STAEFISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE SEAS. 433 



Of the 24 specimens, 12 have 6 rays and 2 madreporic bodies, 4 

 have 5 raj^s and 2 madreporic bodies, 1 has G rays and 1 madreporite, 

 1 has 5 rays and 1 madreporic body, 3 are comet forms (6 rayed, and 

 1 has 2 madreporic bodies) ; 2 six-rayed and 1 five-rayed specimens 

 each have the madreporic bodies (which are normalh' small) too in- 

 conspicuous to determine exactly. 



The photographic figures will sufficiently show the external form 

 of the species. It remains to note the arrangement of papulae and 

 a few other features which are not very well known. Just external 

 to the adambulacral plates, and without intervening papular pores is 

 a straight series of inferornarginal plates, about 10 corresponding 

 to 16 adambulacrals. These plates are four-lobed and extend from 

 behind the mouth plates, where there is an odd plate, to the tip of 

 the ray. This is similar to the arrangement in Tlenricia except that 

 the prominent actinal intermediate series is lacking. The odd plate 

 just referred to probably corresponds to the odd actinal intermediate 

 plate which I have found in EcMnaster callosns and E. stereosorwus, 

 and is not a true inferomarginal. The superomarginal plates are im- 

 mediately above, and separated by a series of papular areas, contain- 

 ing usually onh^ a single papula (sometimes 2 or 3 at base of ray). 

 Near the base of the ray (as in Hew^cia) the superomarginal series 

 bends upward and reaches the interradial line about midway between 

 mouth and anus. The angular space between the 2 series is filled in 

 with intermarginal plates and about 6 or 7 papular areas. 



The abactinal plates form roundish or more or less irregular 

 meshes, 10 to 12 of which can be counted across ray from one supero- 

 marginal series to the other. These meshes are largest in the mid- 

 radial region, and contain between 5 and 10 papulae. Most of the 

 abactinal and all the marginal plates bear a short central, conical, 

 blunt spinelet, heavily invested in membrane. 



The skin contains crowded holothurianlike perforated plates hav- 

 ing an irregularlj' elliptical, oval, or subcircular form with 10 to 20 

 perforations. Many are very irregular and in the form of branched 

 and perforated rods. These are incomplete plates. The largest 

 plates arc about 0.05 nnn. in diameter (see pi. 132, figs. 7, la-h). If a 

 light-colored specimen is immersed for a short time in caustic potash 

 the crowded deposits can be readily seen with a strong hand lens as a 

 minute grayish granulation in the skin. These deposits are slightly 

 thicker around the edges of the papular pores where they form 

 rings. This immersion in caustic also reveals numerous glands scat- 

 tered over the body, such as have been described for EchinasteT cS- 

 losus by V. Marenzeller and E. sagenus by Ludwig. 



The adambulacral armature consists of 3 spines. Deep in furrow 

 is a short, slightly curved, blunt, strongly compressed spine of a 

 rather spatulate form but oriented with edge to furrow. The tip 



