A MONOGRAPH OF THE EXISTING CRINOIDS 459 



Comanthina belli A. H. CLARK, Ainer. Journ. Sci., ser. 4, vol. 32 (old ser. vol. 182), 1911, p. 130 

 (significance of distinctive characters); Die Fauna Siidwest-Australiens, vol. 3, Lief. 13, 1911, 

 p. 437 (northwest Australia, 65 fathoms); p. 440 (Australian tropical species; occurs south to 

 Shark Bay and Torres Strait); p. 443 (range on east coast); p. 444 (range on west coast); 

 p. 455 (localities; characters; abnormal specimen); p. 456 (may or may not retain cirri); p. 465 

 (association with other species); Memoirs Australian Mus., vol. 4, pt. 15, 1911, p. 717 (known 

 to Carpenter from Australia) ; p. 721 (occurs south to Cape York) ; p. 723 (northwest Australia) ; 

 p. 724 (peculiar to north Australia); p. 733 (in key); p. 752 (annotated synonymy; characters; 

 summary of Australian records); Smiths. Miscell. Coll., vol. 60, No. 10, 1912, p. 6 (placed in 

 Comaster, near C. typica); Proc. U. S. Nat. Mus., vol. 43, 1912, p. 390 (Mermaid; description); 

 p. 391 (southwest Australia); Crinoids of the Indian Ocean, 1912, pp. 36, 39 (identity of 

 previous records); p. 91 (synonymy; summary of previous records; range); Die Fauna 

 Sudwest-Australiens, vol. 4, Lief. 6, 1913, p. 313 (rectification of generic reference in previous 

 memoir in this series). HARTMEYER, Mitt. zool. Mus. Berlin, vol. 8, Heft 2, 1916, p. 234 

 (southwest Australia; of the 2 specimens that from Shark Bay is in the Hamburg Mus., and 

 that from Port Hedland at Perth; Broome, No. 6137). 



Comantheria belli A. H. CLARK, Memoirs Australian Mus., vol. 4, pt. 15, 1911, p. 716 (reference to 

 Challenger specimen) ; p. 723 (Mermaid). 



Comaster typica A. H. CLARK, Die Fauna Sudwest-Australiens, vol. 3, Lief. 13, 1911, pp. 439, 444, 

 453 (Port Hedland; descriptions of young specimens); Smiths. Miscell. Coll., vol. 60, No. 10, 

 1912, p. 6 (preceding records determined as this species); Die Fauna Sudwest-Australiens, 

 vol. 4, Lief. 6, 1913, p. 308 (same). HARTMEYER, Mitt. zool. Mus. Berlin, vol. 8, Heft 2, 1916, 

 p. 234 (northwest Australia, No. 3433; southwest Australia, No. 5968). 



Comanthus schlegelii (part) H. L. CLARK, Carnegie Institution of Washington Publication 212, 

 1915, p. 101 (Maer, 18 fathoms); The Echinoderm Fauna of Torres Strait, 1921, p. 20 (same; 

 characters; color). 



Diagnostic features. The arms are 60-150 or more in number in fully developed 

 individuals. From all the other comasterids with a large number of arms this 

 species is easily distinguished by the conspicuous carinate processes on the lower 

 segments of the proximal and middle, and on the ungrooved arms also of the distal, 

 pinnules, combined with the occurrence of IIIBr series which on the outer side of 

 the rays are typically 2, but on the inner side 4 (3+4). 



From Comanthus plectrophorum, which possesses similar carinate processes on 

 the lower segments of the proximal and middle pinnules, Comanthina belli is dis- 

 tinguished by the greater number of arms (40-44 in plectrophorum} , the fewer cirri, 

 and the much smaller number of cirrus segments, not more than 20 as contrasted 

 with 29-37 in plectrophorum. 



Description. The centrodorsal is small, thin discoidal, roughly circular to 

 subpentagonal in outline, nearly or quite 5 mm. in diameter, with the cirrus sockets, 

 which are of very diverse sizes, arranged in a single marginal row. The dorsal pole 

 is concave and there is a shallow circular pit in the center. On the border of the 

 centrodorsal, as viewed dorsally, the portion of the edge adjacent to the larger cirrus 

 sockets is usually slightly swollen. 



The cirri are VII-VIII, 15-17, most commonly 16, about 17 mm. in length. 

 They are well developed, though rather small and weak considering the size of the 

 animal. They vary in any given individual from slender to rather stout. The 

 first segment is very short, and those following gradually increase in length to the 

 sixth or seventh, which are from slightly longer than broad in the stoutest cirri to 

 twice as long as broad in the most slender, and then slowly decrease so that the last 



