338 Mr. A. Hancock on the Excavating Powers of Sponges, 
wide, and somewhat obtusely quadrate, a little longer than wide, 
placed end to end and united by a slender, central, cylindrical 
stem: terminal twigs exceedingly slender, almost linear, giving 
off lateral shoots, and irregularly bifurcating : papille variable in 
size, some being nearly 51th of an inch in diameter, while others 
are very much smaller, arising from the lobes without order; 
some of the lobes having only one papilla, others three or four. 
Spicula ,4,th of an inch long, slender, generally bent in the cen- 
tre, tapering gradually to a sharp point at one end, and at the 
other furnished with an elliptical head defined at its junction with 
the shaft by a dusky line. Besides these there are other spicula 
of a different form which are equally numerous with those just 
described, but are much smaller and very delicate, measuring 
scarcely trd their length: these smaller ones are fusiform, with 
both extremities sharply poimted, and are suddenly bent in the 
centre. 
This beautifully branched species occurs in British specimens 
of Pecten maximus, but the exact locality is not known. Three 
examples have been procured. In all the papillary punctures are 
very variable in size, and indistinctly indicate on the surface of 
the shell the various ramifications of the sponge; and in all the 
specimens the branches could be perfectly distinguished likewise 
on the inner surface. Here the sponge had made innumerable 
minute punctures, which the mollusk had endeayoured to close 
up by an accumulation of calcareous matter, covering the entire 
track of the branches with small granules. r 
The walls of the excavations of this species are strongly and 
regularly punctured. 
C. Fryeri. Pl. XIV. figs. 2, 4 & 9. 
Sponge formed of lobed branches arranged in a somewhat ra- 
diating manner, and irregularly anastomosing, with a few scat- 
tered, spine-like processes ; the lobes about ;1,th of an inch wide, 
considerably elongated, with the ends truncate, and united by a 
much-constricted central stem: terminal twigs short, almost 
linear, bifurcating : papille small, arranged in a single row along 
the branches, generally two or three to each lobe. Spicula of 
two forms: one, considerably larger than the other, generally mea- 
suring ;1,th of an inch in length, is straight, and furnished at 
one end with an oval head; from thence it tapers imperceptibly 
to the other extremity, which is finely poimted. The other form 
of spiculum is almost cylindrical, slightly curved, with the ends 
brought abruptly to sharp points. 
This beautiful species is imbedded in the shell of Placuna pla- 
centa, in the possession of J. H. Fryer, Esq. of Whitley House, 
after whom it is named, and to whose interesting and extensive 
