REVISION OF PALEOZOIC STELLEEOIDEA. 73 



Ambulacral furrows deep, slender and tapering slowly. Ambu- 

 lacra! plates unknown. Oculars not present. 



Genoholotype. Palseaster (Monaster) giganteus Etheridge, jr. The 

 specific description and the bibliographic references are included in 

 the generic diagnosis. 



Kes trie ted to the Lower Marine series of the " Permo-Carbon- 

 iferous" of New South Wales. 



AUSTRALASTER(P) STUTCHBURH (Etheridge, jr.). 



Palxaster (Monaster) stutchburii ETHERIDGE, jr., Mem. Geol. Surv. New South 



Wales, Pal., No. 5, pt. 2, 1892, p. 73, pi. 13, fig. 1. 

 Monaster stutchburii GREGORY, Geol. Mag., dec. 4, vol. 6, 1899, p. 346. 



This species is found associated with A. giganteus and its preserva- 

 tion is such that the form is very imperfectly known. In some 

 respects it resembles that species and may prove to be a smaller 

 specimen of it, but until the disk marginals are known the differ- 

 ences will remain obscure. 



If A. (?) stutchburii has the large disk marginals of Australaster, 

 it then seemingly will have the essential structure of that genus. 

 Regarding this the writer wrote Professor Etheridge in 1900 and 

 he replied that " axillary plates are not visible in the specimen". 



Since the abactinal area of A. giganteus is unknown, it is desirable 

 to give here the abactinal structure in A. (?) stutchlmrii, as it may 

 prove to be congeneric with A. giganteus. 



" Abactinal surface moderately convex, bearing several (five or 

 six) rows of small convex polygonal plates, inclusive of the margi- 

 nal pieces, and becoming much crowded at the apices of the rays, 

 where they form oblique rows." If these plates throughout the 

 rays are as figured by Etheridge for the distal ends, the strongly 

 quincuncial arrangement of the polygonal, closely adjoining plates 

 is another good generic character for Australaster. 



PROMOPAL^ASTERID^E, new family. 



Progressive Phanerozonia with distinct columns of inframar- 

 ginal plates. Interbrachial areas more or less complex, composed 

 either of inframarginals, axillary interbrachials and ambulacrals, 

 or of these with the addition of interbrachial marginals and acces- 

 sory interbrachials, or entirely of adambulacral plates. Ambu- 

 lacrals as a rule opposite, but they may also be slightly alternating. 

 Podial openings through the sutures in the lateral corners of the 

 ambulacral plates, but proximally a few alternate pores may grad- 

 ually pass medially, when there are four columns of podial openings 

 in each ambulacral furrow. 



Madrsporite abactinal. 



Abactinal plates very numerous, generally small, either in dis- 

 tinct columns or rows or without either arrangement. The radial 



