[CEYLON PEARL OYSTER FISHERIES 1905-SUPPLEMENTABY REPORTS, No. XXVL] 



REPORT 



ON THE 



POLYZOA 



COLLECTED BY 



Professor HERDMAN, at CEYLON, in 1902. 



BY 

 LAURA ROSCOE THORNELY 



(ZOOLOGY DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF LIVERPOOL). 



[With ONE PLATE.] 



INTRODUCTORY. 



There are at least 116 species of Polyzoa iu this collection from Ceylon. Of these, 

 31 had already been found in Indian seas, 32 of the remainder have been reported 

 from Australian waters, 13 from the China Sea, and several from neighbouring but 

 outlying waters to the east, west, and south of the Indian Ocean. Of the rest, 

 some have not been, I believe, recorded from nearer than Florida (7 species), the 

 Queen Charlotte Islands (l), and the Mediterranean Sea (2). Several are cosmopolitan 

 in their distribution, and 19 are British species. Finally there are 16 species and 

 1 variety which I consider to be new, and which will be described below as : 



OnychoceUa cucullata, n. sp. Lepralia nitida, n. sp. 

 Sch'r.oporella arirularis, n. sp. ,, ceylonica, n. sp. 



viridis, n. sp. fissa, n. sp. 



collaris, n. sp. ,, triangula, n. sp. 



Rhyncopora incisor, a. sp. Smittia trispinosa, var. proteda, n. 



corrugata, n. sp. Phyladella spiralis, n. sp. 



Gemellipora prolrusa, n. sp. Retepora podlhim, n. sp. 



Lepralia mtdtidentata, a. sp. Cellepora compada, n. sp. 

 purpurea, a. sp. 



Polyzoa are well distributed round the coast of Ceylon. No less than 89 species 

 were found in the Gulf of Manaar, and 32 off Galle. Many of them were obtained in 



P 2 



