Actinaria G 97 



The other was from Richmond gulf in 25 fathoms, Aug. 24, 1920, obtained 

 from Eskimos by F. Johansen. Another specimen came from Richmond gulf in 

 15-25 fathoms. Collected by A. P. Low, June, 1899. In collection of Victoria 

 Memorial Museum, Cat. No. 55, Coelenterates. 



It was not previously known to occur in Hudson bay, nor in such shallow 

 watej. 



It has also been taken by the U.S. Fish Commission off Cape Cod, in 50 to 

 90 fathoms; Gulf of Maine; Massachusetts Bay; Bay of Fundy, in 50 to 150 

 fathoms; off Nova Scotia, in 50 to 110 fathoms, 1877. 



In longitudinal sections (PL XXVII, fig. 1) the column wall is seen to be 

 very thick, especially in the upper part, or parapet, next the capitulum, owing 

 to the thick mesogloea, especially if the section cuts one of the larger verrucse. 

 The sphincter muscle is very large and thick, with a simple pinnate arrangement 

 of the muscle fibres. The stomodaeum is large with strong longitudinal folds. 

 Only a few acontia were found. 



In a transverse section of a small specimen from Hudson bay, about 30 

 mm. in diameter, about the middle of the stomodaeum, there are four complete 

 hexamerous cycles of mesenteries. The six primary pairs are alone perfect and 

 sterile; their longitudinal muscles are rather thin and extend nearly across 

 them. All the other mesenteries are covered with gonads, which completely 

 fill all the areas between the primary pairs. The secondary pairs nearly reach 

 the stomodeal wall; the tertiaries are small but well developed; those of the 

 fourth cycle are quite narrow and thin, but all bear gonads. 



In a transverse section made across the upper part of the stomodaeum, near 

 the oral disk, most of the tentacles, or their basal lobes, are cut across, for they 

 are infolded within the stomodaeum; here there are 12 pairs of nearly equal 

 perfect pairs of mesenteries, and it is not easy to distinguish those of the first 

 and second cycles except by their positions, for all are much alike. Their 

 muscles are thickened. In this section the mesenteries of the third and some of 

 the fourth cycles bear gonads; those of the fourth cycle are very small and some 

 are lacking. 



This was formerly believed by me to be the true Actinia nodosa of O. 

 Fabricius (1780), from deep water off Greenland, very briefly and poorly 

 described. 



Haddon (op. cit., 1890, p. 308, PL XXXIII, fig. 13, PL XXXV, fig. 4) 

 described and figured a very different looking specimen, taken off Greenland, 

 as the true nodosa, and referred it to the genus Chondr actinia, after Lutken, 1860. 



Haddon' s specimen looks more like my C. tuber culosa than like the present 

 species, which is a true Actinauge, having the capitulum covered with high 

 crests. His specimen had a smooth capitulum and the column tubercles are 

 conical and in regular vertical rows, while the tentacles lack the basal lobe. 

 Its column wall was unusually rigid. 



However, among the many hundreds of specimens of this group, dredged 

 by the "Albatross" in deep water there were some that had verrucse arranged 

 as in Haddon's C. nodosa and probably were the same species. They were at 

 that time classed as one of the varieties of the present species. They are not 

 now accessible for examination. 



The Actinauge nodosa of Danielssen is also unlike Haddon's C. nodosa, and 

 may be identical with my Chondractinia tuber culosa. It is covered with large, 

 irregular tubercles and has a smooth capitulum. Tentacles rather long and 

 stout, round tipped. 



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