27 



Streptophiuræ Bell. 



Ophioscolex glacialis Miill. & Tr. 



1842. Ophioscolex glacialis. Miill. Å- Tr., Syst. der Aster., 



pag. 109. 

 1864. Ljungman, Ofversigt Kongl. 



Vetensk. Akadm. Forhandl.» 



pag. 366. 

 1883. Lyman, Bull. Mus. Coinp. 



Zool., vol. X, No. 6, pag. 268. 

 1892. Jeffrey Bell. Catalogue of 



British Echinoderms, pag. 134. 



Det største Exemplar, som hjembragtes fra Ex- 

 peditionen, havde en Skivediamater af 38""", Armenes 

 Længde var 117'"'" ; et andet Exemplar fra samme Lokalitet 

 (Station No. 362) maalte : Skive 35""", Armene 89""". 

 De ved den norske Kyst levende Individer er som Regel 

 ligesom de bohuslanske betydeligt mindre og har en tyndere 

 Hud end de arktiske; dette er især fremtrædende hos de 

 Exemplarer. som er tagne i vore Fjorde x ). De sidste 

 synes saaledes at ligne meget de af ,.Blake" ved Dominic 

 og Barbados fundne Exemplarer (cfr. Lyman). Farven 

 paa de større Exemplarer er mørkerød, dog varierer den 

 noget, saaledes var et Exemplar fra Station 226 purpur- 

 rødt med gule Armpigge, gulhvid Bugside og røde Fødder. 

 I Spiritus er Farven lys gulgraa. 



Ophioscolex glacialis kan ikke, som af Hoyle, betragtes 

 som en „well-marked cold water species-'; den forekommer 

 tvertom næsten lige hyppig i den varme som i den kolde 

 Area. Halvparten af Nordhavsexpeditionens Stationer ligger 

 nemlig indenfor den varme Area, samtlige skandinaviske 

 Lokaliteter søndenfor Lofoten tilhører ligeledes denne Zone, 

 det samme er Tilfælde med 2 af Stationerne i Færø- 

 kanalen (,.Forcupine" 1869, Stat, 78 & 82). 2 ) Adskillige 

 af de amerikanske Lokaliteter ligger ogsaa indenfor den 

 varme Area. Det maa dog bemærkes, at de største og 

 kraftigste Individer er tagne i den kolde Area. 



Station No. 



Findested. 



10 8 mindre Exemplarer. 



48 1 meget stort Exemplar. 



79 2 Exemplarer. 



101 1 Exemplar. 



') Arten kan dog undertiden ogsaa her i vore trange indelukkede 

 Fjordbassiner naa omtrent samme Størrelse som den spits- 

 bergske Form, saaledes fandt Professor M. Sårs paa 100—120 

 Favnes Dyb ved Drøbak nogle Exemplarer, som maalte ca. 

 150""", 57a". (Om arktiske Dyreformer i Christianiafjorden, 

 Christ. Vidensk. Selsk. Forhandl. 1805, pag. 200). 



2 ) Hoyle, Report on the Ophiuroidea of the Færo Channel, 

 pag. 712. 



Streptophiuræ Bell. 



Ophioscolex glacialis Miill. & Tr. 



1842. Ophioscolex glacialis, Miill. & Tr.. Syst. der Aster.. 



pag. 109. 

 1864. Ljungman, Ofversigt Kongl. 



Vetensk. Akadm. Forhandl.. 



pag. 366. 

 1883. Lyman, Bull. Mus. Comp. 



Zool., vol. X, No. 6, pag. 268. 

 1892. Jeffrey Bell. Catalogue of 



British Echinoderms, pag. 134. 



Tlie largest specimen brought home by the expedition 

 had a disc-diameter of 38'"™; the length of the arms was 

 117 mm \ another specimen from the same locality (Station 

 No. 362) measured: the disc 35""", the arms 89""". The live 

 specimens obtained from the Norwegian coast are, as a rule, 

 like those from Bohuslen, considerably smaller and have 

 a thinner integument than the arctic; that is especially 

 prominent in the specimens tåken in the Norwegian fiords x ). 

 The last-named seem, therefore, to much resemble the 

 specimens obtained by "Blake" at Dominico and Barbadoes 

 (cmp. Lyman). The colour of the larger specimens is 

 dark-red, but it varies somewhat, for instance one specimen 

 from station 226 was purple-red with yellow brachial spikes, 

 whitv-yellow ventral surface and red feet. In alcohol the 

 colour is light yellowish grey. 



Ophioscolex glacialis cannot, as has been done by 

 Hoyle, be considered as a "well-marked cold water species"; 

 on the contrary it appears almost quite as frequently in 

 the warm as in the cold area. Half of the stations of 

 the North Atlantic Expedition are, namely, situated within 

 the warm area; all the Scandinavian localities south of 

 Lofoten also pertain to that zone. The same is the case 

 with 2 of the stations in the Færo channel ("Porcupine", 

 1869, Stat. No. 78 & 82). 2 ) Several of the American 

 localities also lie within the warm area. It must, however. 

 be noted that the largest and most vigorous individuals 

 are obtained in the cold area. 



Localities. 



Station No. 10 8 small specimens. 



„ 48 1 very large specimen. 



„ 79 2 specimens. 



— ,. 101 1 specimen. 



') The species may, however, occasionally even in the narrow, 

 shut-in. Norwegian fiord-basins, attain nearly the same size as 

 the form from Spitzbergen ; Professor M. Sårs found, for 

 instance, a few specimens at Drcibak in 100 — 120 faths. depth 

 which measured about 150""", 5'/ 8 ". (Om arktiske Dyreformer 

 i Christianiafjorden, Christ. Vidensk. Selsk. Forhandl. 1865, 

 pag. 200). 



-) Hoyle, Report on the Ophiuroidea of the Færo Channel, 

 pag. 712. 



4* 



