THE ANNALS 



AND 



MAGAZINE OF NATURAL HISTOEY. 



[SIXTH SERIES.] 

 No. 35. NOVEMBER 1890. 



XLIII. — Report on the Corals from the Tizard and Macclesfield 

 Banks, China Sea. By P. W. Bassett-Smith, Surgeon 

 R.N. 



[Plates Xn.-XIV.] 



In April 1888, by order of Capt. Wharton, F.R.S., Hydro- 

 graph er to the Navy, a short survey was made of these 

 interesting coral-banks by H.M.S. ' Rambler,' in charge of 

 Commander W. U. Moore, R.N. Sectional lines were run 

 across the margins of the banks, both from within and with- 

 out, into moderately deep water, and dredging-operations were 

 carried on, which resulted in obtaining a large collection of 

 corals &c., which were brought to England for further exam- 

 ination, and subsequently presented by the Lords Com- 

 missioners of the Admiralty to the British Museum (Natural 

 History). The corals were for the most part dredged up 

 under my own personal superintendence, and on the return of 

 the vessel to England I obtained permission from the Admi- 

 ralty to study and arrange the collection there through the 

 kindness of Dr. Gunther, F.R.S. In the original Report of 

 the Survey several of the corals were incorrectly specified 

 from want of books of reference. On my return home I was 

 enabled to devote several months to their detailed study, but 

 should not have ventured to publish my generic and specific 

 Ann. & Mag. N. Hist. Ser. 6. Vol. vi. 26 



