WEST INDIAN STARFISHES 179 



Adambulacral plates triseriate; inner row of three slender 

 unequal ; second series of two or three, short, truncate, subequal. 

 (Condensed, from Sladen.) 



Easily distinguished by the broad marginal plates and small 

 acute lateral spines. Taken by the Challenger, off Pernambuco, 

 Brazil, between 32 and 400 fathoms (special station record lost). 



AsTBOPECTEN NiTmus Verrill, sp. nov. 



Plate XX ; figure 2. Type. 



Regularly stellate with rather short acute rays and a prom- 

 inent and wide border of spineless granulated plates. 



Radii of the largest specimen (No. 18,344) are 11^™ and 41™™; 

 ratio, 1 :3.7 ; breadth of rays at base, minus spines, 12°^™ ; breadth 

 of paxillar area, at second plate, S™"". The radius of the disk 

 is equal to the length of seven proximal dorsal plates. 



The superomarginal plates are wide, evenly convex, with 

 deep, directly transverse, sutural grooves. The first plate is en- 

 larged above, wedge-shaped, and larger than the next. The 

 proximal plates are rectangular, the width of the third plate is 

 equal to three times its length; distally they become nearly 

 square. They are closely covered with small, short, rounded 

 or polygonal granules. 



The dorsal paxillar area is narrow, less than twice the width of 

 the adjacent marginal plate at the base of the rays. The paxil- 

 lae are not very small and form pretty obvious transverse rows 

 on the rays; those along the middle band are as large as the 

 others. Their spinules are regularly stellate, small, clavate, 

 about 10 to 15 on the larger ones, around the margin, surround 

 one or two central spinules of the same size. Those on the disk 

 are similar in size, except at a very small raised central area, 

 where they become very small and crowded. The madreporic 

 plate is partly visible, small, convex, separated from the mar- 

 ginal plates by about three rows of paxillae. 



The ocular plate is small, broader than long, deeply bilobed, 

 strongly upturned. 



The inferomarginal plates do not project beyond the upper 

 ones; they bear two moderately long, tapered, acute, subequal 

 spines. Their under side is covered with fine, acute, suberect 

 spinules and two transverse rows of small acute spines. 



