69 



standpoint should not cease. Every year the female 

 colony shoots out into the water a large number 

 of eggs which, being provided with a considerable quantity of 

 yolk and having no spicules nor offensive weapons in the 

 form of thread cells, may form a substantial meal to certain 

 species of fish. This is, of course, simply a suggestion, as 

 there is no evidence that fish do feed upon these ova, but I 

 venture to think it is a suggestion worthy of some experi- 

 mental inquiry. For this reason I have added a statement 

 concerning the condition of the sexual organs of each species. 

 The isolated observations I have been able to make do not 

 give satisfactory results, but they seem to point to the exist- 

 ence of two spawning seasons among the Alcyonarians. 

 Heteroxenia and Gorgonia capensis probably spawn in June 

 or July, while Alcyonium pachyclados, Cavernularia (both 

 species), Juncella, and Acrophytum spawn in December, 

 January, or February. 



There are not many references in literature to Alcyonaria 

 from the Cape of Good Hope. Ellis and Solander described 

 Gorgonia flammea in 1786. Mobius, in 1861, described 

 Solanderia verrucosa from Algoa Bay, the name being after- 

 wards changed by Kolliker to Spongioderma verrucosum, 

 and from the same locality a new species of Lophogorgia, 

 namely, L. crista. In 1878, Studer described Isidella 

 (Primnoisis) capensis, Eunicella papillosa, Anthelia capensis, 

 Leptogorgia palma (Gorgonia fiammea) and Eunicella 

 albicans. 



Verrill (18) enumerated the following species of Alcyonaria 

 from the Cape of Good Hope. 



Euplexaura capensis, Leptogorgia flammea, Eunicella 

 palma, Eunephthya thyrsoidea. It is impossible to deter- 

 mine what the Euplexaura is that he refers to here, as he 

 gives no figure. The description of the spicules does not cor- 

 respond with any of the spicules from the present collection. 

 Leptogorgia flammea (Verrill) is the same as the Gorgonia 

 flammea of our collections, Eunicella palma = Gorgonia 

 albicans of Kolliker is included in Studer's genus Platygorgia. 

 I cannot, however, identify any of my specimens with this 

 species. The Eunephthya was obtained in False Bav at a 

 depth of 20 fathoms. Verrill gives a figure which, although 

 not very satisfactory, is sufficient to indicate that the species 

 is not in our collection. The colour is described as wine 

 yellow or light brown. 



As it may be of some service to those who have oppor- 

 tunities of examining Alcyonarians from localities in the 



