67 



thurise found thrown upon our beaches by the storm of 

 April 16th, would seem to indicate that they were nume- 

 rous in shallow water. Three or more species of Syrinx 

 and Slpuncidus, the Echiurus chri/sacanthophora of Ayres, 

 with Synapta tenuis, and Chirodota arenata, were found in 

 great numbers. The last named species is usually consi- 

 dered rare, but at this time many hundreds might have been 

 collected in a few hours. Twenty or thirty specimens of a 

 large Psolus were also found. Messrs. Ela and Bradley 

 first discovered these upon the pebbly beach of a small 

 cove, where, at extreme low water, a ridge of rocks might 

 be seen running parallel with the shore at some distance 

 from it. The specimens exhibited so great a latitude of 

 variation as to induce Mr. Stimpson to believe our species 

 to be identical with the P. phantapus of Europe. They 

 were nearly four inches in length ; the tentacula usually 

 equal in size, but in some, two or three were a little 

 smaller than the others ; in some specimens, the granules 

 thickly covered the whole surface, while in others they ex- 

 isted only at the margins of the scales. 



But the most interesting animal obtained was a new 

 species oi Pentacta (Cucumaiia, Cuv.) which Mr. Stimpson 

 proposed to call P. calcigera, on account of the accumula- 

 tion of calcareous matter on its surface. It was, when 

 found, of a nearly globular shape, but it extended itself 

 when placed in sea water to a length of two inches. 



Pentacta calcigera. Suckers long and very slender ; dis- 

 posed in five distinct bands. In each band they were in two 

 rows at the extremities of the body, and four rows at the middle. 

 Tentacula ten in number, two being much smaller than the rest. 

 Body white, suckers sometimes bright red, tentacula purple. 



The whole animal covered with calcareous matter, in the form 

 of perforated plates, thickly crowded on the body, but sparingly 

 distributed on the tentacula and the sides of the suckers. 



Mr. Whittemore presented a specimen of a new species 



