MUSEUM OF COMPARATIVE ZOOLOGY. 25'i 



No. 9. — Preliminary Report on the Echini and Star-fishes 

 dredged in deep water between Cuba and the Florida Reef, 

 by L. F. de Pourtales, Assist. U. S. Coast Survey ; pre- 

 pared by Alexander Agassiz. 



(Communicated by Professor B. Peikce, Sur't U. S. Coast Survey.) 



I. Catalogue of the Echini. 



Cidaris annulata Gray, Proc. ZoSl. Soc, 1855. 



Syn. Cidaris metularia Lutk. (non Lam.) Bid. til Kunds. om Echin. 

 Liifken has adopted for the common West India species the name of C. 

 metularia Lam., which he compares carefully with Cidaris tribuloides. It 

 is evident from his descriptions that his C. tribuloides is the Cidaris metula- 

 ria Lam. ; he says himself that he may not have had the true C. tribuloi- 

 des Lam. From a direct comparison with original specimens of Lamarck 

 of both these species, kindly sent the Museum by Professor Valenciennes, 

 there is no doubt that both C. tribuloides Lam. and Cidaris metularia Lam. 

 inhabit the Red Sea; the latter, however, has a much more extensive 

 range, and occurs as far as the Sandwich Islands, being quite common in 

 the East Indian archipelago. The Cidaris metularia Lam. is also identical 

 with the species which I named Gymnocidaris minor in the Museum Bul- 

 letin (1863). Not having at the time had the opportunity of examining 

 series of different ages, I find that the differences which had been con- 

 sidered as specific are simply different stages of growth. I have adopted 

 for our West India species the name given by Gray, satisfied that he 

 possessed, as far as I could judge from his description, specimens of the 

 only littoral species thus far found in the West Indies. 

 Littoral to 116 fathoms. 



Dorocidaris abyssicola A. Ac, nov. gen. et sp. 



This species has the general facies of Cidaris hystrix. We find consider- 

 able variation in specimens collected in different localities, — valuable, from 

 the number of specimens collected, in determining the nature of individual 

 variation in this genus, and confirming the view to which I had been brought 

 from the study of young Cidarida?, that the spines, much as they may ap- 

 parently vary in shape, especially round the mouth, yet present excellent 

 characters not only to distinguish species, but are also useful as a guide in 



