y 1 Natural History Bulletin. 



darker colort'd than /-*. dcconis. and is a handsomer species on 

 •account of the greater number of arms. P. dcconis when first 

 out of water usually had the head gracefully drooping and the 

 arms not greatly recurved, the outline of the whole being very 

 much like that of a lih'. Poitacriiiiis iiiitUcri. on the con- 

 trary, came up with the head erect and the numerous arms 

 very greatly recurved, usually meeting below the calyx as do 

 the leaves of some tiger-lilies. P. decants is much more 

 fragile than the other species, both the cirri and arms being- 

 more slender and liable to injury. 



Lieutenant Commander Sigsbee reported that the colors of 

 these pentacrini were light brown, white and yellow. We 

 saw none that were either white or yellow, all being of some 

 shade of light brown, usually with a purplish or violet tinge, 

 and sometimes approaching a flesh color. Bright yellow 

 Comatula" were fairly abundant, and white or nearly white 

 Comatula? were also secured at this place. It occurs to me as 

 possible that Lieutenant Commander Sigsbee may have had 

 these in mind when giving the colors of the pentacrini. 



Several specimens lived some little time after coming on deck. 

 The P. dcconis would gracefully expand its arms until they 

 assumed a reflexed attitude, similar to that of P. uiuUcri. 

 The cirri were also waved about as if seeking support, and 

 there was some motion of the stem. We did not observe any 

 independent motion of the pinnules. 



A majority of the specimens came on deck in good condition. 

 Some were broken in the operation of disentangling from the 

 hemp strands, and a few. not very many, w^ere ruined by their 

 noted proclivity to '• flv all to pieces" wdien displeased, a 

 shocking habit, especially in crinoids worth tw^enty dollars 

 apiece. 

 ■ The method of preserving in pairs of pans soldered together, 

 as described on page 56, worked admirably, the specimens thus 

 cared for reaching Iowa Cit}-, after three months' tossing about 

 on the '• Emih' E. Johnson,"' in excellent condition, not having 

 suffered the slightest damage so far as we could see. The 

 remainder were transported in a large square tank of alcohol, 



