BY E. F. KALLMANN. 417 



that the spieulation is composed of "large and long styli and spined 

 oxea," together with "microselera" in the form of "styli and oxea, 

 long and very slender, in bundles (trichites)"; whereas in the 

 descriptions themselves, in contradiction to this, we find it stated, 

 in the case of one variety, merely that "the spicules of the support- 

 ing skeleton are 014 mm. long and 0005 mm. thick," and in the 

 case of the other, that "the spicules of the supporting skeleton are 

 chiefly styli, 0-2 mm. long and 0005 mm. thick. Nor are these con- 

 tradictory statements the only indication of error; the diagnosis 

 referred to is clearly only an intended copy, with a few alterations 

 in terms, of the description of Bictyocylindrus hispidus given by 

 Bowerbank(2), yet, in Bowerbank's description, no mention is 

 made of "spined oxea," but only of spined styli, and no warrant is 

 to be found for the statement that the "styli and oxea, long and 

 very slender" occur in bundles It is unaccountable also why Len- 

 denfeld calls the last-mentioned spicules microsclera, especially 

 since he states, in his definition of Axinella, that the genus is with- 

 out microsclera. Because of these anomalies, and as the specimens 

 left by Lendenfeld to represent his varieties of Axinella hispida 

 agree in some measure with the descriptions so far as external 

 features are concerned, and actually are examples of species of 

 Raspailia, I have thought it proper to regard them as the types. I 

 consider the specimens to be representative of two distinct species 

 to be designated Raspailia gracilis and E. tenella respectively. 



Axinella hispida, var. gracilis. (PI. xxiii., fig.l; PI. xxii., 

 fig. 7; and text-fig. 17). 



Description. — Sponge erect, arborescent; with dichotomous and 

 polytomous branches, seldom uniting by anastomosis. The 

 branches are short, stiff, cylindrical, or slightly tapered, and some- 

 times sharply pointed at their end. Surface hispid with spicules, 

 which project 1 mm. or so beyond it. Oscula apparently absent. 

 Colour in spirit pale grey, for the most part with a faint tinge of 

 purple. Consistency fairly tough, compressible, and resilient. 



The single specimen (PI. xxiii., fig. 1), 80 mm. in height, is 

 attached to a stone by an expanded disc-like base, from which two 



H 



