AN AUSTRALIAN CH^ETOGNATH. 



By T. Harvey Johnston, M.A., B.Sc, Parasitologist, Bureau of 

 Microbiology, Sydney ; Hon. Zoologist, Australian Museum. 



(Plate Ixxi.) 



The Chaetognatha of the South Pacific are very imperfectly 

 known. Dr. G. H. Fowler 1 in his Monograph mentions "the 

 amazing fact that between I60 Q E. and 80° W. we have not a 

 single record of a Chaetognath . . . ." Dr. O. Steinhaus 2 

 recorded the capture of Sagitta enflata, Grassi, in 28° S., 160° E., 

 that is west of New Caledonia, and Prof. F. J. Parker' 3 mentioned 

 the finding of Krohnia hamata, Moebius, south of New Zealand. 

 Mr. S. Kent's 4 Sagitta tricuspidata from the South Pacific bears no 

 definite locality and is now regarded as a variety of S. hexaptera, 

 d'Orb. Excluding the important work of Mr. T. Aida 5 on 

 Japanese forms and of Dr. Fowler on specimens collected by the 

 "Siboga'" ; (East Indies), "Challenger" 7 (Arctic and Sub- 

 Antarctic waters), and " Discovery " 7 (Antarctic Ocean), I do 

 not know of any other references to Pacific forms. There lias 

 not been any record whatever of any Australian members, 

 excepting the mention of Sagitta, sp., by Mr. T. Whitelegge, 8 as 

 occurring in Port Jackson. 



This aberrant group appears to be well represented in New 

 South Wales waters. In 1898 Mr. Whitelegge found some 

 specimens washed up on Maroubra Beach, just south of Sydney. 

 These were presented to the Sydney University (Biology Depart- 

 ment), some of which were given to me by Dr. J. P. Hill. These 

 are described in this paper. In 1906 Professor W. A. HaswHl 



1 Fowler — Chaetognatha (Siboga Expel. Monogr., xxi., 1906, p. 67). 



r Steinhaus — Die Verbreitung der Chaetoguathen im Sudatlantischen 

 und indischen Ozean, 1896. 



s Parker — Remarks on a Spadella fromN.Z. waters. (Trans. N.Z. Instit., 

 xxviii., 1895. p. 758.) 



4 Kent — On a New Species of Sagitta from the South Pacific. (Ann. 

 Mag. Nat. Hist, (4), v., 1870, p. 268.) 



5 Aida— Chaetognaths of Misaki Harbour. (Annot. Zool. Japon., i., 

 Parts 1, 2, 1897, p. 13.) 



6 Fowler — Loc. cit. 



\ Fowler — Chaetognatha (National Antarctic Expedtn., iii., 1908.) 

 The "Challenger" forms are recorded along with those obtained by the 

 " Discovery." 



8 Whitelegge —List of Marine and Freshwater Invert. Fauna of Pt. 

 Jackson. (Journ. Roy. Soc. N. S. Wales, xxiii., 18S9, p. 163.) 



