﻿164 
  COLLECTIONS 
  FEOM 
  MELANESIA. 
  

  

  washed 
  with 
  purple 
  ; 
  the 
  middle 
  line 
  of 
  the 
  arms 
  is 
  lighter, 
  but 
  

   patches 
  or 
  spots 
  of 
  purple 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  at 
  the 
  sides 
  ; 
  the 
  lower 
  

   surface 
  is 
  a 
  little 
  lighter 
  on 
  the 
  disk 
  than 
  on 
  the 
  arms, 
  where 
  it 
  is 
  

   almost 
  black. 
  

  

  Port 
  Mollo, 
  12 
  fms. 
  

  

  Three 
  smaller 
  specimens 
  alreadj^ 
  in 
  the 
  collection 
  of 
  the 
  British 
  

   Museum, 
  from 
  ]Sicol 
  Bay, 
  N.W. 
  Australia, 
  must, 
  I 
  think, 
  be 
  

   referred 
  to 
  this 
  species. 
  The 
  smallest 
  of 
  these 
  has 
  not 
  more 
  than 
  

   30 
  cirri, 
  nor 
  have 
  they 
  more 
  than 
  40 
  joints 
  ; 
  their 
  spines, 
  and 
  espe- 
  

   cially 
  the 
  penultimate 
  one, 
  are 
  better 
  developed. 
  There 
  are 
  only 
  

   about 
  50 
  arms, 
  and 
  in 
  some 
  cases 
  there 
  are 
  only 
  two 
  palmars 
  (when 
  

   the 
  axillary 
  is 
  not 
  a 
  syzygy). 
  The 
  ground-colour 
  is 
  purplish, 
  marked 
  

   with 
  yellow 
  bands. 
  

  

  16. 
  Actinometra 
  Solaris. 
  

  

  P. 
  H. 
  Carpenter, 
  Notes 
  Leyd. 
  Mtts. 
  iii. 
  p. 
  192 
  ; 
  Journ. 
  Linn. 
  Soc, 
  Zool. 
  

   xvi. 
  p. 
  514. 
  

  

  Two 
  specimens 
  of 
  different 
  sizes 
  do, 
  I 
  think, 
  undoubtedly 
  belong 
  to 
  

   this 
  species, 
  to 
  which 
  specimens 
  have 
  not 
  unfrequently 
  been 
  assigned 
  

   that 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  distinguished 
  by 
  what 
  are 
  apparently 
  good 
  specific 
  

   characters. 
  

  

  Prince 
  of 
  Wales 
  Channel. 
  

  

  The 
  greatest 
  difficulties 
  attend 
  the 
  exact 
  delimitation 
  of 
  the 
  specific 
  

   characters 
  of 
  this 
  species 
  ; 
  and 
  the 
  question 
  whether 
  they 
  vary 
  within 
  

   wide 
  limits 
  or 
  are, 
  rather, 
  sharply 
  defined 
  cannot 
  yet 
  be 
  answered. 
  

   For 
  the 
  purposes 
  of 
  exact 
  knowledge 
  it 
  seems 
  to 
  be 
  at 
  present 
  the 
  

   better 
  course 
  to 
  try 
  and 
  recognize 
  points 
  of 
  difference 
  between 
  

   allied 
  forms 
  ; 
  we 
  must 
  by 
  experiment 
  and 
  experience 
  discover 
  which 
  

   of 
  the 
  characters 
  of 
  a 
  Comatulid 
  afford 
  trustworthy 
  criteria 
  in 
  the 
  

   discrimination 
  of 
  species 
  ; 
  so 
  few 
  forms 
  have, 
  as 
  yet, 
  been 
  described, 
  

   and 
  so 
  little 
  criticism 
  has 
  been 
  brought 
  to 
  bear 
  on 
  what 
  work 
  has 
  

   been 
  done, 
  that 
  our 
  knowledge 
  of 
  how 
  species 
  are 
  to 
  be 
  defined 
  and 
  

   delimited 
  is 
  as 
  yet 
  in 
  a 
  very 
  elementary 
  condition. 
  

  

  The 
  only 
  consolation 
  is 
  to 
  be 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  reflection 
  that 
  what 
  

   may 
  seem, 
  with 
  wider 
  knowledge, 
  to 
  be 
  a 
  " 
  bad 
  species 
  " 
  is 
  justifiably 
  

   regarded 
  now 
  as 
  a 
  " 
  good 
  one," 
  and 
  that 
  wary 
  specific 
  discrimina- 
  

   tion 
  is 
  often 
  a 
  considerable 
  aid 
  to 
  the 
  exact 
  and 
  accurate 
  knowledge 
  

   of 
  the 
  characters 
  of 
  complex 
  and 
  elaborate 
  forms. 
  

  

  The 
  two 
  specimens 
  here 
  ascribed 
  to 
  A. 
  Solaris 
  present 
  the 
  fol- 
  

   lowing 
  characters 
  : 
  — 
  

  

  There 
  are 
  12 
  cirri, 
  and 
  there 
  may 
  be 
  only 
  18 
  joints 
  in 
  a 
  

   cirrus 
  ; 
  the 
  more 
  proximal 
  joints 
  of 
  the 
  arms 
  of 
  the 
  smaller 
  spe- 
  

   cimen 
  are 
  more 
  " 
  knobby 
  " 
  than 
  the 
  correspondingly 
  placed 
  joints 
  

   in 
  the 
  larger. 
  In 
  both 
  cases 
  the 
  arms 
  are 
  at 
  their 
  widest 
  a 
  Little 
  

   distance 
  from 
  the 
  disk 
  ; 
  the 
  keels 
  on 
  the 
  basal 
  joints 
  of 
  the 
  second 
  

   pinnule 
  are 
  well 
  marked 
  in 
  the 
  smaller 
  specimen 
  ; 
  but 
  in 
  neither 
  

   case 
  are 
  there 
  any 
  very 
  prominent 
  keels 
  on 
  the 
  basal 
  joints 
  of 
  the 
  

   third 
  pinnules. 
  

  

  