KEPOET OF NATIONAL MUSEUM, 1908. 47 



Doctor Dall completed a work on the mollusks and brachiopods 

 collected by the Bureau of Fisheries steamer Albatross in the eastern 

 Pacific Ocean under the supervision of Dr. Alexander Agassiz, and 

 also several papers on new mollusks obtained b}- the steamer Alba- 

 tross in 1906 and by correspondents on the Pacific coast. The paper 

 on Pyramidellidse by Doctor Dall and Doctor Bartsch, mentioned in 

 the report of last year, was printed and distributed. 



Marine invertebrates. — In the divison bearing this title, which com- 

 prises the several groups of invertebrate animals other than insects 

 and mollusks, an especially noteworthy event was the receipt from 

 Prof. A. E. Verrill, of Yale University, of the greater part of the col- 

 lection which has been in his custody for the past twenty years and 

 more. As explained in the last report, this material was mainly 

 derived from the marine exj^lorations of the U. S. P'ish Commission 

 on the New England coast between 1871 and 1887, and represented 

 all classes of marine invertebrates. Its study and description were 

 intrusted to Professor Verrill, who was to receive the first set of dupli- 

 cates for his services in lieu of a salarv. His investigations are still 

 incomplete, and the division of specimens effected during the year 

 was chiefly confined to those that had been named. The two assistant 

 curators of the divison were kept fully occupied with this work at 

 Xew Haven from April to Xovember, 1907, and the sorting and 

 arrangement of the specimens after their return extended through 

 several months. The transfer of this material to Washington has 

 enriched the collections in both this division and that of mollusks 

 to a remarkable extent. The records show that the number of speci- 

 mens received was about 73,000, comprised in 18,315 lots, while G54 

 species, of which 191 are mollusks, were added to those previously 

 received from the investigations of the Fish Commission. In this 

 latter number are included the types or cotypes of 355 species, of which 

 170 are mollusks. To simply label and record this vast collection 

 required the services of two expert cataloguers for seven and one-half 

 months. 



The Bureau of Fisheries transmitted large numbers of holothu- 

 rians, sea urchins, starfishes, crinoids, and corals from the Hawaiian 

 Islands, Alaska, California, and the northwestern Pacific Ocean, and 

 parasitic copepods and annelids from Japan. Among these were the 

 type specimens of many new species. A collection of Japanese cri- 

 noids, containing 131 specimens and the types of three new species, 

 was purchased of Mr. Alan Owston and deposited in the Museum by 

 the Honorable Frank Springer, of Las Vegas, Xew Mexico. Xinety- 

 five specimens of crinoids, representing 15 species, were obtained 

 from the Museum of Comparative Zoology in exchange, and 41 

 specimens of isopods, comprising 13 species, from East Africa and 



82065—09 4 



