ae) i iat 
May 15, 1873] 
NOTES FROM THE “CHALLENGER” * 
ir. 
ee Sunday, March 2, we saw the first patches of gulf- 
weed drifting past the ship, and flying-fish were abun- 
dant. Our position at noon was lat. 22° 30’ N., long. 42° 6’ 
W., Sombrero Island distant 1,224 miles. At night the phos- 
horescence of the sea was particularly brilliant, the sur- 
face scintillating with bright flashes from the small 
crustaceans, while large cylinders and globes of lambent 
light, proceeding probably from Pyrosoma and some of 
the Medusz, glowed out and slowly disappeared in the 
wake of the vessel at a depth of a few feet. 
The next morning we sounded at 7 A.M. in 2,025 
fathoms with No. 1 line, the “Hydra” machine and 
3 cwt., a slip water-bottle, and one thermometer ; a stop- 
cock water-bottle was bent on at 925 fathoms from the 
bottom. The corrected bottom temperature was 1°°9 C, 
the temperature of the surface being 22°8 C. During 
the morning the naturalists were out in a boat with the | 
way with 13 cwt. 500 fathoms in advance. The dredge came 
up about 4 o'clock with a small quantity of ooze contain- 
ing some red clay, a large proportion of calcareous débris, 
and many foraminifera, chiefly O7dudina and Rotadia. 
Warped in the hempen tangle there was a fine specimen 
of a handsome decapod crustacean, having all the 
principal characters of the family Astacida, but differing 
from all the typical decapods in the total absence of eye- 
stalks and eyes. Dr.v. Willemoes-Suhm has given this 
interesting deep-sea form such a preliminary examination 
as is possible in the absence of books of reference. I quote 
from his notes. Deidamia leptodactyla, n.g. and sp. 
(Fig. 2). The specimen, which is a male, is 120 mm. in 
total length and 33 mm. in width across the base of the 
cephalo-thorax, which is 60 mm. in length. Three rows 
of spines, one in the middle line and one on each side, 
run along the cephalo-thorax, which is divided by a 
transverse sulcus into an anterior anda posterior part, 
the former occupied by a central gastric and lateral 
hepatic regions, and the 1atter by a central cardiac and 
* Continued from p F30. 
NATURE 
5i 
towing-net, and they brought back a number of 
fine examples of Porfzta, several of Glaucus.atlanticus, 
some shells of Spzru/a bearing groups of small stalked 
cirripeds, and many large radiolarians, One of the 
Spirula shells was covered with a beautiful stalked 
infusorian. 
We proceeded in the evening underall plain sail. The 
soundings on the chart in advance of us seemed to- 
indicate an extensive rise, with a depth of water averaging 
not much more than 1,700 fathoms, and it was determined 
to dredge again on the following day. 
Onthe morning of March 4 we sounded in lat. 21° 
38’ N., long. 44° 39’ W., in 1,900 fathoms, with No. 1 
line, the “ Hydra” and 3 cwt., the slip water-drop, and a 
thermometer. The bottom was grey ooze, as on the day 
before, and the bottom’ temperature 1°99 C. The dredge 
was put over at 8 A.M. It was intended to attach a 
“ Hydra” tube with disengaging weight a little below the 
bottom of the dredge ; the weight slipped, however, close 
to the surface, and the dredge was lowered in the ordinary 
Fic, 2.—Demamii Lerropactyza, R. v. S. 
latent bronchial regions. The abdomen, which consists 
as usual of seven segments, has the central series of 
spines of the cephalo-thorax continued along the middle 
line. The sixth segment bears the caudal appendages, 
and in the seventh, the telson, we find the excretory 
opening. The lateral borders of the body, and all the 
appendages with the exception of the first pair of ambu- 
latory legs, are edged with a close and very beautiful 
fringe of a whitish-yellow colour. 
There are two pairs, the normal number, of antenna, 
thea come mandibles, then maxille; three pairs of 
maxillipeds, five pairs of ambulatory legs, and five pairs 
of swimmerets. As most of the appendages differ from 
those usually met with in the Astacidze only in detail, 
I need here only mention that the anterior antennz have 
two pairs of flagella, one of which is very long, longer 
than the external flagellum of the external pair. 
The form of the first pair of ambulatory legs is singu- 
larly elegant. They are 155 mm, in length—considerably 
longer than the body ; they are very slender, and end in 
a pair of very slender denticulated chelze, with a close, 
