ALCYONAIUA. 347 



having covered the ends again ; the same thing, curiously enough, 

 appears to have occurred with the hase itself, so that the specimen 

 must have heen living unattached at the time of capture. The stem 

 and branches are slightly flattened from front to back, and the 

 greatest diameter of the proximal end of the base is 3 millim., of 

 the tips of the branches 1 to L-25 millim. The verruca? are very 

 prominent (about -6 millim. long), and appressed against the branch 

 itself at ends of branches, less prominent towards the base. The 

 stem and branches are but slightly flexible, and coidd not be bent at 

 an angle of more than 45° without risk of breakage. 



Hub. N.E. coast of Australia (exact locality unfortunately lost). 



Obs. If the spicular characters of this genus are to be considered, 

 as seems almost necessary, as often (from their very slight tendency 

 to variation) insufficient to distinguish species, this form might be 

 separated from the species to which I have doubtfully assigned it on 

 the score of the external points of difference which I have indicated. 

 These maj', however, be considered insufficient for this purpose, a 

 conclusion which has in its favour the consideration that this is evi- 

 dently a young and somewhat imperfect specimen, and, having been 

 kept in spirit, may have lost much of its original colour. The 

 species has hitherto been recorded only from the West Indies and 

 Mediterranean. That this is not an impossible case for an Alcyo- 

 narian appears from the analogous instance of the (nearly allied) 

 Ctenocella pectinata, Pallas, which I record from Cuba in this Report, 

 its only other recorded habitat being the Indo-Paeific area. Indeed 

 this identification receives further confirmation from the presence 

 in the Museum of a specimen labelled as from Formosa, which 

 differs from the typical J. elongata only in the less distinct and more 

 appressed character of its verrucas, a point which may bo largely due 

 to some peculiarity in the manner in which the specimen has been 

 dried. 



In some points (as the colour and prominence of the verrucas) our 

 Australian species approaches J. gemmacea ; but I have identified 

 with that species a form which is in this district more deeply coloured 

 and has a very flexible stem. 



21. Juncella fragilis. (Plate XXXYI. fig. D.) 



Stem long (unbranched '?), diminishing very slowly in diameter 

 towards apex, which may be either clavate or sharp-pointed ; flexible, 

 easily broken ; diameter at base about 5 millim., at apex 3 to 4 

 millim., except when the apex consists of a sharp point. Cortex 

 thick, cream- white in dried state, soft, but not very friable; no 

 trace of lateral naked line iu the upper three fourths of length. 

 Yerrucae small, viz. about 1 millim. high, clavate, closely appressed 

 against cortex ; crowded over all parts of the latter. Axis very 

 slender, viz. about 1 millim. in diameter near base and hair-like at 

 apex ; near base hard, pale olive-brown, and beset with regular 

 longitudinal striae. 



