210 THE BELGIAN PEDICELLINA. 



being undisturbed. The polype was almost quite 

 Ly aline, with the red core only near the tip. The 

 tentacles were still smaller than in the other, the 

 necks tapering evenly to the junction of the globose 

 heads, where they were very attenuated : the necks 

 were hyaline with a few distant rings. They stood 

 out at right angles, generally quite straight. The 

 only tube appeared to be a very few investing . folds 

 of gelatinous matter lying like a loose stocking about 

 its foot. Fig. 2 represents this variety. After a day or 

 two, both specimens shrank up into a shapeless club, 

 with all the tentacles agglutinated together and 

 around the body, in a mass. 



THE BELGIAN PEDICELLINA. 



One of the most common of the minute zoophytes 

 on this part of the coast is a species oiVedicellina. 

 Dr. Johnston informs me that it is the P. Belgica of 

 Van Beneden, a species which, when the " History of 

 the British Zoophytes " was published, had not been 

 recognised on our shores. I find it in great abund- 

 ance parasitical on the bases of the smaller sea- weeds 

 that grow at low water, and trailing over other objects 

 also. 



The base of the animal consists of a cylindrical 

 stem (Plate XII. fig. 1.) about -^^ inch in diameter, 

 which creeps in an irregular twining manner over the 

 support, branching at intervals irregularly, the branch- 

 es intertwining and crossing each other, and sending 

 forth, at more or less remote intervals, rounded buds, 

 which soon elevate themselves upon a foot-stalk. 



