144 HOLOTHURIANS. 



II. Family. DENDROCHIROTAE. 



1. Pseudocucumis africana Semper. 



H. Ludwig. Zool. Jahrb. Syst. Bd. in. 1888, pp. 815—817. 



Cucumaria africana Semper. C. Semper. Reisen Philipp. Hoi. 1868, p. 53, Taf. xv. 

 fig. 16 (since corrected by Ludwig). 



Cucumaria assiinilis Bell. F. J. Bell. Jour. Linn. Soc. XXI. 1886, p. 27, PI. II. 

 fig. 4. 



Pseudocucumis theeli Ludwig. H. Ludwig. Sitz. Ak. d. Wiss. Berlin, 1887, rift. ii. 

 p. 1236. Taf. xv. figs. 12—16. 



Reference: R. Koehler. Rev. Suisse de Zool. III. 1895, p. 277. 



Loc. Isle of Pines, New Caledonia. 



Three specimens 26 cm., 32 cm. and 45 cm. in length, of a uniform dark slate- 

 colour. 



A short historical account of this species is given by Prof. Koehler (I.e.). The tenta- 

 cles were retracted in all three specimens collected so that their number and arrangement 

 could not be made out. In all other respects the specimens agree with Ludwig's descrip- 

 tion of P. theeli, except that the " Kalkstabchen " are confined to the feet themselves as 

 in Semper's original example re-examined by Ludwig, 1. c. 1888 ; the retractor muscles 

 are inserted a short distance in front of the middle of the body as in Ludwig's 

 specimens in which the tentacles were expanded, so that this condition does not seem to 

 depend so much upon the state of retraction of the tentacles as upon individual variation. 



2. Orcula (? Phyllophorus) dubia n. sp. PI. XVII. Fig. 4. 



References : H. Ludwig. Arb. aus d. zool. zoot. Inst, in Wtirzb. II. 1875, p. 95. 

 Orcula tenera. 

 H. Ludwig. Zool. Jahrb. Systematik, in. 1888, pp. 812—814. Taf. 



xxx. fig. 20. Orcula tenera and Phyllophorus brocki. 

 R. Koehler. Rev. Suisse de Zool. m. 1895, p. 278, fig. 2. Phyllophorus 

 bedoti. 

 Loc. Lifu, Loyalty Islands. 



One specimen, 10 - 5 cm. long; the description of this specimen is necessarily very 

 incomplete. Owing to the complete contraction of the tentacles their arrangement 

 could not be deciphered, but they appeared to number 15. 



The only deposits that I can find outside the end-plates of the tube-feet are 

 (1) " Hirseplattchen " ' like those described by Ludwig in Phyllophorus brocki and 

 seen in a number of other Holothurians, and (2) occasional needle-shaped spicules 

 of various sizes pointed at each end and often somewhat curved ; both kinds are 

 infrequent, the ''Hirseplattchen" occurring loosely aggregated together. The calcareous 

 ring has posterior bifurcate projections made up of a number of pieces on both 

 radialia and interradialia, although only those attached to the former separate to form 

 a definite arch as in Phyllophorus bedoti Koehler, and Orcula tenera Ludwig. 



One Polian vesicle and one small stone-canal attached to the mesentery ; gonads 

 well developed, arranged like the fringe on a towel on each side of the mesentery. 



1 These are minute crenulated nodules like a millet-seed. 



