A. E. Verrill—Bermudian and Wei^t Indian Beef Corals. loO 



The o^eiu'i-al color of the coral, in life, is yellow, yellowish brown, 

 or purplish brown ; disk often purjdish, with white radii, forming a 

 star around the mouth ; lips and tips of tentacles white. 



As stated by Pourtales, and figured by rae in 1900, there are three 

 pentanierous cycles of tentacles (5, 5, 10) and two equal cycles of 

 septa (5, 5). Sometimes a few rudimentary septa of the third cycle 

 appear. One Bermuda specimen has several \'gy\ large calicles, with 

 20 to 30 regular septa. PI. xiv, tig. G. 



Duncan (Revision, p. 45, 1884) united Axohelia E. and H. with 

 this genus, under the name of Madrach. Several others have done 

 the same. Vaughan, however (o]). cit., pp. 5, 8), proposes to unite 

 them under the name Axhelia. Both names are of the same date. 

 Therefore, if they are to be united, Duncan's choice of names has 

 precedence and should l)e upheld. Kent gave it the name Pentalo- 

 phora., as a substitute for Meussia (preoccupied). 



However, these genera seem to me sufficiently distinct. Axohelia 

 lacks the definite bounding ridges of the calicles and the granulated 

 exotheca. Its exothecal surfaces are smooth or striated, and show 

 no partitions between the calicles. 



Perhaps the Madracls taken by the Challenger, on the S. W. 

 Bank, in 30 fathoms, and recorded by Moseley as M. aspei'ula, was 

 M. decactis, which is not uncommon on the reefs in shallow water.* 



Some of the lobulated or branched clumps are 6 inches or more 

 high and broad, but they are very brittle and not often obtained 

 entire. Several large and fine specimens of this kind are preserved 

 in the American Museum, New York, as well as a slender, dichoto- 

 mously branched variety. Both forms occur at the Bermudas. 



It is found on the Bermuda Reefs and throughout the West Indies. 

 It also occurs as a fossil in the raised reefs of many of the islands. 

 Gregory (op. cit.) records it as a Pleistocene fossil from Bermuda, 

 (probably from Nelson's collection in Geol. Soc, London). The age 

 of such Bermuda fossils, from the "beach rock," is however very 

 uncertain, but they are probably postpliocene, or post glacial. 



Pourtales was evidently wrong in referring to this species the 

 Stylop/wra mirabilis Duch. and Mich. Prol^abl}' he was misled by 

 errors in the numbering of the plate (ix). On that plate there are 

 two figs. 9. One of these is a misprint for 1, and represents the 

 enlarged calicles of the mirabilis (fig. 6), and shows 18 to 24 equal 

 septa. The other fig. 9 is a Solenastrcea and should have been 10. 

 Other errors in numbering occur on this plate. 



* Poui-tales (Deep Sea Corals, p. 27, pi. vii, fig. 4, and in later papers) records 

 M. asperula Edw. and Haime, from the West Indian I'egion, in 36-380 fathoms. 



