646 REVISION OF THE AXINELLID^, Hi., 



small amount of hyaline spongin, which is scarcely perceptible 

 except when stained. The main fibres range from occasionally 

 less than 30 to rarely above 80// in stoutness: the connecting 

 fibres are much slenderer. Scattered megascleres uncemented by 

 spongin are few or absent. Trichites are plentiful through all 

 parts of the interior, occurring chiefly in dragmata, but also 

 scattered singly; in addition, the longest ones frequently form 

 short fibres running parallel to the main skeletal fibres. 



Mast ichor ions. — The flagellated chambers measure up to 45/x 

 in diameter, and are ari'anged so closely together that the choano- 

 some is generally reduced to a mere reticulum (PI. xxxviii., fig.9). 



Spicules. — (i.)The megascleres are variously (but seldom very 

 much) curved, frequently more or less fl:exuous, slender cylindrical 

 oxea, strongyla, and styli, differing from one another only in the 

 character of their extremities, and varying in stoutness from 

 about 2 to 9/x, and in length from rarely less than 100 up to 

 700/x; individuals less than 350,a long, however, are few. The 

 majority are more or less sharply (and usually irregularly) pointed 

 at both extremities (oxeote or tornote); but strongyla also are 

 common, while stylote forms are somewhat less frequent. 



(ii.) The trichites or rhaphides are mostly straight or nearly so, 

 less than 1/x in stoutness, and apparently of all lengths from 55 

 to 400/-1; individuals between 220 and 320/^ in length, however, 

 are exceedingly rare, and those between about 100 and 150/x are 

 scarce. 



Rhaphoxya(?) pallida Dendy. 

 (PL xxxiii., fig.6; PI. xhii., figs. 1,2.) 



1896. Rhaphisia pallida (purtim); Dendy(7), p. 257. 



Diagnosis. — Sponge massive, sessile, irregular. Surface rugose, 

 but subglabrous; irregularly beset with small papilliform eleva- 

 tions. Oscula absent. Dermal membrane closely adherent. 

 Dermal pores singly scattered. Skeleton lax and rather scanty; 

 consisting of slender, multispicular main fibres united in a very 

 iri-egular fashion by a plexus of paucispicular connecting fibres. 

 Spiculation almost identically similar to that of H. tt/pica. 



loc.^Fovt Phillip. 



