MADEEPOEAEIAN SUBFAMILY LOPHOSEKIN^. 31B 



axial space is very shallow, and it is limited by the cross-bar 

 structure of the so-called columella. The solidity of the septals 

 very general, and trabeculse appear during growth and become 

 fused eventually. It will be interesting when the soft parts of 

 one of these species is examined, for considering how the hard 

 parts differ from the Maeandroid Astrseidse, which have cellular 

 endotheca in the collines and more or less perfectly solid vertical 

 walls*. A suspicion arises that this Fungid may not belong 

 to the same great group in the animal kingdom. 



The next genus to be considered brings the Lophoseriuse iu 

 close relation with the Perforata. 



V. The Structure of Coscinarsea meandrina and its Zoological 

 Position. 



The genus GoscinarcBa, Milne-Edwards and Haime (Compt. 

 Eend. t. xxvii. p. 496, 1848, and Hist. J^5"at. des Corall. vol. iii. 

 p. 203), has been placed by the distinguished describers amongst 

 the perforate Madreporaria in the family Poritidae. One species 

 is known, and it was called Madrepora monile by Forskal, Me- 

 andrina by Savigny, and Astrcea meandrina by Ehrenberg. It 

 clearly could not belong to either of these genera. MM. Milne- 

 Edwards and Jules Haime named the species GoscinarcBa mean- 

 drina (op. cit. p. 204) ; and there is a figure in Ann. des Sci. Nat. 

 ser. 3, t. ix. pi. 5. fig. 2 (1848). 



The Poritidae of MM. Milne-Edwards and Jules Haime may 

 be described as a family of Perforate Corals as follows : — " The 

 corallum is compound and entirely composed of reticulate scleren- 

 chyma which is trabecular and porous : the individuals are always 

 intimately united either by their walls or by an intermediate reti- 

 culate coenenchyma. The increase is by gemmation, ordinarily 

 extracalicular and submarginal in position. The septal appa- 

 ratus is distinct, but never completely lamellar, and is formed by 

 a series of trabeculae which form a trellis-work by their union. 

 The walls present the same kind of base and porose structure. 

 The visceral chambers sometimes contain rudimentary dissepi- 

 ments and never tabulae." 



This important family is readily divisible into two subfamilies. 

 In one, the Poritinae, there is no coenenchyma between the indivi- 



* Some have a profusion of transverse endotliecal dissepiments, and the wall 

 is reduced to a narrow growth near the base. 



