108 MADREPORARIA. 
in the radial corallites rarely more than the directive septa are recognizable. Wall striate at 
first, echinulate at the base, the whole surface becoming covered with plate-like echinulations 
later. 
Pacific Ocean: Fiji, Great-Barrier Reef, Tizard Bank. 
a. Tizard Bank, 94 fathoms. H.M.S, ‘Rambler.’ 89. 9. 24. 90. (=M. hyacinthus, 
B.-Sm.) 
6. Tizard Bank, 94 fathoms. H.M.S. ‘Rambler.’ 89. 9. 24. 116. (=M. vastula, 
B.-Sm.) 
c,d. Tizard Bank, 94 fathoms. H.M.S. ‘Rambler.’ 93. 4. 7. 97 & 166. 
e. Palm Island. Saville-Kent Coll. 92. 6. 8. 220. 
e ? aoe rales Rall 
102. Madrepora conferta. 
? Madrepora microcladus, Briiggemann (non Ehrenberg), Phil. Trans. 1879, vol. elxviii. p. 575. 
Madrepora conferta, Quelch, ‘ Challenger’ Reef-Corals, p. 164, pl. x. fig. 3; Rathbun, Proc. U.S. Nat. 
Mus. 1887, vol. x. p. 18. 
Madrepora hyacinthus, Quelch (non Dana), ‘ Challenger’ Reef-Corals, p. 164. 
Madrepora vasiula, Quelch, ‘ Challenger’ Reef-Corals, p. 165, pl. x. fig. 4 (non B.-Smith, Ann. Mag. 
N. H. 1890, vol. vi. p. 455), 
Corallum pedicellate, vasiform or plate-like, about 3 cm. thick; either very shallow 
(M. hyacinthus, Quelch) or funnel-shaped (M. vastula, Quelch). Main branches 1°5 cm. or 
more in diameter, often laterally compressed, but those which appear on the under surface are 
rarely over 5 to 6 mm. diameter, closely packed and intricately coalescent with narrow 
elongate meshes. On the under surface there are numerous short ramiculi and proliferous 
corallites not over 8 mm. long and the majority under 5 mm., some of the longer ones extend 
obliquely from the sides of the branches, but the majority stand off at right angles (Quelch 
says, “closely appressed into the plane of the frond”). The under surface of the network 
between the proliferations is supplied with erect tubular corallites 2 to 2°5 mm. long and 
15 mm. diameter, with immersed and subimmersed ones between. The “solid areas” 
described by Quelch are probably accidental and cannot be considered as characteristic of the 
species. The branchlets on the upper surface are short, erect, and very crowded, their apices 
rarely over 5 mm. apart; they are usually 8 to 12 mm. long and 4 to 6 mm. broad just below 
the apex, but rather narrower below where the radial corallites are shorter; many are 
proliferous, and those near the margin of the colony extend obliquely and may be longer. 
Axial corallites about 1:75 mm. in diameter, 1 mm. exsert or a little more. Radial coral- 
lites rather spreading, boat-shaped or broad, and curved labellate; wall thm and not 
compressed, 1 to 1°5 mm. long and 1 mm. broad, or slightly more across the lip ; towards the 
base of the branchlets the corallites are shorter and become immersed or subimmersed on the 
branches. Corallum rather dense, but porous near the apex of the branchlets; surface 
striato-reticulate and echinulate, wall striato-echinulate. The primary septa are all narrow 
in the radial corallites, sometimes only the directives are recognizable. 
