[ ^ ] 



The Alcyonaria, Antipatharia, and Madreporaria 



collected by the ' ' Huxley " from the North Side 



of the Bay of Biscay in August, 1906. 



By 

 Sydney J. Hickson, M.A., F.R.S. 



(Professor of Zoology in the Victoria University of Mancliester.) 



The principal feature of interest in these collections is the presence 

 of a single fine specimen of Cor allium maderensc. Only one other 

 specimen of this species has hitherto been obtained, and no specimen 

 of the family has <hitherto been recorded from the Bay of Biscay. 



The occurrence of Si/mpodmm. coralloidcs in the Bay is also a feature 

 of some interest, but not very surprising, as it is in other localities 

 usually associated with the Madreporarian corals on which it was 

 found. 



ALCYONARIA. 



Family ALCYONIID^. 

 Alcyonium coralloides, Pall. 



Gorgonia coralloides, Pallas, Uleiich. Zooijliyt. 

 Atcyonviim coralloidcs, von Koch, Zool. Jalirh., v. 1891, p. 76. 

 Synipodium. coralloidcs, de Lacaze Duthiers, Arcliiv. dc Zool. Exper., 

 3°, viii. 1900, p. 360. 



Station VIL Lat. K 47° 36'. Long. W. 7° 31'. m fathoms. 

 A few small specimens evidently belonging to the white variety of 

 this species are found encrusting the dead bases of the Oculinid corals. 

 None of the specimens are large enough to enable me to reopen the 

 question whether the species belongs to the genus Sympodiuin or 

 the genus Alcyonium. Notwithstanding the very able discussion of this 

 question by de Lacaze Duthiers, who retains the species in the genus 

 Sympodium, I am inclined to consider the reasons given by von Koch 

 for transferring it to the genus Alcyonium as unanswerable. In any 

 case, it is an extremely interesting connecting link between the 

 Stolonifera and the Alcyonacea. In the Mediterranean Sea the 



