DEPARTMENT OF MARINE INVERTEBRATES. 



177 



separated at once from the reserve series, and the material for prepar- 

 ing- new sets for distribution to educational institutions has therefore 

 been gradually accumulating. Many such special sets have also been 

 made up and disposed of as explained elsewhere. Much of the mate- 

 rial in the line of marine invertebrates derived from the recent inves- 

 tigations of the Fish Commission has been assorted in this department, 

 and several of the groups which are still unassigned for study have 

 likewise been stored here. Progress has been made with the card or 

 reference catalogue corresponding with the work in the identification 

 of species, and so far as the collections are determined, it forms a con- 

 venient index to them. Collections of crustaceans borrowed from 

 Union College and the Peabody Museum of Yale University for pur- 

 poses of comparison have been returned to these institutions. 



Some steps have been taken toward preparing an exhibition illus- 

 trating the scope of this department for the World's Columbian Expo- 

 sition. These have consisted mainly in determining the family groups 

 represented by the known American marine invertebrates and in ascer- 

 taining our desiderata iu that respect. No more instructive exhibit 

 for the use of biological students could be planned than one contain- 

 ing essentially all of these families, suitably displayed, and with accom- 

 panying descriptive labels. 



The amount of cataloguing done during the year is explained in the 

 following table: 



Group. 



Crustaceans 



Worms 



Echinodernis and cu'lenterates. 

 Sponges and protozoans 



Total 



Entries to June 30 — 



1891. 



:.->, 814 



4,935 

 17, 640 

 6,315 



1892. 



Entries 

 made dur- 

 ing year. 



16, 987 

 4,958 



17, 759 

 6,318 



1,173 



•j:: 



119 



3 



1,318 



Mr. Benedict and Miss Rathbunhave completed and published in the 

 proceedings of the Museum a monograph upon the genus Panopeus of 

 crabs, which is represented in the Museum collection by 25 species, of 

 which 6 were previously undescribed. The hermit crabs belonging to 

 the genus Eupagurm, of which 80 species are contained in our collec- 

 tion, have received much attention from Mr. Benedict, and a complete 

 report upon the group is now in course of preparation. Explorations 

 during the past few years, especially by the steamer Albatross in the 

 North Pacific Ocean, have added 37 new species to this genus, and pre- 

 liminary descriptions of these by Mr. Benedict have recently appeared 

 in the Proceedings. He has also submitted for publication a paper 

 upon the Corystoid crabs of the genera Telmessus and JUrimacrus, illus- 

 trated with three plates, and has reported upon a collection of crusta- 

 H. Mis. 114, pt, 2 12 



