130 PEOCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM vol. 8:i 



figured by Southwell (1930, fig. 57, B), on bulbs of his Gymnorhyn- 

 chus malleus. Similar granular bodies are described and figured by 

 Linton (1897) in the neck of his Rhynchohothriv/m specioswii ( = 

 Tentacularia speciosa) . 



Type host. — Galeichthys fells. 



Location. — Attached to mesenteries. 



Locality. — Galveston Bay, Tex. 



Type spemrien. — U.S.N.M. Helm, Coll. no. 39519; paratypes, no. 

 39520. 



Remarks. — Only the encysted larvae of this form have been found ; 

 these occur in moderate numbers attached to the mesenteries of two 

 species of catfish, Galeichthys felis and Bagre marina. The scolex 

 and tail-like postbulbar portion appear to be free in the cysts, since 

 when the cysts are broken and pressure is applied, the enclosed larva 

 emerges entirely unattached. The cysts are usually pear-shaped and 

 2 to 4 mm long. 



Tentacularia lepida is closely related to T. speciosa (Linton, 1897) 

 and to T. spiracorniita (Linton, 1907). T. speciosa has recently been 

 transferred to a new genus, Lintoniella., by Yamaguti (1934), but 

 the reasons for its establishment seem to me inadequate. If, however, 

 this genus is accepted, both spiracomuta and lepida should be placed 

 in it. The armature of the proboscides of lepida is strikingly sim- 

 ilar to that of spiracotmuta as figured by Southwell (1930) and that 

 of speciosa as figured by Yamaguti (1934), but lepida is much 

 smaller than either of these, with differences in the proboscis hooks, 

 proboscis sheaths, and contractile bulbs that clearly indicate specific 

 distinctness. 



GYMNORHYNCHUS GIGAS (Cuviei, 1817) 

 Plate 8, Figtjkes 1-4 



Southwell (1930) has shown that this is the correct name for a 

 tetrarhynchid that has hitherto been known as Synhothriuin fragile 

 Diesing, 1850, or Syndesniohothriuni fragile Diesing, 1855. Linton 

 (1897) described a second species of Synhothrium {S. fllicolle) that 

 he obtained in the larval state from a considerable number of fishes. 

 In 1908 he briefly described an adult tetrarhynchid from a sting 

 ray and assigned it to the same species. This adult, however, was 

 probably incorrectly identified, for the dimensions given for the 

 head, contractile bulbs, and other parts do not correspond with those 

 of the larvae. Southwell believes that Linton's S. fllicolle and Die- 

 sing's S. fragile., as well as S. hemuloni MacCallum, 1921, are all the 

 same species, and with this I agree. Southwell, however, also con- 

 siders Tetrarhynchus platycephalus Shipley and Hornell, 1906, to be 

 the adult of the same species. This, I believe, is a mistake, for the 

 characters of the head of this worm are strikingly different from 



