THE GORGONACEA OF THE SIBOGA EXPEDITION 



VI. THE GORGONELLID.E 



BY 



C. C. NUTTING, 



Professor of Zoology, State University of Iowa. 



W i t h ii p 1 a t e s. 



(Aidecl by a giant from the elizabeth thompson science fund.) 



Family Gorgonellid/E Studer. 



Gorgonellacece Valenciennes. Comptes rendus, XLI, 1855, p. 14. 



Gorgonellacées Milne Edwards et Haime. Histoire naturelle des Coralliaires, II, 1857, p. 1S2. 



EllisellidcE -\- Calligorgiidc£ (pars) Gray. Catalogue of Lithophytes in the British Museum, 1S70, 



PP- 24, 34. 

 Gorgonellacece Kölliker. Icones Histiologicae, II, 1S65, p. 139. 

 Gorgonellidcg Studer. Anthozoa Alcyonaria, welche wahrend der Reise S. M. S. Gazelle um 



-die Erde gesammelt wurden, 1878, p. 656. 

 Gorgonellidce Studer. Versuch eines Systemes der Alcyonaria, 1887, p. 68. 

 Gorgonellidm Wright and Studer. Challenger Reports, the Alcyonaria, 1889, p. 153. 

 Gorgpnellidce Studer. Alcyonarien aus der Sammlung des Naturhistorischen Museums in Lübeck, 



1894, p. 1 16. 

 Gorgonellince Délage et Hérouard. Traite de Zoölogie Concrete, II, 2, 1901, p. 428. 

 Gorgonellidcs Nutting. Hawaiian Alcyonaria, 1908, p. 597. 

 Gorgonellidce Thomson and Simpson. Alcyonaria of the Indian Ocean, part II, 1909, p. 265. 



This family seems to be a fairly natural one, and may be defined as follows : 



Gorgonacea with an amorphous calcareous axis cylinder which is not jointed and the 



core of which is solidly calcareous and often surrounded by concentric lamellae of alternating 



calcareous and horny layers. The axis is never composed of fused spicules. The branches often 



show a median bare space and furrow, especially wlien flattened. The polyps are retractile, 



SIBOGA-EXrEDITIE XIII /' 3 . ' 



.,4.798 



