No. 1. — An Atlantic '■'■ Palolo,^^ Staurocephalus greijaricus. 

 By Alfred Goldsborough Mayer. 



During the summers of 1898 and 1899 I was acting as assistant to 

 Dr. Alexander Agassiz in making a study of Meduste at Loggerliead 

 Key, one of the Tortugas Islands, Florida ; and it was while thus en- 

 gaged that the remarkable breeding, habits of the worm about to be 

 described were observed. 



It gives me pleasure to express my appreciation of the generous kind- 

 ness of Dr. Agassiz, to whose permission I owe the privilege of publish- 

 ing this paper. 



It is also a pleasure to remember the constant interest and kindness 

 of George R. Billbury, Esq., head keeper of the lighthouse at Loggerhead 

 Key, who did everything in his power to further the scientific work, and 

 to render my stay at the Tortugas enjoyable. 



I also wish to thank Major J. E. Sawyer, U. S. A., who kindly 

 allowed the use of the government steamer, " George W. Childs," in 

 trauspoi-ting me and my apparatus to and fro from Key West to the 

 Dry Tortugas. 



The worm about to be described in this paper appears to possess 

 breeding habits so closely similar to those of the well-known Palolo 

 worm ^ of the South Pacific that I am inspired' to give to it the title of 

 the Atlantic " Palolo." Our Atlantic " Palolo," however, is a new 

 species of the genus Staurocephalus, and is therefore quite distinct 

 from the Palolo or IJololo worm (Palolo viridis, Gray ; Lysidice viridis, 

 Collin) of Samoa and Fiji, that swarms in vast numbers, for breeding 

 purposes, upon the surface of the ocean, early in the morning of the 

 days of the last quarter of the October and November moons. 



1 It is not the purpose of this paper to discuss the habits of the Pacific Palolo. 

 Good scientific accounts of its wonderful swarming habit may be obtained I'rom 

 the writinss of vS. J. Whitmee, 1875; W. C. Mcintosh, 1885; A. Collin, 18l.t7 ; 

 B. Fiiedlander, 1898; and A. Agassiz, 1898. See "Bibliography" at the end of 

 this paper. 



VOL. xxxvi. — NO. 1. 1 



