REPORT ON THK I'ENNATULIDA. 



collected by H. M. S. Challenger,* shows the relative positions and 



affinities of the three genera: — 



OllDER. PeNNATULII>A. 



Section I. — Pcnnnttdcce : polypes on leaves. 

 Family 1. Pteroeididtr. 

 Family 2. Pennatulidcc. 



Genus, Pennatula. 

 Family 3. Virgularidic. 



Genus, Virfjidaria. 

 Family 4. Stylatulidce. 

 Section II. — Spicatcp : polypes sessile. 

 Family 1. Funic\iUnida. 



Genus, Ftiiiiculina. 

 Section III. — BcniUece : rachis expanded in form of a leaf. 

 Section IV. — Verctillccc : polypes arranged radially, not bilaterally. 

 Of the three genera with which we are concerned F^miculina is the 

 rarest, and in many Avays the most intei'estiug, and we therefore 

 propose to deal with it first, reserving Pennatula and Virgularia for 

 subsequent papers. An additional reason for adopting this course is 

 afforded by the fact that while the internal structure of Pennatula and 

 Vircjularia has been described and figured by various writers, that of 

 FunicuUna is known to us only through the very cai'eful and elaborate 

 description given by Kolliker in his monograph on the Pennatulida;f 

 and this description, though very full, is yet incomplete in some points 

 on which the opportunity of examining perfect specimens, either living 

 or recently preserved, has enabled us to throw some light. 



We have devoted special attention to the figures illustrating this 

 paper, all of which have either been drawn direct from the object with 

 the aid of a camera, or else, where— as in Plate I. fig. 3 — it was 

 impossible to obtain a direct view in the required position, have been 

 compiled from several camera drawings of the individual parts con- 

 cerned. We desire to lay some stress on this point, inasrauch as the 

 figures of FunicuUna hitherto published! are either very inaccurate, 

 or if correct, as is the case with Kolliker"s figures, are taken from 

 specimens with the tentacles completely retracted, and consequently 

 fail to express accurately the appearance of the living animal. 



PaKT I. — FUNICULINA QUADEANGULARIS. PallaS. 



Of this rare and interesting species the following specimens were 

 obtained : — 



a. Four living specimens : one a remarkably large and perfect 

 example, thirty-nine inches in length ; a second, smaller and less 

 mature specimen, twenty inches long ; and two much smaller ones of 

 ten and eight inches length respectively. 



* Kiilliker: Zoology of Challenger Expedition, Part II., 1880, pp., 33-35. 

 t Kiilliker : Anatouiiscli — systeniatisclie Beschreibung dor Alcyonarien. 

 Erstfe Abtheilung : Die Ponnatuliden, 1872, pp. 250-261. 

 I A full list of all the figures of FunicuUna hitherto published is given at 

 the end of this paper in connection with the literature of our subject, 



