76 LEODICID^ OF THE WEST INDIAN REGION. 



Genus PARAMARPHYSA Ehlers. 



Ernst Ehlers, Florida Anneliden, 1887, p. 99. 



Prostomium lobed, with five tentacles. No tentacular cirri or gills. Similar to 

 Marphysa in every respect except that it lacks gills. Maxilla with carrier, forceps, 

 two pairs of paired and one unpaired plate, as in Marphysa, but more delicate in texture. 

 The mandible is also like that of Marphysa, but more delicate. 



Paramarphysa obtusa Verrill. 



(Text-figures 269 to 278.) 

 Paramarphysa obtusa Verrill, 1900, p. 646. 



This species did not appear in my collections, and the following description is based 

 on alcoholic material loaned to me by Professor Verrill. The bottle was labeled as con- 

 taining the type specimen, and in it were two entire individuals and parts of two others. 

 According to the original description, the length varied from 25 to 35 mm., the breadth 

 from 1 to 1.5 mm. The preserved material was a trifle smaller than this. There were 

 approximately 95 somites in the entire individuals. 



The prostomium is a trifle broader than long, with a clearly defined constriction in 

 the median line (text-figure 269). Verrill states that the depth of this furrow depends 

 on the method of preservation. The tentacles are nearly twice as long as the head and 

 definitely clavate at the end. Verrill states that they may be tapered. Apparently this 

 detail varies with the method of preservation or with different conditions in the living 

 animals. The median tentacle is only a trifle longer than the others and a considerable 

 space separates it from the base of the inner lateral. The inner and outer laterals arise 

 close together, so that the base of the outer, when viewed from above, is obscured by 

 the base of the inner. 



The peristomium is nearly twice as long as somite 2. The parapodia begin on the 

 third somite, the first being relatively rather large, and the following ones increase suc- 

 cessively in length, the largest being from the sixth to the tenth. Behind the tenth they 

 decrease in size and throughout most of the body they are very small, though with promi- 

 nent setae and aciculse. 



The first parapodium (text-figure 270) has subequal setal lobes with two very 

 delicate aciculse extending to just beyond their margin. The dorsal cirrus is long and not 

 much tapered; the ventral one is very thick and heavy. In the one drawn there is a 

 constriction near its middle, but I think this was due to handling and was not entirely 

 normal. 



The tenth parapodium (text-figure 271, drawn to the same scale as the first) has a 

 prominent setal portion with a posterior lip slightly longer than the anterior, also a 

 large light-brown acicula extending to the surface between them. The dorsal cirrus is 

 long and slender, the ventral one very thick and with a conical apex. Simple and com- 

 pound setse are present in it, but I was unable to find any pectinate ones so far forward. 



The parapodia farther back in the body are hardly more than slight elevations on 

 the side of each somite, with very inconspicuous cirri. The dorsal cirrus is longer and 

 more slender than the ventral, whose thickness about equals its length. A ventral 

 hooked acicula is present, as are pectinate setae. The shafts of all setae are much longer 

 than anteriorly, but the form of the simple and compound ones differs in no other respect. 



The simple setae (text-figure 272) have very slender stalks with an asymmetrical 

 swelling near the end, tapering beyond this to an acute point. The compound setae 

 (text-figure 273) are very small, the shaft smooth at the end, the terminal joints each 

 with an apical and subapical tooth. The pectinate setae (text-figure 274) have not 

 more than 12 teeth, the two terminal ones equal and longer than the others. 



