POLYCHiETA--BENHAM. 61 



The weight of evidence, then, appears to be against Gravier's contention that 

 this species belongs to the genus Alciopa. Mcintosh had already noted the " short 

 filiform cirrus at the end of the foot." Gravier himself recognises that it " approaches 

 the genus Var.adis " on this account, and points out that only in the absence of the 

 prehensile organ at the entrance to the pharynx and in the form of the chaetee does it 

 differ therefrom. As he himself considers the form of the chaeta as the " dominating " 

 character of distinction, Apstein's contention and Willey's support of it are surely 

 justified, aiad the only possibility left is that Gravier is dealing with a different species 

 from those obtained by the " Challenger," the " Southern Cross," and the " Aurora," 

 which, I think, is not probable. 



Locality ■ — 



Commonwealth Bay, surface, and at 45 faths. 



Distribution. — Antarctic Ocean, practically circumpolar (Mcintosh, Ehlers, Gravier, 

 Willey); Atlantic Ocean, near Ascension (Ehlers); North Pacific and Indian 

 Oceans (Apstein). 



Family TOMOPTERID^. 



Genus Tomopteris EscJwholtz. 



Hub-genus Tomopteris Rosa. 



Tomopteris carpenteri Quatrefages. 



Qua^refages (1865), vol. ii. p. 227, pi. XX, figs.l, 2. 



? T. carpenteri, Mcintosh ( 1885), p. 531. 



(Plate 8', figs. 64-66.) 



A very w^ell-preserved, complete individual was obtained in the tow-net by 

 Dr. McLean in 45 fathoms of water among the pack ice ; and fom- others, less well 

 preserved, came from 50 fathoms, during January, 1914. 



The description applies to the first-named specimen. It is 55 mm. in length, 

 with a maximum diameter of 13 mm. over the parapods in the mid-body. It is 7 mm. 

 across the first pair. The total width gradually increases till the middle of the body, 

 then decreases to the hinder end. The body itself measures 4 mm. across, at about the 

 middle, but is only 2-25 mm. at the neck, in front of the first parapod. There are 33 

 pairs of parapods, the last 2 or 3 being very small. The same number occurs in a less 

 well-preserved specimen, which is only 35 mm. in length by 8 mm. over the feet. 



The anterior parapods are short. They gradually increase in length up to the 

 6th, and this maximuni length is retained till about the 14th, when they decrease. 



The worm is opaque in the preserved state (in formaline). The colour is pale 

 brown with a darker band along the mid-dorsal and mid-ventral lines. In the shorter 

 specimen there are two areas of deep brown across the ventral surface of the body and 



