60 RECORDS OF THE AUSTRALIAN MtTSETTM. 



Gould's C. parvissima is a decidedly smaller race, and is further- 

 more distinguished by its upper parts being more strongly washed 

 with olive. A specimen from Cape York measures, total length 

 6"3 inches, wing 3-5, tail 27, bill 0'75. It ranges as far south as 

 the Herbert River. The wing-measurement varies from 3 '5 to 

 3 '6 inches. In a large series of specimens examined I can find no 

 gradation in size between C. rvfiijaster and its smaller northern 

 ally, C. parvissima. Dr. Sliarpe, in the " Catalogue of Birds in 

 the British Museum,"* has described a specimen o£ the latter race 

 from Cape York under the name of the larger species, Pinarolestes 

 rtifigaster, Gould. 



On STIGHOPUS MOLLIS, HUTTON. 

 By Thomas Whitelegge, Zoologist, Australian Museum. 



During a recent visit to Eden, Dr. J. C. Cox obtained a Holo- 

 thurian, which he presented to the Museum collection. 



The species proves to be Stichopus mollis, Hutton, hitherto only 

 recorded from New Zealand. At first I referred it to /S'. sordidus, 

 Theel,t but on consulting a paper by Prof. A. Deudy| since re- 

 ceived, I find that the " Challenger " specimens are considered to 

 be examples of Hutton's Holot/i.nria tnollis. I agree with the 

 opinion as expressed by Prof. Dendy. There appears to be no 

 character to distinguish them except that of colour, which is 

 evidently variable. 



The colour of the Eden example in formol is light yellowish- 

 brown, with the disks of the pedicels and the tips of the dorsal 

 papillae darker. 



The large bilateral plates form a ring on the margin of the 

 disk and encircle the large central perforate plate at the extremity 

 of the pedicel. 



The dorsal papillse are supported by curved, smooth, spiny, or 

 branched rods, disposed transversely ; the lower ones tend to form 

 plates similar to those of the ventral pedicels ; apicajly each 

 papilla ternnnates in a large perforate plate, which is surrounded 

 by a series of stout moniliform rods, with either simple or spinose 

 ends. 



Length of specimen 130 mm. 



* Brit. Mus. Cat. Birds ill. 1877, p. 296. 



t Chall. Eep. Zool., xiv., p. 162, pi. viii., fig. 3. 



X Jour. Linn. Soc. Zool. xxvi., 1897, p. 46, pi. vii., figs. 73-82. 



5th August, 1897. 



