DXTBLIN NATUBAL HI8T0BT 80CI£TT. 141 



Pbofessor KiNAHAir, M. D., F. L. S., read a Paper — 



ON THE DISTRIBUTION OF THE IRISH ECHINODERMATA. 



On several former occasions I have had the honour of laying before your 

 meetings, papers on the Irish distribution of several groups of our 

 animals. My remarks to-night are intended to be introductory to a 

 series of those on our Echinodermata ; and although, from the compa- 

 ratively small degree of attention these animals have hitherto excited, 

 they must be necessarily imperfect, yet, as a contribution to a subject 

 of daily growing importance, viz., a correct knowledge of the actual 

 number of species of restricted geographical distribution, they will be, 

 I trust, considered worthy of taking up some little space in our Proceed- 

 ings. 



In these, as in the other lists I have already had the honour to sub- 

 mit, I have taken, as the basis of my observations, notes made by 

 myself in my researches since the year 1850, at the same time availing 

 myself of the labours of others in those districts which I have had but 

 imperfect opportunities of examining, except in the cases of critical 

 species, and then only have I quoted those authors whose identification 

 may be depended on as to accuracy. 



I feel the more called on to bring these lists before this, rather than 

 any of our Dublin Societies, because your meetings have been already 

 selected by others, on many occasions, as the medium for the publica- 

 tion of important contributions to the history of the group ; although it 

 must be deeply regretted that the most valuable of these communications 

 are at present, and many only imperfectly, to be found in the columns 

 of *' Saunders' News-Letter, " in the reports of the respective meetings 

 at which they were read. The intended publication, during the present 

 year, of the back Proceedings, in a compact form, will, however, I hope, 

 in a great measure remedy this evil, and, therefore, ftirther allusion to 

 the topic here is needless. 



As this communication is only intended to be introductory to future 

 and detailed papers on the subject, I shall to-night confine myself to a 

 few generalities on the subject of the distribution, reserving even many 

 of these till the concluding paper ; and to a general summary of the 

 work done in Ireland, and unrecorded in our present standard of infor- 

 mation on the subject, Forbes' "British Star-fishes," adopting the ge- 

 neral arrangement of that work, and, for the present, also its nomen- 

 clature. 



Before entering fully on these, it is but right to notice the more 

 important of the papers communicated to this Society relative to the 

 Echinoderms subsequent to 1841, the year of imprint of the "British 

 Star-fishes." 



These are — the many communications of that indefatigable and labo- 

 rious observer, Charles Farran, M. D. Of these, the most notable are as 

 foUows : — On Thy one Andrewsii, a new Holothuriad : discovered by him 

 on the coast of Waterford in January, 1851 (ride " Saunders* News-letter," 

 February 15, 1852). On JSchiurus vulgaris^ April 15, 1857, from Clonea, 

 county of Waterford, and several valuable notes on other occasions. 



