228 ACANTHOPLEURA. 



WOOD, General Conchol., p. 18, t. 3, f. 6 (1815). Chiton granulatus 

 GMEL., /. c. no. 16, p. 3205 (=Die pechschwarze granulirte Chiton 

 CHEMNITZ, Conchyl. Cab. viii, p. 284, t. 96, f. 806). WOOD, Gen. 

 Conch., p. 9. d'ORB., Moll. Cuba (Ramon de la Sagra, Hist.), ii, p. 

 200 (1853). Chiton piceus GMEL., I. c. no. 17, p. 3205 (Chernn. viii, 

 p. 285, t. 96, f. 807-810). WOOD, Gen. Conch., p. 8, t. 1, f. 3. 

 SOWERBY, Conch. Illustr. f. 147. SHUTTLW., Bern. Mittheil. 1853, 

 p. 78, and of most later writers on the Antillean fauna. Chiton 

 occidentalis REEVE, Conch. Icon., t. 14, f. 77a. (1847). Chiton sala- 

 mander SPENGLER, Skrivter af Naturhist. Selskabet, iv, p. 80 ( 

 Chemn. viii, f. 806. Chiton tubereulatus L., SCHROETER, Einleit. 

 iii, p. 494, t. 9, f. 19 ("Der cylindrische Chiton ") ; not C.tubercula- 

 tns Linne. Chiton unguiculatus BLAINVILLE, Diet. Sc. Nat. xxxvi, 

 p. 544. C. convexus BLAINV. 1. c. Chiton (Acanthopleura) blauneri 

 SHUTTL. Journ. de Conchyl. 1856, p. 170. ? C. (A.} mucronulatus 

 SHUTTL., Bern. Mittheil. 1853, p. 79. 



This species is the common Chiton of the West Indies, being 

 abundantly distributed throughout the group, the specimens before 

 me being from the following localities : Bermuda (Heilprin) ; Key 

 Vaccas, Florida (Calkins, Hemphill) ; Bahamas (H. C. Chapman, 

 J. J. Brown, F. Stearns) ; Jamaica (Johnson and Fox) ; San Dom- 

 ingo (Gabb) ; St. Thomas (Swift) ; Dominica (Sharp) Monos, 

 (Sharp) ; Atlantic coast of Costa Rica (Gabb). The specimens 

 are almost always eroded, the original color and sculpture being 

 quite lost. Although the species is very variable, no local forms 

 deserving varietal rank are known to me. 



Figures 39-41 represent a St. Thomas specimen, eroded in the 

 usual manner. Fig. 48 is also drawn from a St. Thomas specimen 

 in which the sculpture is perfectly preserved, and the color uncom- 

 monly dark. 



Figures 44-47 represent valves of examples from St. Domingo. 

 The non-eroded forward part shows a central brown band, with a 

 flesh-colored band on each side of it. This coloring is also found in 

 most specimens from Florida Keys (fig. 43), Jamaica, St. Thomas. 

 Specimens from the Bahamas have the two light stripes blue-white, 

 and are strongly corrugated. 



The tail-valve varies greatly in respect to the prominence of the 

 mucro. In some specimens (fig. 46) it projects beyond the pos- 

 terior edge of the valve ; in others it hardly attains the edge; but 

 these variations do not seem to be correllated with other characters. 



