"Nephiys margaritdcea. 341 



Art. V. Illustrations in British Zoology. By George Johnston, 

 M.D., Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. 



37. Ne'phtys Cuvier. 



Char. — Body vermiform, flatfish, with numerous seg- 

 ments. Head distinct, truncate anteriorly, with four minute 

 antennae; one at each outer and anterior angle, and a pair 

 beneath. Eyes none. Palpi none. Tentacular cirri none. 

 Proboscis double; the outer sheath garnished, near the ex- 

 tremity, with several series of papillary tentacula : the inner 

 closed with tentaculiferous lips, and armed within with a pair 

 of small jaws. Feet all alike, large ; of two widely separate 

 branches, each furnished with a foliaceous process placed 

 perpendicularly, setigerous tubercles, a short conical cirrus, 

 and the upper with a curved branchial filament underneath, 

 Tail with a single style. 



1. N. margaritacea. Body of a uniform pearly lustre ; superior 

 cirrus wanting; lamellae of the feet ovato-cordate. (Jig. 33.) 

 Hab. In sand near low-water mark ; plentiful in some 

 parts of Berwick Bay. 



Description. — Body from 6 in. to 10 in. long, tapered 

 slightly towards the anterior, and more so towards the poste- 

 rior, extremity; flatfish, three tenths of an inch in breadth; 

 of a beautiful pearly lustre and colour all over, smooth, with^ 

 out spot or stains. The feet yellowish ; ventral surface flat, 

 perlaceous, with a purplish furrow down the centre. Head 

 distinct, square, truncate in front ; where there is a very short 

 apparently unjointed antenna on each outer angle, and a simi- 

 lar pair beneath. Mouth inferior, evolving a very large pro- 

 boscis, sometimes of a pink colour, greyish, in others rough, 

 with miliary granules, and its outer end crested with numerous 

 short papillary tentacula, arranged in longitudinal series : it 

 contains a cartilaginous tube formed of eight equal pieces, 

 which is closed with two semicircular lips or valves continuous 

 with the outer sheath, and fringed with a double series of 

 longish tentacula; and, within this inner proboscis, there is a 

 pair of small pointed horny brown jaws. Segments narrow, 

 convex dorsally ; the lines of separation indistinct in the cen- 

 tre, but strongly marked along the sides ; about 140 in number 

 (in two specimens, of average size, 143 were counted), the 

 anterior streaked with pale lines across the base of the feet. 

 Feet greatly developed, increasing gradually in size to about 

 the middle of the body; whence they again decrease towards 

 the tail, very deeply divided into two branches : the dorsal 

 branch rather less than the ventral, furnished with a perpen- 

 dicular lamellated somewhat ovate process, with a small 



A a 3 



