DESCRIPTIONS OF GENERA AND SPECIES. 
Section MADREPORARIA APOROSA. 
Subsection OCULINIDA. 
Family OcULINIDE. 
Genus 1. Oculina, Lamarck. 
Oculina, (pars), Lamarck, Hist. Anim. sans Vert., ii. p. 283, 1816. 
Milne-Edwards and Haime, Cor. (Hist. Nat.), ii. p. 105. 
Duncan, Revision (Madreporaria), p. 41. 
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Seven species of this genus are represented. 
1. Oculina diffusa, Lamarck. 
Oculina diffusa, Lamarck, Hist. Anim, sans Vert., ii. p. 285, 1816. 
Milne-Edwards and Haime, Cor., ii. p. 107. 
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A very fine large specimen and many small much branched pieces were obtained. 
The small pieces, which were from Bermuda, have the surface scarcely granulated, while 
the branches are very shortly divided and much thickened ; the branchlets are subequal 
in thickness throughout, and closely crowded with calicles at their extremities, owing to 
the clustered incipient branchlets. 
The large specimen from St. Thomas presents some interesting features, differing 
considerably from the Bermuda specimens ; but on comparison with a large series of the 
species, it is impossible to separate it by any fairly constant character. This specimen 
consists of a closely crowded and densely branched tuft, very coalescent below, with 
numerous, nearly straight, upright branchlets above, which are often 3 cn. long. The 
extremities are not clustered with incipient branchlets nor crowded with closely placed 
calicles, New branchlets, with rare exceptions, originate, not at the extreme apex of the 
branches, but laterally from numerous buds on different parts of the corallum, chiefly on 
the basal parts of the smaller branchlets. The calicles on the apical parts are 3 to 
4 mm. in diameter, regularly oval, rather distant and prominent, with well-marked 
