STARFISHES OF THE PHILIPPINE SEAS. 497 



meroiis pedicellariae are capable of holding fairly active animals and 

 are probably used to capture prey. The loose skeleton renders the 

 rays very flexible, so that any crustaeans or fish held fast by the 

 pedicellariae could be readily reached by the tube feet and conveyed 

 to the mouth. 



CORONA STER HALICEPUS Fisher. 



Plate 135, figs. 5, 5a ; plate 140 ; plate 151, figs. 1, la-d. 

 Coroiiaster halicepus Fishek, 1917fl, p. 26. 



Diagnosis. — In general appearance closely resembling C. volsella- 

 tus, but differing in having 10 rays, 2 adambulacral spines, relatively 

 broader and shorter unguiculate pedicellariae, with longer claws, 

 heavier ambulacral pedicellariae, with the jaws conspicuously crossed 

 at tips, and longer forcipifonn minor pedicellariae, each jaw with 

 upward of 12 or even more small teeth in addition to the large ter- 

 minal teeth (5 or 6 in volsellatus). R=:260 mm., r=17 mm., R= 

 15±r; breadth of ray at base, 11 mm.; at 25 mm. from base, 14 or 

 15 mm.; height of disk, 10 mm.; breadth of disk, 34 mm.; breadth 

 of actinostome, 20 mm. 



DescHption. — Skeleton similar to that of volsellatus^ there being 

 abactinally 3 lines of ossicles extending the length of the ray (the 

 carinal and superomarginal), and adjacent to the adambulacrals an 

 inferomarginal series. Equally narrow transverse bands of plates 

 divide the integument into quadrate papular areas of large size, the 

 intermarginal areas being regular, wider than long proximally, and 

 longer than wide distally. The areas between the carinal and supero- 

 marginal plates are longer than the foregoing, and irregular as to the 

 transverse trabeculae. The cruciform primary plates at each node 

 are connected by 1 or 2 intermediate oblong ossicles and bear a single 

 slender acicular spine, the inferomarginal the longest, equaling prox- 

 imally the distance between the base of the inferomarginal and corre- 

 sponding superomarginal spines (7 mm). The superomarginal 

 spines are one-half to two-thirds as long, and the carinal spines are 

 subequal to the superomarginal, though a trifle more robust. In 

 large specimens 2 or 3 small spines stand on the transverse irregular 

 trabecula between the superomarginal and carinal plates. 



Each spine is surrounded by a heavy, retractile, globular sheath 

 covered with small forcipifonn pedicellariae, about 0.5 to O.G mm. 

 Jong, whose jaws have 3 terminal teeth and a double row of upward 

 of 12 small teeth, while similar pedicellariae in volsellatus have 2 

 terminal and about 5 lateral teeth. The difference is best seen from 

 the figures. The trabeculae and papular areas have numerous large 

 6-clawed unguiculate pedicellariae about 1.5 mm. long. These are 

 much more numerous than in volsellatus and are shorter and broader. 



