284 



BULLETIN 54, UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. 



Spence Bate" describes a species of Sphaeroma, Sphseroma vasta- 

 toi\ which was procured u from a piece of wood which had formed 

 part of a railway bridge over one of the back- 

 waters of the West Coast of the Indian Penin- 

 sula." The wood is described as being "honey- 

 combed with cylindrical holes, in many of which 

 the animal was rolled up like a ball." Notwith- 

 standing the close resemblance in habits and 

 appearance of this species, as described and 

 figured, to the present one, there are four 

 points of difference: 



I. The number and arrangement of the tubercles 

 in the two species. In S. vastator four tubercles 

 are described on each of the last three segments 

 of the thorax, and only two are figured on the 

 anterior portion of the pleon. In the species under discussion, how- 



FIG. 297. SPH^CBOMA DE- 

 STRUCTOR. ABDOMEN WITH 

 UROPODA AND LAST SEG- 

 MENT OF THORAX. 



FIG. 298. SPH^EROMA DESTRUCTOR, a, MAXILLIPED. x 27}. 6, MANDIBLE (PALP OMITTED), x 27}. 

 c, FIRST MAXILLA, x 27}. d, SECOND MAXILLA, x 27}. 



ever, there are four tubercles on the seventh segment of the thorax 



Ann. of Nat. Hist. (3), XVII, p. 28, pi. n, fig. 4. 



