REPORT ON THE ALCYONARTA. 107 



forked, often bent, and showing a tendency in some cases to form " Stachelplatten." 

 They are arranged irregularly on the coenenchyma and on the polyp calyces, over- 

 lapping one another, and forming several layers. The colleret is composed of delicate 

 needles arranged in the form of a ring, one row of which always forms the basal 

 portion of the row of tentacles. In the tentacles the bent spiny spicules are always 

 placed en chevron as in Paramuricea, so that two always converge together upwards. 

 Spicules can be traced to the very apices of the tentacles. 



The axis is always soft, horny and flexible, of a fibrous texture, with the ends of 

 the branches usually drooping. 



Of this genus, which is very nearly related to Paramuricea, three species are to be 

 found in the Challenger collection, all of which were dredged in the South Atlantic. 



1. aematissa verrilli, n. sp. (PI. XXII. fig. 10; PI. XXVI. fig. 6). 



The stem is upright, much branched in one plane ; 360 mm. high and 300 mm. 

 broad. The main stem arises from a flat, expanded, horny base ; but it is soon diverted 

 from its perpendicular course by the shooting out of a large lateral branch. The main axis 

 next gives ofi" on either side, at irregular intervals, large and small branches, which in 

 their turn give ofi" branches in a similar manner, and so oh till branches of the fourth 

 order are given off". The branches at first arise at almost right angles from the stem, 

 bend soon in an upward direction, and then continue their course parallel with the stem ; 

 the small ones alone keep their original direction. The terminal portions of the 

 branches and twigs are always knob-like. The diameter of the base of the stem is 

 8 mm., that of the larger branches from 4 to 5 mm. The length of the larger branches 

 is 270 mm., of the unbranched terminal portions from 50 to 90 mm. The terminal 

 twigs measure at their bases 1*5 mm., increasing to a thickness of from 4-5 to 5 mm. 

 The coenenchyma is thick and opaque. 



The polyps are arranged all through in spirals, with intervals of 2 mm., they are 

 erect, 2 mm. high, with a basal diameter of 2*5 mm. The basal portions of the 

 tentacles form an operculum about 2 mm. in height. The arrangement of the spicules 

 in the coenenchyma and of the polyps is the same, and on this account the basal 

 portion of the polyps is not very well defined. 



The spicules of the coenenchyma and of the polj^ps are thick and armed with spines, 

 these latter are often branched, rarely with large, branched prominences. One extremity 

 is usually knob-shaped, with a roughened surface. These measure in mm. 0'14-0'16 ; 

 0-50-0-16 ; 0-4-0-08 ; 0-46-0-1 ; 0-32-0-1. The spicules of the colleret are curved 

 spiny spindles of 0-41 mm. in length and 0*04 mm. in breadth. Those of the 

 tentacles are like shaped, of 0-33 mm. in length by 0'03 mm. in diameter. 



The axis is soft, fiexible, fibrous, horny ; of a yellowish-brown colour. The 



