123 



NOTES ON NEW AND LITTLE KNOWN AUSTRALIAN 

 MADROPORACE^. 



By W, Saville-Kent, F.L.S., F.Z.S., Commissioner of Fisheries, 



Queensland. 



GOXIOPORA FRUTICOSA, S;7. nO}\ 



Corallum sulxlendroid, forming small shrubby growths ; the 

 branches subdigitate, somewliat complanate, sliortly furcate or 

 palmate at their distal extremities ; cfenenchyma highly porous 

 and trabeculate ; calicles uneven, very shallow, not exceeding 2 

 millimetres in diameter ; septa I'epresenting 3 cycles, those of the 

 primary cycle frequently developed centrally in a paliform manner 

 and forming an irregular hexradiate star. Polypites highly ex- 

 tensile, with 24 elongate subulate tentacles ; oral disk white, 

 tentacles and column clear liver-brown. Height of coralla 6-8 

 centimetres, diameter of branches 1 centimetre. 



Hob. Warrior Reef, Torres Straits. Co-type in the Australian 

 Museum, Sydney. 



This species differs from previously described members of the 

 genus (Joniopora in the subdendroid character of the corallum, 

 and which in all otlier known types is massive or lobate. It was 

 collected by the author at extreme low water on the reef in the 

 neighbourhood of Tud or Warrior Island, Torres Straits. 



Alveopora spoxaiosA, Dana. 



This species first described by Dana, Zooph., p. 513, pi. xlviii., 

 fig. 3, is referred liy Milne Edwards and Haime to the Alveopora 

 viridis of Quoy and Gaimard, Ijut from which on reference to 

 Quoy and Gaimard's original figures and description it is found 

 to be essentially distinct. The last named species is represented 

 by these authors as forming compound frondose or subdigitate 

 expansions, and the polypites are green and brown. In Dana's 

 type the coralla are represented by solid lobate masses and the 

 polypites, as examined by Ihe author, are clear brown through- 

 out with white tips to the tentacles. A form corresponding with 

 Alveopora viridis has been also obtained by the author in Torres 

 Straits, and the corallites in the two species are found to differ 

 essentially in the character of their component calicles. In 



