274 THE ENTOMOSTRACA OF EPPING FOREST.
are from pools and very small ponds with only one exception—
namely, that a single ephippial female out of numerous individuals
was taken in Connaught Water in April, 1894. The records
for the later period differ from those for Simocephalus vetulus in
that they are from rather larger pieces of water e.g. the Eagle
Pond and the Higham Park lake. From the "Perch" pond again
no males or ephippial females have ever been seen. The fore-
going facts seem to me to show that the influence of environment
upon the production of males and ephippial females, at least in
certain cases, may be more direct than is admitted by Weismann
in his excellent work on this subject (107).
There now only remains one other point in this connection
to which reference need be made. If we assume, as appears
quite allowable, that the number of records in any month gives
a rough measure of the intensity of the production of the
sexually perfect individuals, then the records from Epping
Forest show that, of the species affected in the spring, some
attain their maximum in April, e.g. Chydorus Sphaericus, whilst
others reach it in May, e.g. Simocephalus vetulus, Daphnia magna,
and D. obtusa, and of the species affected in the autumn, some
have their maximum in September, e.g. Diaphanosoma brand-
tianum (?) and Ceriodaphnia megalops, others in October, e.g.
Ceriodaphnia reticulata, C. quadrangula, Simocephalus vetulus, Daphnia
longispina, and D. cucullata ?, and yet others in November, e.g. Sida
crystallina (?), Alona costata, Peracantha truncata, and Chydorus
sphaericus.
[To be continued.]
THE PROTECTION OF WILD BIRDS
IN ESSEX.
THE establishment of the "Essex Bird Society" was
recorded by Mr. C. B. Russell in his article on the Shore
Birds in the Essex Naturalist for 1896 (vol. IX., pp. 318-222),
and later the first Report of the Society was epitomised in the
same volume (vol, IX., pp. 255-256). The Report for 1897 has
now been issued, and the statements of the officers of the Society
given therein are again distinctly encouraging. On the coast in
some places, owing to high tides, the shore-birds had in 1897 a
poor nesting season, but within the sea-walls the breeding birds
experienced a good time. Precise localities are very wisely