Section IV., 1914 [217] Trans. R.S.C. 



Notes on Some Alaskan Hydroids. 



By C. McLean Fraser. 



Curator of the Pacific Coast Biological Station. 



While carrying on investigations on a halibut boat in August 1914, 

 Dr. A. Willey collected a number of marine specimens that came up 

 on the halibut hooks. In the material so collected on August 20, in 

 50 fathoms, on the halibut grounds southeast of Trinity Islands in the 

 Gulf of Alaska, was a three-ounce bottle of small specimens. As 

 these included a number of hydroids, Dr. Willey kindly placed them 

 at my disposal for examination. 



The collection proved to be of considerable interest as it con- 

 tained specimens of 15 species in which 7 families were represented. 

 The fact that so many species could be obtained so incidentally merely 

 adds strength to the conclusion that the ground must be extremely 

 rich in this particular fauna, as it must be in others as well. Some 

 fine collections have been made off the Alaskan coast but it would seem 

 that little impression has been made if the hydroid fauna can be taken 

 as a basis for judging, since of the 15 species obtained at this time no 

 less than 7 have not been reported previously anywhere in Alaskan 

 waters. These are Tubularia crocea, Halecium tenellum, H. wash- 

 ingtoni, Ophiodes carchesium, Lictorella Carolina, Abietinaria gracilis 

 and Plumularia halecioides. Of these 7, one, Ophiodes carchesium, 

 is described as new and another, Plumularia halecioides, has not been 

 previously reported from the west coast of North America. 



The large mass of the material consisted of specimens of Abieti- 

 naria abietina, over which several of the other species were growing, 

 while many others were creeping over bryozoan colonies of which 

 there probably were as many species as there were of the hydroids. 



List of species 



GYMNOBLASTEA 



Family tubulariD/E 

 Tubularia crocea (Agassiz) 



CALYPTOBLASTEA 



Family campanularim; 



Campanidaria intégra MacGillivray 



Campanularia verticillata (Linnaeus) 



Sec. IV, 1914—20 



