678 SUMMARY OF CURRENT RESEARCHES RELATING TO 



was a colony with a single central sterile autozooid, mostly surrounded 

 by a sparse ccenenchyma in which there are numerous small fertile siphono- 

 zooids, less abundant towards the base and finally absent at the very foot. 

 This interesting type seems to be nearly related to Anthomastus, especially 

 to the form which Hickson referred to Verrill's A . grandiflorus. Mor- 

 phologically it is a dimorphic colony ; physiologically it is a solitary 

 polyp with gonads imbedded in its walls. 



Structure of Spongodes.* — W. Harms points out that there are, 

 according to Kukenthal, 95 species of Spongodes or Dendronephthya, that 

 in most cases only a few specimens of each species have been studied, 

 and that there is reason to suspect great variability and modifiability. 

 It is therefore necessary to get below superficialities and investigate the 

 detailed internal structure, in regard to which relatively little is known. 

 Harms has therefore studied a number of species, and describes in a 

 general way the spiculation (noting the occurrence of hollow spicules), 

 the tentacles, the stomodgeum, the ventral "spicular cavities" on the 

 polyp-wall for the reception of the " Stiitzbundel," the mesenteric fila- 

 ments, the gonads, and the canal-system. The general result is to show 

 the essential anatomical similarity of different species ; the internal struc- 

 ture does not seem to help very much in deciding whether the so-called 

 species are well defined or are only local varieties. The structure of 

 the testes in specimens from Torres Straits is described. 



Precious Corals.f — Sydney J. Hickson gives an interesting account 

 of Corallium ; its distribution, its ancient uses in medicine, and its naturai 

 history. At present the coral fisheries of importance are in the Medi- 

 terranean, off the Cape Verd Islands, and off Japan. The bulk of 

 Japanese coral is exported to Italy and China. 



There is dimorphism in Corallium nobile (Moseley, 1882), and the 

 gonads are in the autozooids (Lacaze-Duthiers, 1864) ; in C. regime 

 Hickson found that the gonads are in the siphon ozooids. The herma- 

 phroditism of C'.ttofo'fedescribed by Lacaze-Duthiers requires confirmation. 



As the two characters * which distinguish Pleurocorallium, viz. the 

 position of the zooids on one side of the branches and the presence of 

 peculiar " opera-glass " spicules, are not very important, this genus should 

 be merged with Corallium. 



The recent discovery of C.johnsoni, at a depth of 388 fathoms, off 

 the west coast of Ireland, is a fact of considerable interest, as it extends 

 the range much further north than that of any other species of the 

 family. 



Viviparity in Alcyonacea.J — J- Arthur Thomson and W. D. Hen 

 derson have found embryos — gastrulse and slightly older stages — in a 

 number of deep-sea Alcyonacea from the Indian Ocean ; species of 

 Sarcophytum, Chrysogorgia, Ceratoisis, Paramuricea, Umbellida, Funicu- 

 lina, and Pennatula. Viviparity has been previously observed in Corallium 

 rubrum, by Lacaze-Duthiers ; in some Clavularia species, Sympodium 



* Zool. Anzeig., xxx. (1906) pp. 539-48 (12 figs.). 



t Ann. Rep. and Trans. Manchester Micr. Soc. for 1905 (1906) pp. 29-38. 



t Zool. Anzeig., xxx. (1906) p. 504. 



