[179] CErHALOPODS OF NORTHEASTERN COAST OF AMERICA. 389 



Farasira catenulata Steeustrup. 



Octopus tuberculatum Risso(?), Hist. nat. del'Eur. m6rid., iv, p. 3,1826 (t.d'Orbig.). 

 Octopus catenulalus Fe"russac, Poulpes, pi. 6, bis, ter., 1828 (t. D'Orbig.). 

 Philonexis tuberculatus Fe"r. and D'Orbig., Ce"ph. Ace"tab.,p. 87, pi. 6, bis, ter. 

 Parasira catenulata Steenstrup, Vidensk. Meddel. naturb. Forening, Kjoben- 

 havn, 1860, p. 333. 



Verrill, Amer. Journ. Sci., six, p. 293, Apr., 1880; Trans. Conn. Acad.,v, p^ 

 362, pi. 33, figs. 2, 2a, 1881. 



Plate XL, figures 2, 2a. 



Female: Body relatively large, swollen, rather higher than broad, 

 dilated below, larger in front, obtusely rounded posteriorly; upper sur- 

 face smooth or finely wrinkled ; lower surface covered with prominent, 

 rounded verrucae, or small hard tubercles, which are connected together 

 by raised ridges, five (sometimes six) of which usually run to each 

 tubercle, thus circumscribing angular depressed areas, each of which 

 usually has a dark-colored spot in the center ; on the sides these tuber- 

 cles are less prominent and less regular, gradually fading out above. 

 The head is decidedly smaller than the body, and smooth both above 

 and below. The eyes are prominent, but the external opening is small, 

 round, with simple border. The gill-opening is large, and extends up- 

 ward on the sides of the neck to the level of the upper side of the eye- 

 balls. The siphon-tube is completely united by its basal portion to the 

 lower side of the head; its free portion is large and elongated, starting 

 from well forward, between the bases of the ventral arms. There is a con- 

 spicuous aquiferous pore, at each side of the base of the siphon, just back 

 of the ventral arms. The arms are stout, not very long ; the inner sur- 

 face is broad, with two rows of rather widely separated suckers, which 

 run along the margins of the arms; the suckers are rather large, and 

 considerably raised, on stout bases; the first suckers form a regular 

 circle around the mouth; two or three basal suckers are nearly in a 

 single row. The suckers are cup-shaped, with a deep central pit, around 

 which there are strong radial ridges; toward the base of the arms the 

 soft, swollen rims of the suckers are wrinkled and lobulated ; farther 

 out they are smooth and even. The beak is black, with sharp tips. It 

 is surrounded by a thick, wrinkled buccal membrane. 



The arms are slightly united at base by a narrow web, which also 

 runs along each of the outer angles of the six upper arms, forming more 

 or less wide marginal membranes, according to the state of contraction, 

 and by their contractions causing the arms to curl in various directions; 

 one of these membranes frequently disappears, the other being so 

 stretched as to become wide, when the arm is strongly recurved ; on the 

 ventral arms the upper membrane becomes strongly developed, while 

 the lower one is abortive. There is also a slight marginal membrane 

 along the inner margins, running between the suckers and connecting 

 them together. The dorsal and ventral arms are considerably larger and 

 longer than the two lateral pairs, the dorsal ones are the stoutest. The 

 two lateral pairs are about equal in size and length. On the dorsal 

 arms there are about 9G suckers; on the lateral ones about 80 that can 



