268 Prof. W. King's Notes on Permian Fossils. 



Zechstein-dolomite of Possneck having the spine-bases following 

 a decidedly linear arrangement*. A specimen before me from 

 Possneck exhibits very faint traces of spines ; but the striae are 

 well displayed. Doubtless the fossil from Gera noticed by De 

 Koninck in his ' Monographic/ p. 108^ and identified with S. 

 Cancrini, is the same. 



Strophalosia excavataf, Geinitz. 

 Var. TFhitleyensisX, King. 



Allusion has already been made to the cast of a small valve 

 found at Whitley, clearly exhibiting that it was furnished with 

 spines, and which I formerly regarded as belonging to Stro- 

 phalosia Morrisiana ; but as I now feel pretty certain that the 

 last form had not a spiniferous small valve, I am under the 

 necessity of removing the present fossil to the species now 

 entered on ; not, however, without a strong suspicion that it 

 will turn out to be specifically distinct, in which case the 

 varietal name here given may be made a specific one. There 

 is also before me a specimen of a large valve from Tunstall 

 Hill, which I formerly considered as a variety of the present 

 species : it agrees so closely with the small valve from Whitley 

 in marginal outline and the number of spines, as to lead me to 

 suspect that both belong to the same variety or species : if so, 

 var. Whitletjensis will stand in the same relation to S. excavata 

 as var. Humhletonensis does to S>. Morrisiana. 



Strophalosia excavata has the large valve tolerably convex ; 

 and its spines are crowded, and more or less regularly arranged 

 in quincunx ; but var. JVhitleyensis is much less convex (consi- 

 dering the large valve found at Tunstall) ; and the spines are not 

 so numerous (and consequently they are more apart) ; nor have 

 they any marked quincuncial arrangement : further, the area 

 appears to be wider; and the small valve has its nucleus elevated 

 above the general surface, as in ;S^. Morrisiana and var. Humhle- 

 tonensis, — a character only slightly seen in S. excavata. It was 

 the elevated nucleus that led me to regard the Whitley valve as 

 belonging to S. Mon'isiana. 



Schauroth 1 perceive records in his 2nd Beitrag § the occur- 

 rence of Strophalosia Goldfussi, S. excavata, S. Morrisiana, S. 

 lamellosa and S. Cancrini in the Permians of Germany. Is it 

 possible that varieties Humhletonensis and Whitleyensis have been 

 taken for the last two species ? 



* Vide op. cit. fig. 7 «• 



t Versteinerungen, p. 14. pi. 5. fig. 37, pi. 6. fig. 20. 



X Monograph, pi. 11. fig. 26. 



§ Ein Beitrag zur Pal'aontologie des deutscheu Zechsteingebirges, 1854. 



