REPORT ON ACTINIARIA. 245 



did not posses black pigment in its endoderm, as no mention 

 is made of it, although individuals of a colony were dissected. 

 In fact the occurrence of this black pigment in the present 

 species seems to separate it from all hitherto described species 

 from the West Indies, except the P. lutea of Hertwig and 

 Erdmann from the Bermudas, in which " Das ganze entoder- 

 male Epithel is mit dunkeln Kornchen pigmentiert" (Erdmann 

 '85). This form is, however, very different from the present 

 one, judging from the figure of a colony given by Erdmann 

 and Hertwig ('88). 



In addition to the occurrence of the pigment the shape of 

 the sphincter also serves to separate the form now under dis- 

 cussion from P. ocelJata and P.Jiava, it being much shorter 

 and weaker, and a distinguishing feature is also found in the 

 greater amount of foreign matter contained in its mesogloea, 

 sections of its column wall appearing when decalcified much 

 more fenestrated than in either of the species just mentioned. 

 From P. cinerea Duch. and Mich, it seems to be distinguished 

 by the lesser size of its polyps, and from P.glutinosa Duch. 

 and Mich., P. caribcea Duch. and Mich., P. giareola Lesueur, 

 and P. lutca Hertwig it differs in the marked projection of the 

 contracted polyps above the general surface of the ccenen- 

 chyme. 



With none of the West Indian species of Palythoa then 

 does it appear to agree, nor do I see any reason for identifying 

 it with any of the species described from other localities. The 

 depth from which it was taken does not seem to be sufficient 

 to preclude its identity with one of the littoral forms, and yet 

 it seems to be decidedly different from any at present known. 

 How far the occurrence of the black pigment is a specific 

 characteristic remains to be seen, but it seems improbable that 

 it is merely a local or a seasonal peculiarity. 



11. Epizoanthus hians sp. nov. 



Station No. 51. American Shoal light bearing N. by W. 



10 miles; about 100 fathoms. 

 Station No. 52. American Shoal light bearing N. by W« 



x / 2 W.; about 10 miles; 105-110 fathoms. 



