﻿ACADEMY 
  OF 
  SCIENCES. 
  i 
  

  

  ment" 
  and 
  " 
  bed-rock," 
  from 
  the 
  gravel 
  of 
  Long 
  Canon, 
  near 
  

   Michigan 
  Bluff, 
  Placer 
  county, 
  by 
  Dr. 
  J. 
  M. 
  Willey. 
  

   Mr. 
  Stearns 
  read 
  the 
  following 
  paper 
  : 
  

  

  Remarks 
  on 
  a 
  New 
  Alcyonoid 
  Polyp, 
  from 
  Burrard's 
  Inlet. 
  

  

  BY 
  ROBERT 
  E. 
  C. 
  STEARNS. 
  

  

  At 
  a 
  meetinfr 
  of 
  the 
  Academy 
  held 
  on 
  the 
  17th 
  July, 
  1871 
  (see 
  Proceedings, 
  

   Vol. 
  IV, 
  page 
  180,) 
  in 
  referring 
  to 
  a 
  donation 
  to 
  the 
  Museum, 
  made 
  on 
  the 
  

   previous 
  5th 
  of 
  June, 
  of 
  what 
  resembled 
  a 
  bundle 
  "of 
  dried 
  willow 
  switches" 
  

   •from 
  Burrard's 
  Inlet, 
  our 
  fellow 
  member. 
  Dr. 
  Blake, 
  regarded 
  them, 
  as 
  I 
  infer 
  

   from 
  the 
  brief 
  published 
  abstract 
  of 
  his 
  remarks, 
  as 
  pertaining 
  to 
  a 
  new 
  species 
  

   of 
  sponge. 
  The 
  exceedingly 
  meagre 
  data 
  in 
  our 
  possession 
  at 
  present, 
  preclude 
  

   any 
  positive 
  conclusion 
  as 
  to 
  the 
  true 
  position 
  of 
  these 
  apparent 
  " 
  rods 
  or 
  

   switches 
  of 
  bone," 
  for 
  on 
  referring 
  to 
  our 
  records 
  I 
  see 
  that 
  the 
  specimens 
  were 
  

   sent 
  "with 
  no 
  information 
  accompanying 
  them, 
  except 
  that 
  they 
  were 
  'skeletons 
  

   of 
  some 
  kind 
  of 
  fish 
  ! 
  ' 
  " 
  At 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  the 
  donation, 
  " 
  It 
  was 
  thought 
  by 
  some 
  

   to 
  be 
  the 
  internal 
  structure 
  of 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  zoophyte, 
  allied 
  to 
  Virgularia." 
  

  

  With 
  the 
  specimens 
  alone, 
  and 
  without 
  any 
  knowledge 
  of 
  the 
  fleshy 
  or 
  soft 
  

   parts, 
  and 
  no 
  particulars 
  as 
  to 
  physiognomy 
  or 
  habit 
  of 
  the 
  organization 
  of 
  which 
  

   each 
  of 
  these 
  switch-like 
  forms 
  is 
  a 
  part, 
  we 
  can 
  only 
  reason 
  from 
  analogy, 
  and 
  

   not 
  with 
  satisfactory 
  definiteness. 
  

  

  It 
  is 
  quite 
  certain 
  that 
  they 
  are 
  not 
  the 
  back-bones, 
  and 
  quite 
  unlikely 
  that 
  

   they 
  are 
  fin-bones 
  of 
  any 
  species 
  of 
  fish 
  ; 
  as 
  between 
  zoophytes 
  and 
  sponges, 
  to 
  

   which 
  latter 
  Dr. 
  Blake 
  regards 
  the 
  specimens 
  as 
  allied, 
  I 
  am 
  decidedly 
  of 
  the 
  

   opinion, 
  after 
  an 
  examination 
  of 
  the 
  limited 
  authorities 
  at 
  my 
  command, 
  that 
  

   they 
  belong 
  to 
  a 
  species 
  of 
  zoophyte, 
  and 
  are 
  included 
  within 
  some 
  one 
  of 
  the 
  

   groups 
  of 
  the 
  Order 
  of 
  Alcyonoid 
  Polyps. 
  

  

  " 
  The 
  solid 
  secretions 
  of 
  these 
  polyps 
  are 
  of 
  two 
  kinds 
  : 
  Either 
  ( 
  1 
  ) 
  internal 
  

   and 
  calcareous; 
  or 
  (2), 
  epidermic, 
  from 
  the 
  base 
  of 
  the 
  polyp. 
  The 
  latter 
  

   make 
  an 
  axis 
  to 
  the 
  stem 
  or 
  branch, 
  which 
  is 
  either 
  horny 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  * 
  or 
  

   calcareous. 
  A 
  few 
  species 
  have 
  no 
  solid 
  secretions. 
  

  

  All 
  the 
  species 
  are 
  incapable 
  of 
  locomotion 
  on 
  the 
  base 
  ; 
  yet 
  there 
  are 
  some 
  

   that 
  sometimes 
  occur 
  floating 
  in 
  the 
  open 
  ocean."* 
  

  

  In 
  the 
  third 
  division 
  of 
  the 
  Alcyonoid 
  Polyps, 
  following 
  Prof. 
  Dana's 
  classi- 
  

   fication, 
  we 
  have 
  the 
  " 
  Pennatula 
  tribe, 
  or 
  Pennatulacea. 
  These 
  are 
  compound 
  

   alcyonoids, 
  that 
  instead 
  of 
  being 
  attached 
  to 
  rocks, 
  or 
  some 
  firm 
  support, 
  have 
  

   the 
  base 
  or 
  lower 
  extremity 
  free 
  from 
  polyps 
  and 
  buried 
  in 
  the 
  sand 
  or 
  mud 
  of 
  

   the 
  sea-bottom, 
  or 
  else 
  live 
  a 
  floating 
  life 
  in 
  the 
  ocean. 
  Their 
  forms 
  are 
  very 
  

   various."! 
  

  

  After 
  referring 
  to 
  certain 
  species 
  of 
  the 
  Veretillidm, 
  their 
  structure 
  and 
  

   beauty, 
  other 
  forms 
  are 
  mentioned 
  belonging 
  to 
  the 
  Pennatula 
  tribe, 
  some 
  of 
  

  

  * 
  Dana 
  ; 
  Coral 
  and 
  Coral 
  Islands, 
  pp. 
  80, 
  81. 
  

   t 
  Ibid., 
  page 
  91. 
  

  

  