ASTEROIDEA OF NORTH PACIFIC AND ADJACENT WATERS — FISHER 145 



Type-locality. — Saanich Inlet, Vancouver Island, B. C. (do Loriol). 



Distribution.— From Yakutat Bay, Alaska, to Santa Rosa Island, California. 

 Bathymetrical range, lowest tide and subtidal zone to 125 fathoms. Temperature 

 range, 44° to 50.3° F. at off shore stations, and to 52° or 53° F. in Monterey region at 

 lowest tide. 



Specimens examined. — Fifty-seven. (See p. 147.) 



Forma KOEHLERI de I/>riol 



Plate 65, Figures 1-5, 7; 9; Plate 66, Figures 1-6, 10; Plate 67, Figures 4, 6, 7; Plate 68; Plate 69, 



Figures 1, 2; Plate 70; Plate 71. 



This is the typical forma and includes the type of Orthastcrias columbiana Verrill. 

 It has slender tapered spines, bluntly pointed as a rule and with inconspicuous shallow 

 terminal grooves. Straight pedicellariae narrow to broad, unguiculate. Sometimes 

 with lanceolate, only slightly toothed, or even toothless, pedicellariae predominating 

 over the heavier sort. Rays slender to fairly stout; considerable variation in form 

 of marginal mouth spines; variation in spacing of proximal abactinal and supero- 

 marginal spines. (See above.) This intorgrades bathymetrically with several deep- 

 water subformae which have only one common character — tapered slender spines. 

 Well marked examples of these have the abactinal spines especially slender toward 

 the tip which may have a few very inconspicuous grooves, or none. Usually the 

 dorsolateral spines are few on the proximal third of the ray, forming only a single 

 fairly straight or irregular series. This is well shown in specimens from station 

 3452, Straits of Fuca, 125 fathoms (pi. 70, fig. 2), station 3464, same locality, 40 

 fathoms; 4551, off Point Pinos, Monterey Bay, 56 fathoms (pi. 70, fig. 1); and 4431, off 

 Santa Cruz Island, 41 fathoms, the southern limit of the known range (pi. 67, fig. 6). 



This last specimen has R 210 mm.; r 24 mm. The abactinal spines are strong, 

 tapering, and fairly acute, the longest measuring 6 mm. by 1.5 mm. at base. They 

 are grooveless, except for slight indications on some of the thicker and obtuse supero- 

 marginal spines. (PI. 70, fig. 6.) Five contiguous pairs of adoral adambulacral 

 plates continue the oral carina. Some of the pedunculate, lanceolate furrowed 

 pedicellariae have two or three small teeth. 



Forma LEPTOSTYLA. new forma 



Plate 65, Figure 6; Plate 66, Figure 9; Plate 67, Figure 2; Plate 72 

 This is the deep-water forma characterized by very slender acute spines some of 

 which are faintly grooved; superomarginal spinos, especially on proximal half of 

 ray on nearly every plate and hence have the appearance of being crowded and close 

 together; skeleton unusually close-knit and dorsolateral region of proximal third 

 of ray well studded with spines which if in regular order would form two or three 

 series; carinal spinules crowded, often very irregular; furrow pedicellariae some- 

 times, but not always, unusually largo. Dorsal straight pedicellariae not especially 

 numerous in typical examples, a large proportion of the lanceolate compressed type 

 without or with only a few teeth. 



Station 3443, Straits of Fuca, 97 fathoms; station 3445, samo locality, 100 

 fathoms; station 3461, same locality, 114 fathoms; station 4233, Bohm Canal, 

 Alaska, 39-45 fathoms. 



The typo is from station 3443 and measures R 195 mm., r 27 mm., breadth of 

 ray at base, 29 mm. Two smaller specimens from station 3445 have the peculari- 

 ties even better marked. 



