Knowledge of the Alcyonaria. 185 



N. aurantiaca, Verrill, Proc. Ess, Inst. iv. p. 191. China 



Sea, 23° N. lat. 

 N. nigra, Pourtal^s, Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool. i. p. 130. 



Sand Key, Florida. 

 Other species have been assigned to it, but transferred to 

 other genera (e. g. Eunejjhthija, Verrill, op. cit. vi. p. 80, and 

 SpongodeSj Klunzinger, Kor. Roth. j\leer. p. 38). 

 A new species is now added : — 



Nephthya hurmaensis, n. sp. 



Base spreading, lamellar, coriaceous ; vertical portion con- 

 sisting of short (the " primary ") lobes, about 10 millim. in 

 diameter, which themselves divide almost immediately into 

 the ultimate polype-bearing lobules (or secondary lobes), 

 which are slender, viz. only about 3 millim. in diameter, and 

 so numerous as to conceal most of the lobes and the common 

 base. A few single polypes are also borne directly on the 

 primary lobes. The lobules or secondary lobes are thickly 

 covered with the large polype-cells, whose bases occupy almost 

 the whole of the surface of the lobule. The polype-cells project 

 outwards almost at right angles to the lobule, with a slight 

 upward direction ; they are prominent cylindrical bodies, 

 measuring 2'5 millim. in length by 1*25 millim. in diameter, 

 and terminate (in the closed condition) in a rounded end, on 

 which the eight segments of the contained polype are indi- 

 cated by the presence of eight distinct pairs of smallish 

 spicules, whose distal points form a circle round the oritice of 

 invagination, the spicules themselves lying in the direction of 

 the long axis of the polype. 



The two spicules forming each of these terminal pairs 

 are generally parallel and in close juxtaposition with each 

 other, but sometimes diverge proximally, forming a V. A 

 collar of closely appressed spicules lies at the base of this 

 ciown, the long axes of the spicules being at right angles to 

 those of the latter. The succeeding spicules as far as the 

 base are irregularly arranged, with distinct gaps between 

 them, more or less across the long axis of the lobes or lobules ; 

 those of the base are closely aggregated and mostly parallel 

 to each other. Spicules white in spirit, of one type through- 

 out, viz. curved, fusiform, pointed at ends, thickly covered 

 with prominent blunt tubercles, themselves covered with small 

 tubercles ; the tubercles sometimes approach a verticillate 

 arrangement in the larger spicules. The spicules (i.) of the 

 crown are elongated and somewhat shar[)ly pointed, those (ii.) 

 of the base rather thick in the middlcj tapering rapidly to 



