SEA LILIES, STARFISHES, ETC. — CLAKK. 43^ 



Colour (dry or in alcohol), brown, darkest on the bare 

 membrane of the disk, hghtest near the tips of the rays. 



This is a very remarkable Starfish, one of the most inter- 

 esting of the " Endeavour's " captures. It stands midway 

 between Nectria and Mediaster having the heavy, widely 

 separated abactinal plates of the former, but with these 

 plates not at all paxilhform. It is very different from typical 

 Mediaster in its general appearance abactinally, but actinally 

 is very similar to M. australiensis, save that the spines and 

 granules are much coarser. Supplementary internal abactinal 

 plates and rudimentary superambulacrals are present. The 

 ampullae are double. It might be made the type of a new 

 genus between Mediaster and Nectria but there are already so 

 many monotypic genera, one may well be avoided here, since 

 the diagnosis of Mediaster, as at present used, does not reqiiire 

 any essential modification to admit M. monacanthus. This 

 specific name is not altogether a happy choice, since many 

 specimens fail to show the single spinelet on the abactinal 

 plates, so conspicuous in the holotype ; but as the name has 

 been in vogue as a manuscript name for several years, and 

 specimens so labelled have been sent out from Sydney, it 

 seems best to retain it. It is a httle remarkable that this 

 conspicuous Starfish was taken at only one station. Ten 

 specimens. 



Loc. — Six miles east of Cape Hawke, New South Wales, 

 47-50 fathoms. 



Genus Tosia, Gray. 

 TosiA AURATA, Gray. 



Tosia aurata, Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc, 1847, p. 80. 



This is a fine series of this handsome pentagonasterid ; the 

 longest has R=73 ; in the smallest R=40 ; in the least 

 pentagonal r=.60R, and in the most pentagonal, r=.68R. 

 One of the specimens from Oyster Bay, Tasmania, with R = 63 

 mm. is perfectly tetramerous. Eighteen specimens. 



Locs. — Oyster Bay, Tasmania, 20-40 fathoms. 



Isle de Phoque, Oyster Bay, Tasmania, 27 fathoms. 



Mainwaring Cove, west coast of Tasmania, 50 fathoms. 



South-east coast of South Austraha. 



South coast of South Australia. 



