Boone, Coeleyiterata, Cruises of "Ara" and "Alva" 67 



Distribution: The holotype is the only record existing for 

 this species. 



Colour: The living colony is described in Mr. Vanderbilt's 

 field notes as having "the stem whitish tan, the upper portions 

 bright orange with white polyps." The abundance of pearly white 

 encrusting spicules gives the distal portions of the colony a frosted 

 appearance. 



Technical description : This colony, which reminds one of 

 an intricate East Indian ivory carving of a miniature banyan 

 forest, is 13 centimeters long horizontal diameter and 12 centi- 

 meters the greatest vertical diameter ; umbellate, with the lower 

 sub-branches somewhat foliaceous, with the central stem giving 

 rise to four or five primary branches, which repeatedly subdivide, 

 supporting the numerous characteristically corymbic groups of 

 polyps which are usually in clusters of six to twelve. The polyp 

 stalks are moderately long, 1.2 to 1.5 millimeters long; the sup- 

 porting bundle of spicules consists of two, somewhat alternating, 

 placed obliquely transverse. The anthocodial armature of spicules 

 is quite regular, in four slightly alternating pairs, with two alter- 

 nating obliquely transverse spicules below the chevron series. In 

 the present species, the arrangement more nearly approaches the 

 *'Grade IV" arrangement of Thomson, Sir J. A., and Dean, Miss 

 L. M. I., Siboga-Expeditie Alcyonacea, than any of the other 

 groups. There are no pseudo-crown spicules present in D. rosa- 

 mondae. 



The spicules of the upper cortex are large, 4 to 7 millimeters 

 long, elongated needle-like spindles, arranged in the oblique trans- 

 verse pattern shown in plate 20. The surface of these spicules is 

 covered with numerous, medium size, coarse, low, verrucose asper- 

 ities (fig. c, pi. 20). These spicules of the upper cortex appear 

 glassy with embedded colour streaks of pure orange and sometimes 

 of reddish orange. 



