138 U.S. NATIONAL MUSEUM BULLETIN 234 



creasing in size distally. In the outer rows the peduncles are long, 

 broad at the base, but slender distally, with a bordering membrane 

 on the outer side for about four-fifths the length of the peduncle^ 

 squarely truncated distally. Sasald is in error (1929, p. 307) in stat- 

 ing that the peduncle is 2 to 3 times as thick as the diameter of the 

 suckers, as can be seen by observing his figure (pi. 24, fig. 9). The 

 inner rows of suckers are mounted on slender peduncles without mem- 

 branes. The apertures are large, truncate proximally, and sharply 

 oval distally. The proximal part is entire, the distal portion bearing 

 about 10 teeth of which the median one is very large and talonlike. 

 Distally the club ends in a fleshy spoon-shaped area devoid of suckers 

 and with an oral papilla. Aborally there is a large oval light organ. 

 The entire spoon-shaped area is dark purple except for the light organ. 

 In addition there are about 26 round photophores on the aboral sur- 

 face of the tentacular stalk (Sasaki said 38 to 45, but this is more 

 than I have observed.) 



The buccal membrane has seven lappets and seven connectives. 

 The connectives are fastened to the dorsal surface of the first two 

 pairs of arm and the ventral surface of the last two pau"s. 



Besides the photophores on the tentacular stalks and at the end 

 of the club, the eyeballs also bear three series of light organs, each 

 series arranged in a narrow strip of differentiated tissue. The outer 

 strip contains 7 or 8 light organs, the second series along the periphery 

 of the bulbus 9 or 10 and the inner series about 6. There is also a 

 single row of photophores extending along the dorsal side of the oral 

 surface and regularly alternating with the suckers of the distal row. 

 In large specimens, according to Sasaki, these may number 55 to 60, 

 but in the specimens available to me they number about 40. 



Measurements and indices of nine specimens of Chiroteuthis im- 

 perator Chun from the Philippine Islands are: 



Type. — Zoologische Museum, Berlin. 



Type locality. — Sumatra. 



Discussion. — Chiroteuthis imperator is closely related to C. picteti 



