430 THE PURPLE-SPOTTED ANEMONE. 



believe, by all Actiniae, A. gemmacea in particular, 

 round which it often hangs like a loose annular vest. 



Whether, however, there is any specific difierence 

 between it and C. viridis of Prof. Allman, I have 

 strong doubts. I should not hesitate to say there is 

 none, but for Prof. Allman's personal opinion on the 

 specimen submitted to him by Mr. Thompson, and 

 for Mr. Peach's figure published by Dr. Johnston 

 (Brit. Zooph. p. 35) in which all the tentacles have 

 hi-glohose heads. 



THE PURPLE -SPOTTED ANEMONE. 



A little Actinia, which though it does not present 

 all the recorded characters of A. alba of Mr. Cocks, I 

 was at first disposed to refer to that species, occurred 

 to my explorings during the very low spring- tide of 

 October 16th, in two localities. Both were on the 

 surface of rocks near the extreme low-water ; the one 

 was an overhanging, the other a perpendicular surface. 

 In both cases the animals were social; in the one case 

 I found three individuals associated, in the other 

 many dozens, a large colony thronging the sides of a 

 narrow fissure or chasm, just wide enough to get into, 

 that runs far up the rock at the seaward base of 

 Capstone Hill. Even here many of the specimens 

 were hanging from beneath the little points and 

 projecting ledges. 



Its consistency is very soft and yielding, somewhat 

 resembling, in this respect, another social Anemone, 

 that I had found in similar circumstances the day 

 before, Corynactis Allmanni. It is easily detached. 



