222 Annals of the South African Museum. 



by Britten (1910, Schultze's Zool. Anthrop. Erg. Forsch. Sudafrika, 

 vol. IV, pt. I, pp. 239-243) but the other echinoderms served for a 

 very important paper by Doderlein, in the same series of reports 

 (1910, pp. '245-258, pis. IV, \ ). He gives lists of the sea-stars, brittle- 

 stars and sea-urchins recorded from South Africa up to 1910 and 

 including his own new species of which there were three. More 

 detailed reference to these lists will be found beyond (pp. 237, 310 

 and 300). 



In 1897, the Gape Department of Agriculture began an investiga- 

 tion into the marine resources of the colony and accumulated a large 

 amount of very valuable material, a portion of which was finally 

 sent to the British Museum for identification. Bell's reports on the 

 echinoderms appeared during 1904 and 1905 and were a great dis- 

 appointment to students of the group, they are so brief and summary. 

 Many species whose occurrence at the Cape warranted an interesting 

 discussion are listed with scarcely any comments and even the new 

 species are described very briefly and inadequately. A. H. Clark 

 (1911, Proc. U.S. Nat. Mus., vol. 40, p. 5) has already commented 

 on this unfortunate state of all'airs so far as the crinoids are concerned, 

 but the reports on the sea-stars, brittle-stars and sea-urchins are on 

 the same plane. No report, on the holothurians was published. 



Early in 191(3, Dr. Peringuey sent to me the collection of Echino- 

 derms which had accumulated at the South African Museum, sub- 

 sequent to Bell's reports. With this collection as a basis 1 have been 

 able to prepare the present report on the Echinoderms of South 

 Africa. 1 have included not only all the species examined by me 

 but all species recorded by previous writers, unless the validity of 

 the record was so dubious as to warrant its rejection. The collections 

 sent me have been largely made by the Cape Government vessel, the 

 Pieter jaure, and include a considerable number of deep-water species, 

 some hauls of the dredge or trawl having been made at depths of 

 900 1000 fms. These deep-water hauls are of very great interest. 

 Excepting the holothurians the material is in excellent condition. 

 Much of that taken along shore, particularly Mr. K. JH. Barnard's 

 collections, has very interesting and valuable data on the labels, 

 with reference to habitat and colour in life. 



The area included in this report extends from Mozambique on the 

 east coast around to Mossamedes on the west, and outward to the 

 thousand-fathom line. Of course, the collections hitherto made only 

 represent isolated and wmeiy separated spots in this vast area. 

 Something like four thousand miles of coastline is included but 

 excepting between Cape Town and Durban, there are not half a dozen 



