130 THE PROCEEDINGS OF THE LINNEAX SOCIETY 



as many as six calices in a series ; walls very thick, with a few 

 scattered short spines on the outside ; epUJieca coarse, granular^ 

 ascending about two-thirds to the margin with a few spines, with 

 no signs of costa ; septal spines few, thick, but very promi- 

 nent on the margin, fewer, and still conspicuous towards the 

 centre ; calices very irregular ; fossa regularly concave, shallow, 

 spreading ; systems irregular and difficult to follow ; septa few, 

 rather wide, alternating large and small, much thicker at the 

 margin, where they bear two or three spines longer and stouter 

 than any others ; columella open, lax, twisted, small ; endotheca 

 not abundant. Dimensions, alt. of corallum 50, most of the 

 fascicular are three times as long and half that width. Length of 

 calicinal valleys 10 to 80, width 15 to 20, width of wall 5 to 8 

 millimetres. 



The coral has a green waxy appearance on the outside of the 

 wall with fine scattered spines and only faint traces of costa 

 close to the septa. It differs from Mussa angulosa, Ellis (as 

 Madrepora) in bei g smaller with columella less developed and 

 no costas. It appears to be common at Darnley Island and 

 Torres Straits Plate 11, fig. 5, single calice nat. size ; fig. 6, 

 side view of corallum ; fig. 7, section of calice ; fig 8, corallum 

 seen from above. 



Mussa laciniata, n. s. or var. Plate 11, figs. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. 



Corallum spreading from a narrow pedicel with single calices 

 sometimes free or spreading in series of three or four. Walls 

 with scattered spines in linear series. Epitheca conspicuous, but 

 showing the costa which are more or less visible from the base. 

 Calices inversely conical, moderately deep, irregular ; systems, six 

 in five cycles. Septa thick according to the orders, the higher 

 orders with few, short, numerous, the others with a few long 

 angular teeth, the largest ones generally at the edges. Columella 

 small open lax. Corallum 100 to 150, mill long, 80 to 100 broad. 

 Single calices about 20 by 15. Altitude of tuft about 110 rail. 



In this species, some of the septa rise very high above the 

 wall in thin lamina, 5 millimetres long. It is something like 

 M. corymhosa, of the Red Sea, but has a culumella and costa 



