Ophiiira bracteata. 465 



Art. IV. Illustrations in British Zoology. By George John- 

 ston, M.D., Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edin- 

 burgh. 



The figures of star-fish which have been given in our books 

 of natural history in common use, will be found, by the out- 

 of-door naturalist, insufficient for the humble purpose of 

 merely identifying the species ; and an attempt, therefore, to 

 supply this deficiency may prove not unacceptable to some 

 readers of this Magazine, although the subjects of the illustra- 

 tions do not claim the interest of novelty. I shall begin the 

 series by figures of two species of Ophiura, one of them very 

 common and well known, the other of less frequent occur- 

 rence, and which has hitherto been overlooked or confounded 

 with its ally. 



41. Ophiu v ra bractea n ta. {Jig. 41.) 



Spec. Char. — Body dorsally imbricated with smooth un- 

 equal scales ; a large obovate scale above the base of the rays, 

 and a pectinated one on each side. 



Synonyma. — Ophiura bracteata Ftevu, Brit. Anim., 488. O. laeer- 

 tosa Stark, Elem., ii. 403. pi. 8. fig. 2. O. texturata Lam., Anim. s. Vert., 

 ii. 542. O. aurora Risso, l'Europ. Merid., v. 273. pi. 6. fig. 29. ^sterias 

 Ophiura Lin.; Svst., 1100.; Midi., Zool. Dan., Prod. 235. no. 2840.; Fabr., 

 Faun. Groenl., 371.; Barb., Gen. Verm., 87. pi. 10. fig. 9. pess.; Turt., Br. 

 Faun., 140. ; Stew., Elem., i. 401. A. lacertosa Penn., Brit. Zool., iv. 130. 

 pi. 34. fig. 1. 



Var. 1. Body square; rays 4; mouth quadripartite; ten- 

 tacula 8. 



Hab. — Common on the British coast, under stones near 

 low-water mark, and also in deep water. 



Description. — Body circular or pentagonal, flat, the back 

 covered with unequal imbricate roundish and angular smooth 

 scales, two of which, larger than the others, and of an obovate 

 shape, are placed above the base or insertion of the rays and 

 towards the sides, where there is a white semicircular one with 

 a regularly pectinated edge. The large scales above the rays 

 are separated by a series of smaller ones. Rays 5, rounded 

 dorsally, gradually tapered to a point, covered with transverse 

 imbricate scales, those of the middle row, on the ventral sur- 

 face, oval and rounded on the distal edge ; the lateral spines 

 very short, blunt, smooth, placed in a line on each side of 

 every articulation ; in each series at the base of the ray there 

 are six short ventral and two longer dorsal spines, but proceed- 

 ing toward the apex, the number of the short ones gradually 

 decreases until there is one only, and then we find three equal 

 long spines, and a single short one. Ventral surface scaly ; 



Vol. VIII. — No. 52. kk 



