Volume ILI. Fune, 1889. Number f. 
JOURNAL 
OF 
NiO OC y. 
THE ACTINIARIA OF THE BAHAMA ISLANDS, W.I. 
J. PLAYFAIR McMURRICH, M.A., Pu.D. 
DurRING the summer of 1887 the Marine Zoological Station of 
the Johns Hopkins University was established near Nassau, the 
capital of the Bahama Islands, W.L., situated upon the island of 
New Providence. Through the courtesy of the Director of the 
Station, Dr. W. K. Brooks, I was able to make use of the facili- 
ties offered by the Station, and a portion of my stay of five 
weeks was occupied in studying the Actinian fauna of the 
neighborhood. For the most part, my observations were con- 
fined to the vicinity of the Station; but a few excursions were 
made to neighboring islands, and on one occasion I visited a 
cove situated a couple of miles to the westward of Nassau. 
In 1886 the Johns Hopkins Station was located on Green 
Turtle Cay, upon the eastern side of Great Abaco Island, one 
of the islands of the Little Bahama Bank, lying some hundred 
miles to the north of New Providence. While there, the artist, 
Mr. Uhthoff, who accompanied the expedition of that year, made 
colored sketches in oils of the commoner Actinia collected. 
These drawings Dr. Brooks kindly handed over to me, and 
though wanting sufficient attention to details, nevertheless allow 
of ready identification by one acquainted with the living speci- 
mens. The chief value of the drawings lies in their demonstra- 
tion of the similarity of the forms inhabiting the Little Bahama 
Bank to those found farther south, all the species represented, 
with one exception, having been found at New Providence. 
