1916.| A. L. Massy: Cephalopoda of the Indian Museum. 205 
Polypus microphthalmus (Goodrich). 
Octopus microphthalmus, Goodrich, Trans. Linn. Soc., VII, p. 20; pl. 5; 
figs. 83, 84 (1896). 
oort® ISarnaphuli River, Chittagong, Dec., 1914 (A. C. Chowdhury) 
—TIwo °. 
These have a long narrow body with a yet narrower head, 
wide mantle-opening placed a little below and in line with the eye,! 
visible from above; eyes small; siphon with broad apex extend- 
ing above the eyes and half-way to umbrella margin ; free for half 
its length; no trace of funnel organ in either, although the 
specimens are in very good condition ; arms not very tapering at 
the tips, and about two and a half times the length of the body. 
Web lowest ventrally, and highest in both at the right side, ex- 
tending to about one-third of the length of the arms but not 
continued up them. Suckers small and much elevated, very like 
Goodrich’s illustration (pl. 5, fig. 83). Surface quitesmooth every- 
where. Colour white, speckled with minute, dark-grey or purple- 
black, round chromatophores, which are most numerous on the 
dorsal surface of head and mantle where they form occasionally 
elongate grey smears. Larger chromatophores, measuring about 
50 mm., are also present on the mantle and form two rows up each 
arm, each spot being placed about 3 mm. apart. ‘These rows are 
very ornamental, and are especially distinct on the umbrella region. 
The inner surface of web and oral aspect of arms is sparsely 
sprinkled with small dots. There is a tendency, especially in the 
smaller specimen, to form pockets in the umbrella. These are not 
to be compared to the aquiferous pouches of Cistopus indicus, Gray, 
as they are merely tranverse or oblique folds of the web extending 
from one arm to the next at about the middle of umbrella. They 
are not confined to any particular pair of arms but are most 
developed between the laterals, where the umbrella is widest, and 
are scarcely indicated between the ventral pair. 
This delicately-pretty species seems to differ from the other 
more or less pale and smooth-skinned Polyps of this region chiefly 
by its small eyes, wide mantle-opening, and short arms possessing 
very prominent suckers and with web not continued up them. 
Polypus elegans (Brock), P. fustformis (Brock) and P. pricez 
(Berry), are perhaps the nearest to it. 
P. elegans has, however, very prominent eyes, a pointed fun- 
nel, much longer arms, and chromatophores which ‘‘ almost vanish 
in alcohol.’ P. fusiformis has a narrower body and head, and 
longer arms and web, and P. pricet is of much more delicate 
consistency with huge eyes and a longer web. 
The principal dimensions are given below : — 

! One specimen has the mantle-opening at one side placed as in the type, e.g., 
at ‘‘ rather more than halfway from the siphon to the eye.”’ 
