ON THE 



ECHINODERMA 



FOUND OFF TIIK COAST OF SOL'TII AFRICA 



PART I. ECHINOIDEA. 



BY 



Professor F. lEFFREY BELL. M.A. 



■ Dr. Gilclinst has fi-uin lime to time submitted to me Ins coL 

 lections of Actinogonidiate Echinoderms ; these are now quite 

 numerous, and I cannot hope to have a report on them all ready- 

 in the present year. 



As there is no confusion to be feared from reporting 

 separately on the several classes, I purpose to publish first the 

 obser\'ations which I have made on the Echinoidea. 



The collection is not of interest as containing many new 

 forms, but rather as widening (or confirming the widening found 

 by the " Challenger ") of the area of distribution of known forms. 

 Here it is to be observed that the care of a really extensive col- 

 lection of Echinoderms has imbued me with a strong, perhaps 

 too strong, conviction that Echinoderms are very variable 

 animals ; 1 am not, in other words, prone to raise what may be 

 individual, and are often slight, peculiarities into specific charac- 

 ters ; still less do I think that any single character should he 

 made the basis of a classification, or that a distance of even 

 hundreds of miles of sea-bottom is sufficient evidence of specific 

 distinctness. I own that T recognise that T do not belong to the 

 most modern school of Echinologists, Init I am not so old that 

 1 do not hope to see the pendulum incline again to my point of 

 view. At least, I am still in good company. 



The discovery of Pdlacolaiiipas m a living state is of great 

 interest. 



