Genera and Species of Star f she s. 21 



plates are entirely concealed by thick dermis, even in dry 

 specimens. The plates are irregular in size and form, and 

 bear sn)all, rough, spaced spinule.-i, in irregular small rows or 

 curved lines. 



Interactitial plates are visible through the dermis, when 

 dry ; they form forked columns, running from the n)arginals 

 to the adambuiacraid — a few of them bear a single, .^niali, 

 central spine, rarely two. It is from the West Indies in 

 deep water. 



Cukilopsis, Verrill, gen. nov. Type, C. borealis, Sussb. 

 & Breckner, Seeigel, iSeesterne, und ISchlangensterne der 

 Nord- und Ostsee, p. 217, pi. i. tigs. i-Q (1910; (as Culcita). 



This singular starlish does not seem to me to be a Cu/cita, 

 nor a member of the same family, but rather one of the 

 Poraniida?, related to Tijlasler and to Chondraster, Verrill, 

 1895 — only in this the reduction of the skeleton has gone 

 farther, and the margin has thus become swollen and puffy. 

 The numerous interactinal grooves are like those of Chun- 

 drasler, and the jnipulae are grouped as in Poraniomorpha. 



Family Astropectinidae. 



Sideriaster (?) vestitus (Say). 

 Asterias vestita, Say, Journ. Philad. Acad. vol. v. p. 143 (1825). 



This large and peculiar species, described by Say eighty- 

 eight years ago, and said to have been found at Cape May, 

 N. Jersey, has not been seen by any later writer. The 

 original specimen has, apparently, been lost. It has, in more 

 recent times, been referred to Astropecten by Liiiken, 1859, 

 and all subsequent writers. However, the original description 

 does not indicate that it is a true Astropecten. 



Say stated that it has a large disk; that the entire up))er 

 surface is covered with large cylindrical paxillai (indicating 

 small superomargiiial plates) ; that the marginal plates have 

 four appressed spines in a line; that it was one loot and 

 three inches in diameter ; and that it has a large madreporic 

 plate. 



All these cliaracters correspond witli those of Sideriaster, 

 Verrill (1899), but not with Astropecten. The genus Sideri- 

 aster has small spineless superomarginal plates, confined to 

 the lateral surface of the ray, and four appressed spines in a 

 row on the larger inferomarginal plates. Its disk is broad ; 

 size large ; madreporic plate very large. Its type, S.grandis, 

 Ver., from 68 fathoms, in the Gulf of Mexico, does not agree 

 .'sufficiently well to be identified as the same specie^:, but it 



