BY E. F. HALLMANN. 291 



Familia SPIRASTRELLID^. 



Of tlie five species of Splrastrellidce described in tlie Cata- 

 logue, one, Papillifia panis, is a Spirastrella, identical partly 

 with S. papulosa R. and D., and parth'^ with S. papUlosa var. 

 porosa Dendy; two, iSpirastrella australis and Fapillina ramu- 

 lofia, are, in virtue of their outward form and spiculation, like- 

 wise referable to Spirasti'ella, yet exhibit a character apparently 

 not possessed by any other species of the genus; and the remain- 

 ing two, Raphyrus hixonii and Papillissa hUea, belong to the 

 genus Cliona (sens, anipl.). Vosmaer reccntly(50), after a com- 

 prehensive study of the genus Spirastrella based on numerous 

 specimens, including the types of many of its described species, 

 has expressed the opinion that, of the thirty-four (excluding the 

 insufficiently described) species known to him, which are referable 

 to this genus, all but two are to be regarded as no more than 

 forms or " tropi " of a single species, .S'. purpurea. Of the three 

 species of Spirastrella indicated above, *S'. australis was dismissed 

 by Vosmaer as insufficiently described to admit of an opinion 

 regarding it, and S. ramulosa (probably thought by him to be a 

 species of Cliona) he does not mention; while *S'. papillosa (more 

 especially its variety porosa), although taken into account by 

 him, seems not ty have received due consideration. Accordingly, 

 in dealing with these species, even while not intending to furnish 

 a detailed description of them in this paper, it seemed to me 

 necessary that I should attempt to determine, if possible, whether 

 they admitted or not of being specifically distinguished from *S'. 

 purpurea (sens. ampL). At the outset, little hope was felt of 

 arriving at a definite conclusion, inasmuch as Vosmaer allows, in 

 the case of this species, exceedingly wide variation in almost 

 every character that can be utilised for species-differentiation; 

 but though it was found impossible to come to a decision regard- 

 ing .S'. papillosa, it very soon became evident that S. australis 

 and S. ramulosa are species quite of a distinct kind; and, indeed, 

 it is only provisionally that I refer them to the genus. 



The peculiar and distinctive feature of these two species is their 

 possession of a skeleton consisting in part of a system of exceed- 

 ingly stout " fibres " which remain intact when the sponge is 



