A. E. Verrill — Revision Genera and Species of Starfishes. 167 



lated in the same way, but their presence gives an appearance of 

 irregularity to the arrangement of the plates. 



Papular pores are of moderate size and not very numerous ; they 

 are confined to the median radial areas. In young specimens these 

 areas are small and well defined and the pores few. Each pore seems 

 to be surrounded by a special group of granules. 



This genus is distinguished from Tosia and Pentagonaster espe- 

 cially by the existence of smaller secondary, rounded plates between 

 the primary abactinal plates, and also by the greater specialization 

 of the furrow-series of adambulacral spines, for these do not grade 

 into the actinal granulation, as they do in the genera referred to. 

 In this respect this genus is more nearly like 3fecUaster, but the 

 latter does not have the secondary abactinal plates, but has concealed, 

 radiating connecting ossicles between the distinctly separated abac- 

 tinal plates. Peltaster also has secondary abactinal ossicles, but 

 they are diflferent in character, and it also differs in having broad 

 valvular pedicellariaj and graded adambulacral spinules. 



Pyrenaster dentatus (Perrier) Ver. 



PeH^ofifonasiei' dentatws Perrier, Nouv. Arch, du Mus., vi, p. 342, pi. viii, fig. 3, 

 1884. Sladen, op. cit., pp. 265, 744, 1887. 



Plate XXVII. Figures 3, 3a, 3&. 



I have had an opportunity to examine Perrier's types of this species, 

 in the Mus. of Comp. Zoology, and to compare them with those 

 dredged by the " Albatross." 



Among the latter there are both large and small specimens. They 

 show remarkable variations in several respects. 



Two large examples of the same size, Nos. 10,370 and 18,433, are 

 of special interest. In the former, four or five distal pairs of dorsal 

 marginal plates are in contact medially. In No. 18,43.3, which is 

 closely similar in other respects, all the plates, or all but the last pair, 

 are separated by abactinal plates. In this specimen, on one margin, 

 two upper plates correspond to one lower, so that there is an odd 

 median plate above. In some of the young specimens one or more 

 odd, interradial marginal plates may occur both above and below. 



This species was taken by the Blake Exp., in 41 to 1500 fathoms. 

 By the Albatross it was dredged in several localities, in the West 

 Indies and off the Carolina coasts, in 478 to 1639 fathoms. 



