136 Proceedings of the Roycd Society of Victoria. 



" 1 wish very much that you could get me some hirvre of 

 A . raacronema. I want very much to study the development 

 of the calyx, which is very Jurassic in its general characters." 



The communication with Dr. Carpenter was made by 

 Mr. Dendy, on behalf of the Committee. 



(2) Preliminary Report on a Collection of Alcyonaria and 

 Zoantharia f'vorii Port PJtillip. 



By S. J. HrcKSON, M.A., D.Sc. 



In preparing this report of a small collection of Alcyo- 

 narians, sent to me by Professor Spencer, of Melbourne, on 

 behalf of the Port Phillip Biological Survey Committee of the 

 Koyal Society of Victoria, I have met with greater difficulty 

 than I expected. The numerous genera and species of 

 Stoloniferous Alcyonaria, which have been named, are so 

 imperfectly described and figured that it is almost impossible 

 to identify specimens without seeing the type specimens. 

 The greatest possible confusion exists as to the characters 

 which se]3arate the different genera and species, and con- 

 sequently it is frequently found that similar specimens, 

 probably belonging to one and the same species, are described 

 by different authorities under different specific and generic 

 names. 



In the course of the last few months, I have carefully gone 

 through the literature of the subject, and I propose shortly 

 to communicate to the Zoological Society a paper dealing 

 with the classification of the group. 



Very few specimens of the genera Alcyonium and Ammo- 

 thea have as yet been received in this country from Australian 

 waters, and it might have been thought desirable to consider 

 the two specimens (20 and 21) sent to me to be new species. 

 I hope to be able to justify the course I have taken, in 

 referring them to the species mentioned in the report. 



The same difficulty is met with in considering the position 

 of the Zoantharian genera, Palythoa and Epizoanthus, as 

 mentioned above in the case of the Stoloniferous Alcyonaria. 

 I believe there is not sufficient ground for the maintenance 

 of many of the species which have recently been described. 



(1)* Virgularia lowenii (Kolliker). "Anat. System, bescbreibiuig 

 der Alcyonaria," p. 182 et se<i. 

 This specimen closely corresponds with the description of the 

 species given by Kolliker. 



* The numbers refer to those on the specimens sent to Dr. Hickson. 



