STARFISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE SEAS. 169 



example, and are evidently similar to those of a specimen from Bata- 

 via, described by Perrier (1875, p. 339). The paxillae form 5 or 6 

 regular series in either side of the ray, but present a more open ap- 

 jDearance, due to their much fewer than normal number of spinelets 

 and to the rounded corners of the crowns. A large paxilla at the base 

 of the ray has a circular or broadly elliptical contour to the strongly 

 convex crown, Avhich consists of 12 to 18 unequal, blunt, peripheral 

 spinelets, and 7 to 12 shorter, stouter, subtruncate, spaced, divergent 

 central spinelets. The stoutest commonly stands in the center sur- 

 rounded by a circle of 6, these in turn surrounded by a partial cycle 

 of slenderer spinelets, intermediate in robustness between the central 

 and the outermost. A considerable but variable number of the su- 

 peromarginal paxillae, as well as a less number in the next series ad- 

 jacent, have 1 or 2 pedicellariae with 2 tapering jaws varying from a 

 trifle stouter and longer to a trifle shorter than the spinelets. In the 

 Japanese specimen the paxillae have upward of 25 central and 25 

 or 30 much slenderer peripheral spinelets, while the crowns are squar- 

 ish or transversely oblong, and rather close-set. The superomarginal 

 paxillae are nearl}^ square, and a variable number have an inconspicu- 

 ous 2- or 3-jawed spiniform pedicellaria, usually on the outer longi- 

 tudinal margin. I do not think this has been mentioned in current 

 descriptions. 



The adambulacral armature consists of a curved, strongly com- 

 pressed furrow spine followed by a much longer, tapering, slighth^ 

 compressed spine. This in turn is followed by 2 (sometimes 3) large 

 pedicellariae with 3 long, slender jaws, more than one-half, sometimes 

 two-thirds the length of the subambulacral spine. The outer pedi- 

 cellaria is situated, as a rule, upon an actinal intermediate plate, of 

 which a single series is interpolated between the inferomarginal and 

 adambulacral plates. Barely, at the base of the ray there are 3 adam- 

 bulacral spines, the outermost much smaller than the principal spine. 

 In addition there are several small spinelets along the transverse mar- 

 gins of the plate. Koehler (19105, p. 267) records 3 or 4 adambula- 

 cral spines on 2 specimens from Aru, and from 1 to 3 pedicellariae. 

 The Misaki specimen alluded to above has 2 adambulacral spines 

 (rarely 3), followed by 3 or 4 conspicuous pedicellariae. The num- 

 ber of adam.bulacral spines is therefore variable. The pedicellariae 

 of the Palawan specimens are narrower at the base, consequently 

 longer in proportion to width than are those of the Misaki specimens. 



The number of inferomarginal spines is proximally 4 (sometimes 

 3). the 2 innermost decreasing in size along the ray. The innermost 

 spine is reduced to an inconspicuous spinulc very soon, while tho 

 next persists for a variable distance, there being usually on the outer 

 half only 2 prominent spines, the 2 outer ones of the proximal 

 half. Between these two there is often 1 or 2 prominent pedicellariae, 



