e a r
th e cen tre m easu rin g som etim es no m ore th a n inch (0'5 m illim .),
w hilst n ear th e exterio r th e y often exceed -Jg- in ch (1 m illim .), th e
average diam eter being about ^ inch (0*735 m illim .). T he external
surface is g ran u lar, b u t in th e d ry condition it is tolerably sm ooth ;
the in terio r is sm ooth an d w ell finished. T he in te rn a l cavity w h e th e r
of th e rad ial tubes o r th e b ranches is continuous, ex h ib itin g n eith er
constrictions, septa, nor lab y rin th ic subdivision. T he thickness of th e
walls is about -%^-q in ch (0*125 m illim .).
The p erip h e ral ends of th e tu b es are rounded, and closed by an
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Mr. H.16,B.2018
Brady. [Apr. lg,
aggregation o f san d -grains of som ew hat lig h te r colour th a n th e rest
of th e test, in precisely th e sam e w ay as in arenaria and i t |
im m ediate allies. T he rounded term in atio n s are show n in the side
view, fig, 3, a t th e p o int m arked a; an
W ith re g ard to th e an im al in h a b itin g th e test, th e re is not much
to be said. W h en exam ined by M r. M urray, fresh from the dredge
th e tubes w ere p a rtia lly filled w ith dark-coloured sarcode ; and in the
preserved specimens, th e p eripheral portions of th e fragm ents th at
have been dissected w ere in th is condition. O w ing to the interm ixture
of sand-grains i t h as been fo u n d im possible to exam ine th e tube-
con ten ts Under h ig h m ag n ify in g powers, b u t they appear in all
respects sim ilar to th e sarcode found in th e tests of m any of the
la rg e r arenaceous F o ram in ifera w hich have been preserved in the same
way, nam ely, a dark , som ew hat firm , g ra n u la r, gelatinous mass
w hich on d ry in g form s n early black b ra n ch in g threads.
T here can be no d o u b t th a t th e organism described in th e foregoing
p a ra g ra p h s is th e rep resen tativ e of a new type of arenaceous Rhizo-
poda, an d th e g eneric term Syringam m ina t<y
sand) w ith th e triv ia l nam e, fragilissimap
designation. In th e absence of com plete specim ens its zoological
ch aracters can n o t be fu lly sta te d , b u t the follow ing w ill serve for its
identification.
Syringam m ina fragilissim a, nov. gen. e t sp.
T est free ; co n sisting of a rounded m ass of bran ch in g , inoscu
la tin g tu b es ra d ia tin g from a com m on centre, a n d arran g e d in more
or less d istin c t co ncentric tiers or layers, w hich are m arked by the
form atio n a t in terv als of a n etw o rk of la te ra l branches. W alls
arenaceous, composed of n ea rly uniform fine sand, w ith little o r no
inorganic cem ent. A p e rtu res term inal, situ ated a t th e peripheral
ends of th e tubes, closed in w ith loosely ag g reg ated sand-grains.
Colour d a rk grey w hen w et, d ry in g to a m uch lig h te r tin t. D iam eter
ab o u t lijg- inch. ■ 'l l
T he precise h a b ita t of th e specim ens is given in th e follow ing note
fro m th e log of th e “ T rito n : ”
“ S ta tio n 11. A u g u st 28th, 1882,— lat. 59° 39' 3 0 '' FT., long.
7° 13' W . ; d ep th 555 fa th o m s; ooze. S urface tem perature, 57°‘2 ;
bottom tem p eratu re 4 5 °‘5 F a h r.”
T he position is to th e w est of th e W yville Thom son R idge, and close
to th e “ H o lten ia G ro und ” of th e “ P orcupine ” E xpedition. M r.
M u rray inform s me by le tte r th a t “ th e dredge em ployed on th is occa
sion w as of very m uch lig h te r description th a n those generally used in
deep-sed, dredging. I t cam e u p w ith a large q u an tity of ooze in the
bag, th e top layers of w hich w ere of pale brow n colour, soft
and w atery, th e deeper layers som ew hat com pact and of slaty hue.
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Qne of th e specimens rolled ou t of th e oozy layer of the deposit
when the dredge was em ptied on th e deck and broke, unfortunately*
in the hands of th e sailor who lifted it ; th e o ther was found on
passing the m ud th ro u g h the sieves, an d w hen first observed
appeared quite spherical.” y '•' * ■, ■ , ' V,l. ' '
I learn th a t a som ewhat sim ilar specim en was dredged a t a d ep th
of 1000 fathom s off th e Azores, d u rin g the “ C h allen g er” cruise,
but th a t it w ent to pieces in th e sieve *
A few w ords m u st be added respecting th e zoological position
and affinities of the new genus. O n th e whole, finds
its nearest allies, so far as living F oram inifera are concerned, in th e
deep-sea varieties of AstrorUza. C om paring it w ith Astrorhiza
arenaria,\ its investing walls are found to be constructed in precisely
the same way of loosely ag g reg ated sand, and even in th e size of th e
grains there is g re a t sim ilarity, th o u g h th is m ay be in a m easure
accidental. B u t w hereas th e te st of AstrorUza consists (ty p ically )
of a few tubes, generally unbranched, ra d iatin g on one plane from
a central cavity o r cham ber, th a t of is form ed of
a m ultitude of tubes w hich ra d ia te nearly equally in all directions,
and have num erous branches w hich inosculate freely.
as in Syringam m ina, th e peripheral ends of th e tubes serve as th e
general ap ertu re ; and in both th e orifices are m asked by aggregations
of loose sand, form ing ro unded and apparently closed term inations.
The genus Parkeria has already been referred to in describing th e
mode of increase by concentric layers, and b o th in size and general
contour th ere is considerable resem blance betw een Syringam m ina and
the fossil type. B u t th e sim ilarity of in tern a l stru ctu re, ap p aren t on
a com parison of some of th e draw ings now furnished, w ith th e
illustrations accom panying the original m em oir on Parkeria and
Loftusia,X is m uch m ore rem arkable and cannot be passed over w ith
out notice. O w ing to th e difference in th e m agnifying powers
employed, th e resem blance in th e draw ings is m ore strik in g th a n in
* It may be of service to those who have the opportunity of dredging, to note
that the sandy skeletons of organisms of this sort may be sufficiently strengthened
to bear handling by placing the specimens for a time in strong alcohol, and then
drying; afterwards, when thoroughly dry, saturating with a very dilute solution of
dammar in benzole, and draining on blotting-paper. The dammar solution should
be so weak that it does not leave a gloss. on the surface of the specimen when
finished.
■f- M. Sars, Carpenter, and Norman assign these deep-sea sandy forms to the
same genus as the shallow-water organism, Astrorhiza limicola, which has a chitinous
investment, coated with soft mud. I have not disturbed the arrangement, but my
impression is that they represent two distinct genera.
x “ Phil. Trans.,” 1869. Compare for example the structure of Syringammina as
shown in figs. 6, 7 of the present paper with that of ParJceria and Loftusia as
represented in some of the figures in Plates 73 and 79 of the memoir referred to.
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On Syringammina. [Apr. 19
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th e specim ens; nevertheless th e radiate tu b u la r stru ctu re and the
concentric arran g em en t of th e p a rts are features common to both
form s. On th e o th er hand, th e cancellated layers of which
form continuous sep ta of g re ater or less thickness, are only repre
sented in Syringam m ina by an open netw ork of anastom osing tubes.
M r. M u rray has called m y atten tio n to the close sim ilarity that
exists between th e te x tu re of th e n a tu ra l surface of th e recent form
an d th a t presented by some infiltrated specim ens of , after
being etched by m eans of acid.
M orphologically, however, Syringam m ina appears to find a closer
parallel in th e gro u p of fossil Rhizopods described by Professor D uncan
u n d er th e term Syringosp hceridce* Of these the te st in its typical
condition is a spheroidal body from 1 to 3 inches in diam eter, com
posed of ra d ia tin g tubes open a t th e ir peripheral ends. The tubes,
w hich are bran ch ed and inosculating, are arranged in conical bundles
ra d ia tin g from th e centre o f th e te st, and th e in terv en in g spaces are
filled w ith an accessory n etw o rk of b ran ch in g tubes w hich present a
v ariety of characters. T he walls are form ed of g ra n u la r carbonate of
lime. T he tubes of th is fossil type are of m uch sm aller diam eter
th a n those of Syringam
, and th e ir association in conical bundles is
a very distin ctiv e fe a tu re ; besides w hich, th e te st presents no evidence
of concentric stru ctu re .
T he m aterial a t p resen t available fo r in v estig atio n is insufficient
for any detailed com parison o f th e stru c tu re of these organism s, but
i t is am ply sufficient to show th a t th e re exist analogies of great
in te re st betw een th e groups they respectively ty p ify ; and it encourages
th e hope th a t liv in g specim ens m ay y et be found th a t shall satis
facto rily elu cid ate th e still doubtful points in th e organization of the
fossil types.
EXPLANATION OP THE PLATES.
' PliATE 2.
Pigs. 1, 2, 3. Syringammina fragilissim a, natural size.
1. Inferior aspect, representing an uneven fractured surface near the
middle of the specimen. The dotted line indicates approximately
the original outline.
2. Superior aspect of the specimen, representing chiefly an uneven frac
tured surface near the periphery. At b the exterior is coated with
a film of dried Barcode.
3. Lateral aspect. The portion marked a represents the uninjured
natural surface.
* “ Karakoram Stones or Syringosphseridse,” by Professor P. Martin Duncan,
M.B., P.R.S., &c., in the “ Report on the Scientific Results of the Second Yarkand
Mission,” 4to, 3 plates. Calcutta, 1879.
Also “ On the Genus Stoliczkaria, Duncan, and its Distinc
Carpenter,” “ Quart. Journ. Geol. Soc.,” 1882, vol. xxxviii, p. 69, PI. 2.
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ady on April 16, 2018
i. 2 .
, cu
Rollick, ad.naut del. et litk Mini-erru Bros imp
SY RING AM M IN A F R A G 1 L IS S IM A .
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A T . H o llie lt, a,d.na,t. d el.ei l i t h . M m terrx B r o s imp
SYRITSTGAMMIKA T R A Q IL IS S IM A
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1883.] Dr. J. Bell.on April
Chemistry
16, 2018 of Food.
Vi* 4 Section of the test, magnified 50 diameters.
*lg‘ The sectjon is of very unequal thickness, but serves to show the arena
ceous structure of the test, and the character of the constituent
grains many of which are minute Foraminifera.
* A portion of the surface at « (fig. 3) magnified 8 diameters; showing the
S' ’ closed terminations of the tubes ; and, at c, a portion of one of the con
centric reticulated “ partitions.”
P late 3.
fjo. 6. Radial section (fractured surface) magnified 8 diameters; reticulated
Fi»- 7 Tangential section (fractured surface) on the plane of one of the reticulated
“ partitions” (d.d.),magnified 8 diameters.
Yis 8. Inferior aspect; a portion magnified 8 diameters, showing the smaller size
and contorted form of the tubes near the centre of the test.
April 26, 1883.
T H E T R E A S U R E R , V .P., in the Chair.
The Presents received, were laid on the table and thanks ordered for
them.
The following Papers were re a d :—
I. “ Contributions to tlie Chemistry of Food. B y J ames B ell .
Ph.D., F.C.S. Communicated by Professor F rankland ,
F.R.S. Received April 4, 1883.
(A bstract.)
This paper contains the results of researches on butter, cheese,
milk, the cereal foods, bread and lentil flour.
The author some tim e ago, as the result of a series of experim ents,
indicated th a t it was probable th e soluble and insoluble fatty acids in
butter fat did not exist as simple glycerides, b u t in the complex form
of compound ethers—palm itic and oleic acids being combined in th e
same molecule w ith butyric acid. The results of a fu rth er investigation
into the character of butter fat are given, which tend to confirm this
theory of its constitution. B utter fa t is proved to vary in composi
tion far beyond the lim its previously supposed, and a table of repre
sentative samples is given, showing the ordinary variations which
occur. Ordinary fats are contrasted w ith b u tter fat, and it is sug-
VOL. xxxv. M
