HOLOTHURIOIDE A 37 1 



[Family Deimatid^] 



Body oval or elongate. Skin usually thin, parchment -like or 

 brittle. Mouth terminal or ventral, tentacles (14) 15-20. Papillae 

 both along the dorsal radii and along the sides of the body ; they 

 are more or less stiff, their calcareous bodies being longitudinally 

 directed. Tube-feet usually only in the ventrodateral ambulacra 

 in a single or double series. Calcareous deposits mainly cruciform 

 bodies or large fenestrated plates ; no wheels. Calcareous ring 

 formed by a fragile, imperfect net -work, not separated into 

 distinct radial and interradial pieces. Gonads simple tubes. 

 Mesentery a continuous membrane, but lacking on the second 

 intestinal loop. 



Two genera represented in the N.E. Atlantic. 



Key to the N.E. Atlantic genera of Dei?natidce. 



Tentacles small, retractile. Tube -feet of ventro -lateral ambulacra 

 in a single row ...... Deiina Theel 



Tentacles large, non-retractile. Tube-feet of ventro-lateral ambu- 

 lacra in a double row .... Oneirophanta Theel 



Deima Theel. 



Body oval, flattened ; mouth and anus ventral ; tentacles 

 (14) 15-20 (?), retractile. Tube-feet of ventro-lateral ambulacra 

 in a single row^ ; mid- ventral ambulacrum naked. A single row 

 of long, stiff papillae along each side of body and along each of the 

 dorsal ambulacra. Skin rather hard, the numerous rounded, 

 perforated plates forming almost a contiguous skeleton. 



Two species are known from the N.E. Atlantic, namely Deima 

 atlanticum Herouard, found at 39° 54' N., 20° 27' W., 4360 m. 

 (" Princesse Alice "), and 28° 54' N., 28° 14' W., 2800-3000 m. 

 ("Michael Sars "), and D. Blakei Theel, 43° 21' N., 10° 02' W., 

 2779 m. ("Princesse Alice"); elsewhere known from the West Indies, 

 1031-1098 m. (" Blake "). The species has also been recorded 

 from the Indian Ocean. The two species are thus distinguished : 

 Dorsal papillae 5 in each series^ {''Monaco'', xxi., p. 32, Pis. III.-V., 

 VIII. 26-28) ..... Z>. atlanticum Her. 

 Dorsal papillae 7-8 in each series (" Monaco ", Ixvi., p. 40, Pis. V. 7, 

 VI. 5) D. Blakei Theel 



Oneirophanta Theel. (Fig. 220.) 

 Body elongate ; mouth subterminal ; tentacles 20, large, 

 non-retractile. Tube-feet of ventro-lateral ambulacra in a double 



1 The pair of papillao on the front and posterior end being counted 

 among the dorsal papillae ; otherwise there are only 3 strictly dorsal 

 papillae in each series. 



