This black leather notebook contains Lyell's notes on specific species and current relevant scholarship. On pp.140-142 is a copy of part of a letter from Darwin on species, dated 30 July, 1837. The index is located at p. 180, both covers are blank. The inside cover bears Lyell's address, "Mr C Lyell, 16 Hart Street, Bloomsbury Square".

The following table of contents is Lyell's own words, copied from Lyell's own "Index", found at the beginning and end of the notebook, transcribed from digital surrogates using the platform Transkribus. When known, Lyell's abbreviations and contractions have been expanded using brackets []. When writing is unclear, and transcription is not possible, this is denoted using [...]. Quotation marks are Lyell's own notation for ditto, as is the abbreviation "d'o". The inclusion of [sic] indicates the misspelling of a word is deliberate and taken from the notebook.

p. 96, Argnoaut in lat[itude] 34°
p. 98, Ampullaria [latitude 34°
p. 96, Astarte not found in South[ern] hemisphere
p. 44, Achatine fulica, migrat[ion]
p. 44, Bulimus montamus, [migration]
p. 88, Cypris in Dax univalves
p. 1, Cerithium elegans
p. 100, Concholepas not tropical
p. 100, Cardium Bourdagalensis
p. 100, Ceratodes genus
p. 102, Crassatella, tropical
p. 102, Cypricardia, extra-tropical
p. 28, Citherea citrina
p. 30, [Citherea] nitidula
p. 30,32, [Citherea] polita
p. 34, [Citherea] semisulcata
p. 36, Cuvieria
p. 36, Cleodora pyramidella
p. 89, Cyclostoma elegans
p. 110, Dentalium entalis
p. 112, [Dentalium] strangulatum
p. 88, Foraminifera, to collect,
p. 88,105, [Foraminifera] living and fossil
p. 102, [Foraminifera] Crag
p. 42,43,59,87,89,55, [Foraminifera] D'Orgbigny on,
p. 55, [Foraminifera] Dujardin on,
p. 36, Hyaloa
p. 54, Helix similaris in Brazil + I[sle] of Bourbon
p. 2,106, Lymnea palustris
p. 48,110, Lucina gibbosula
p. 106,108,113, [Lucina] divaricata
p. 98, Monoceros, extratropical
p. 106, Melanopsis
p. 112, Modiola discors
p. 110, Nucula margaritacea
p. 89, Olive from Patagonia
p. 102, Plicatula, not tropical
p. 110, Phorus
p. 4, Planorbis corneus
p. 6, Paludina unicolor
p. 114, Tillina solidula
p. 102, Trigonia, N[orth] Holland
p. 94, Anniv[ersary] Address to whom given in Paris
p. 57, Brongniart on fossil plants + progressive theory
p. 102, Crag foraminifera
p. 96, [Crag foraminifera] shells when cleaned the sedim[ent] to be kept
p. 4, Chambord fossils
p. 119,120,122, Chalk at Elboef
p. 18, Desnoyers, Touraine collection of shells
p. 42,43,45,59,87,89, D'Orbigny on Foraminifera
p. 98, [D'Orbigny] on Astarte
p. 98, [D'Orbigny] on Ainpullaria
p. 98, [D'Orbigny] on Touraine corals
p. 8,56,55, Dujardin, Touraine shells
p. 54, [Dujardin] Touraine foraminif[era]
p. 50, [Dujardin] works wanted by
p. 144, [Dujardin] contents of box sent to,
p. 59, Deshayes, remarks on his names of Foraminifera in P[rinciples] of G[eology]
p. 53, Keilhau on Kongsberg sect[ion]
p. 14,38,42,50,51,52,58,88, Paris Memoranda
p. 36, Rang, on Cuvieria + Cleodora
p. 45, [Rang] on Climatical variations in species
p. 45, [Rang] on Lucina divaricata
p. 45, [Rang] on Modicola lithophaga
p. 1, Red Sea + Medit[erranean] species common to,
p. 8,16,18,20,22,24,26,55,56, Touraine shells
p. 98, [Touraine] corals
p. 54,87, [Touraine] foraminifera
p. 1,2,6,32,34,106,110,111,112,113,114, Valenciennes, notes on shells
p. 95, [Valenciennes] Apticus wanted by,
p. 96, Teneriffe, living Crinoidea
p. 100, [Teneriffe] shells
London, Oct[ober] 1837
p. 124,126,127, Beck, Dr., books wanted by,
p. 127,128, Scott's Life, notes on,
p. 129, Rent + Taxes of House
p. 131, Silliman, Dr. Geol[ogical] Trans. wanted by
p. 131, [Silliman, Dr.] Mem[oranda] for,
p. 134, Geol[ogical] Trans. 1st ser. price of,
p. 134,135,138,148,154,159,162, Mem[oranda] for Mr. Lonsdale
p. 136, American Funds
p. 136, Electric Telegraph
p. 139, Beck, contents of letter to,
p. 133,145,148,152,153, Mem[oranda]
p. 140, Darwin, copy of part of a letter from,
p. 138,145,149,155,162, [Darwin] Mem[oranda] for,
p. 142, Principles time taken to sell each edit[ion]
p. 144, Dujardin, contents of box sent to,
p. 146, Clay slate, phonolite + basalt, memoir on,
p. 146, Ehrenberg on infusoria references to,
p. 146, Ape fossil in France
p. 161, [Ape fossil] in Calcutta
p. 147, Charlesworth on Crag
p. 149, Andite
p. 150, Sowerby's Min. Con.
p. 152, Tortoise, impressions of the hind feet of Galapagos
p. 152, Hooker's Brit[ish] Flora. No + am[ount] rec[eived] for different editions
p. 153, Ehrenberg on coral isl[ands] in Red Sea
p. 156, Pmice, compos[ition of,
p. 161, Ape, fossil, at Calcutta
p. 160, Agassiz, parts received from Mr. Horner
p. 160, Bronn's Lithoa, parts wanting
p. 163, Lindley, reference to his plates of recent conifero to illustrate Lepidodendra
p. 165, Elements, cost of illustrations for
Addresses [inside cover]
p. 163, Bowerbank
p. 89, Boissoneau
p. 36, Brongniart
p. 154, Craig
p. 36, D'Orbigny
p. 14, Dujardin
p. 14, Edouards, Milne,
p. 114, De Beaumont
p. 103, Eyries
p. 16, Engler + Co
p. 16, Lafitte + Co
p. 86, Laudais
p. 36, Rang
p. 106, Roissy
p. 162, Sowerby, Jun
p. 163, Williams
p. 163, Wellested