MENIPEA TERNATA. 41 



Localities. Aberdeen (Dr. Skene) : Scarborough^ deep 

 water^ on a valve of Cytherea and on Hydroids, not rare 

 (Bean) : Filey^ very abundant on zooj^hytes (T. H.) : 

 Stonehaven (Lady Keith Murray) : Northumberland, 

 from the deep-water boats, occasionally (Alder) : Culler- 

 coats, rare (Alder and Coppin) : St. Andrew^s, from the 

 deep water of the bay (Dr. M'lntosh) : Peterhead and 

 Wick (C. W. P.) : Shetland, on Tubularia indivisa, from 

 70 fathoms (A. M. N.). 



Geographical Distribution. South Labrador (Pack- 

 ard) : Hamilton's Inlet, Labrador, 15 fathoms (Wallich) : 

 Greenland (A. M. N., 'Valorous^ dredg.) : off Fredericks- 

 haab, 100 fathoms, not uncommon ; Reykjavik Harbour, 

 Iceland, 15-20 fathoms (Wallich) : ? Grand Manan, 20 

 fathoms, shelly bottom (Stimpson) : Gulf of St. Lawrence 

 (Dawson) : St. George^s Banks, 28-85 fathoms (Smith 

 and Harger) : Scandinavian coasts, chiefly on Algse in the 

 littoral region (Smitt) : Hammerfsest ; Lofoten (Sars) : 

 White Sea (Mereschkowsky) : West of Jiitland, 10 

 fathoms (Kirchenpauer) : Belgium (Van Beneden). 



This attractive species is essentially a climber. Its 

 favourite habitat is on the larger Hydroida [Hydrallmania, 

 Sertularia argentea, &c.), to which it binds itself by its 

 numerous claspers, twining amongst their branches and 

 festooning them with its delicate pearly tufts. The tubu- 

 lar fibres, which on the lower portions of the shoot are 

 simply adherent, are modified on the higher branches for 

 the discharge of a different function. They are thickened 

 and curled at the extremity, and converted into tendrils, 

 which bear a close resemblance to the similar appendages 

 on Diphasia fallax and other Hydroids. These claspers 

 are distributed in considerable numbers over the branches. 



They originate at the base of a swelling on the side of 

 the zocEcium, just above the lateral avicularium, which is 



