of the neighbourhood of Aberdeen. 463 



a few notes upon the Zoophytes of a portion of the Aberdeen- 

 shire coast ; the same which, nearly a century ago, furnished 

 EUis with that portion of the materials for his great work on 

 Corallines, which he derived from the contributions of his 

 fi'iend Dr. Skene. 



With few exceptions, the names here used are those em- 

 ployed by Dr. Johnston in his ^ History of British Zoophytes ;' 

 and 1 cannot allow the present opportunity to pass without 

 offering my humble testimony to the great merits of that work; 

 possessing too a double interest in the eyes of those who, like 

 myself, have had their attention first directed by its means to 

 a class of objects yielding in interest to no other throughout 

 the whole range of the animal kingdom. The arrangement 

 followed throughout is also that of the work alluded to above. 

 Occasional assistance has been afforded in the determination 

 of the species by Dr.- Fleming's ' History of British Animals,' 

 as well as by the published researches of Mr. Hassall, re- 

 corded in the sixth volume of this periodical. 



Coryne squamata. On Halidrys siliquosa ; also on a dead valve of 

 Cyprina Islandica from deep water. 



Echinocorium clavigernm, Haseall ; Alcyonidium echinatum, Flem., 

 Jolinst. Of frequent occurrence on Buccinum undatum, Fusus anti- 

 quus and F. corneas, brought up by the fishing-lines. 



Tubularia indivisa. Shells and stones from deep water; common. 



T. Larynx. Both the varieties mentioned by Johnston are abun- 

 dant on this part of the Aberdeenshire coast. 



T. ramea. Don-Mouth ; a single specimen. 



Thoa halicina. Deep water ; not rare, but generally of small size. 



T. muricuta. This very rare and remarkable species was sent to 

 Ellis by Dr. Skene, who appears to have been its discoverer. I pro- 

 cured a single specimen an inch and a half in height, with rmmerous 

 vesicles, in one of the fishing-boats, attached to a dead valve of Pec- 

 ten Islandicus. 



Sertularia rugosa. On Flusti'u foliucea ; occasional. 



<S. rosacea. My Aberdeenshire specimens do not exceed an inch 

 and a half in height ; indeed are generally much less, always of a 

 delicate white colour, pellucid, and with the free portion of the cells 

 much longer than they are represented in Dr. Johnston's figure. 

 The branches too, though generally alternate, are not unfrequently 

 opposite. Very plentiful on corallines, shells and ascidiae. 



S. pumila. On Fucus serratus and F. nodosus ; also once on Tu- 

 bularia Larynx ; common. 



S. pinnata. Small-sized specimens are not unfrequent, growing 

 upon S. Abictina. 



S. nigra. Found many years ago upon some part of our coast by 

 the celebrated Robert Brown, " Botanicorum facile princeps." Frag- 

 ments of this very distinct species have several times occurred upon 

 the beach at Don-Mouth, and a little to the north of Aberdeen pier. 



