254 J. T. CUNNINGHAM. 



accuracy, hence leading Miiller into error when comparing his 

 form with that of Pallas; or Pallas's figures are correct 

 (although his references in the text are wrong), and his species 

 is distinct from that of Miiller (for the condition of the comb 

 appears to be the only important difference between the two). 

 Looking at the inaccuracy of the drawings as compared with 

 var. capensis in Pallas' s work, and taking into account the 

 indistinctly double series of teeth shown in figs. 5, 8, and 9 of 

 var. belgica, I think that probably the former view is most 

 likely to be the correct one. In that case P. auricoma of 

 Miiller disappears, and becomes P. belgica of Pallas." How 

 a zoologist, after actually referring to the description and 

 figures given by Miiller of Amphitrite auricoma, and to 

 the description and figures of both species given by Malmgren 

 in his 'Nordiska Hafs-Annulater/ could suppose the condition 

 of the comb to be the only important difference between the 

 two, it is difficult to understand. The two distinguishing 

 features given by Miiller are (1) the curvature of the tube; (2) 

 the serration of the margin of the flattened area behind the 

 palrnulce. Malmgren mentions both these characters and 

 figures them, and he examined specimens of both species ; only 

 Malmgren made the two characters generic instead of specific, 

 and called Muller's species Amphictene auricoma. We 

 can state with certainty that in our specimens the tube is 

 perfectly straight, and the margin of the post-palmular area 

 perfectly entire. The presence of two distinct palmulse, as 

 Mr. Harvey Gibson would have seen if he had studied the 

 Latin descriptions of Malmgren, is common to the whole 

 family Amphictenea. 



There are three pairs of nephridia inPectinaria belgica, 

 of which the first are the largest ; all the organs are of the 

 usual type, each consisting of a tube bent upon itself and pro- 

 vided with a nephrostome and an opening to the exterior. 

 There is a transverse septum separating the buccal somite from 

 the following ; the nephrostome of the first nephridium is on 

 the anterior side of this septum. The nephridia are brown or 

 black in colour. The tube of the first reaches dorsalwards 



