126 BULLETIN OF THE 



pftylUa, and dead fragments of some of the Corals of the preceding re- 

 gion. Sertularians and Sponges are also found sparingly. 



A few general remarks on the deep-sea Fauna may not be inappro- 

 priate. First, with regard to dimensions: almost all the species are of 

 small size, compared with the allied forms of the littoral and shoal- 

 water regions in general ; the Voluta junonia, the largest shell found, 

 is small for that genus. The only exception is an Echinus, which is 

 nearly of the average size, and an Actinia. The prevailing colors are 

 white, pink, — sometimes playing into orange, — and a pale green. 

 Blue was only seen in a small incrusting Sponge. What proportion of 

 light reaches a certain depth we shall try to determine during our next 

 exploration. It is certain, however, that the deep-sea animals have 

 generally well-developed eyes, larger if anything than those of their 

 congeners of shallow water. 



It is rather a matter of surprise to find so great a difference between 

 the Fauna of similar depths on the coasts of Cuba and of Florida, sepa- 

 rated as they are by a strait of no great width, and bathed by the same 

 current. The few dredgings obtained on the former coast do not al- 

 low us to draw conclusions from the absence of Florida species, but 

 they give still more weight to the inverse. Thus, to restrict our re- 

 marks to the Corals, — more carefully studied than the other classes, — 

 of ten species of true Corals from Cuba described in the preceding num- 

 ber of this Bulletin, only two have been found on the Florida coast, 

 and they only in very rare fragments. Something may be due to the 

 gregariousness of Corals in certain spots and their rarity in others. The 

 dredge may come up full of a certain species at one time, and it may 

 never be found again, even in close proximity. This happened to us 

 with regard to Lophohelia affinis, n. sp. The botanist is familiar with 

 such instances among land plants. 



We hoped to give in this paper a full catalogue of the species 

 collected; but as time is insufficient, it is thought best to publish the 

 following descriptions as far as completed, and, as the dredgings are 

 to be continued throughout the straits of Florida, the descriptions of the 

 other species will he reserved for a more extended final work. 



I take this opportunity again to acknowledge the help I have received 

 from Professor Agassiz in the way of advice and of facilities afforded 

 to me in the Museum of Comparative Zoology. 



