SPIROPORA. 145 



Cricopora elegans, Blainville, 1820, Diet. Sci. nat. t. Ix. p. 385. 



Blainville, 1834, Man. Act. p. 421, pi. Ixvii. fig. 1. 



,, ,, M. Edwards, 1836, in Lamarck, Anim. s. Vert. ed. 2, t. ii. 



p. 453. 



,, ,, Bronn, 1837, Leth. Geogn. ed. 2, Bd. i. p. 247. 



,, ,, Michelin, 1846, Icon. Zooph. p. 234, pi. Iv. fig. 13. 



,, Bronn, 1848, Nomencl. p. 348. 



,, ,, Bronn, 1849, Enum. p. 140. 



,, ,, Bronn and Romer, 1851, Leth. Geogn. ed. 3, Bd. ii. Th. 4, 



p. 89. 



DIAGNOSIS : 



Zoarium formed of loose tufts. Branches dichotomize repeatedly. 

 Branches rather stout. 



Zocecia long, regularly tubular. Peristomes slightly elevated; 

 arranged in regular, horizontal rows. jFrom five to seven peristomes 

 are seen on one side of a branch. The rows of peristomes are 

 distant, the zooecia being long. 



DISTRIBUTION. 



BRITISH : 



Great Oolite : Bath ; ? Richmond boring. 



FOREIGN : 



Bathonian Calcaire a polypiers : Ranville, Langrune, Lebisey, Luc, 

 in Calvados ; Vassy, Yonne (fide Michelin) . 



Description of Figure. PI. VIII. Fig. 4. Part of a zoarium, 

 X 17 dia. Great Oolite : near Bath. 60173. 



Affinities. As this is the type species of the genus, it is 

 unnecessary to refer to its affinities at any length. The species 

 is common in the Great Oolite of Ranville, and its characters are 

 constant. The regularity of the circles of peristomes and their 

 distance from one another are constant throughout the zoarium. In 

 the older parts of the zoarium the peristomal circles are closer than 

 on the higher parts; the same is also the case just before a 

 bifurcation. 



The nearest Cretaceous ally to this species is Spiropora antiqua, 

 D'Orb., especially the variety originally described as a distinct 

 species under the name of Cricopora annulata, D'Orb. 1 D'Orbigny 



1 Pal. fran9. Terr. cret. t. v. pi. DCXV. figs. 10-12. 



