118 THE VOYAGE OF H.M.S. CHALLENGER. 



Rossia {?) tenera (Verrill), mihi. 



1880. Heteroteuthis tenera, Vll., Amer. Journ. Sci. and Arts, vol. xx. p. 392. 



1880. „ „ VII., Proo. Nat. Hist. Mus., vol. iii. p. 360. 



1881. „ „ Vll., "Blake" Eep., vol. viiLp. 103, pl. iii. fig. 5; pi. vii., figs. 2, 3. 

 1881. „ „ Vll., CepL N. E. Amer., p. 357, pl. xlvi. figs. 2, 3; pl. xlvii. fig. 5. 

 1883. „ „ Vll, "Blake" Suppl., p. 111. 



Habitat. — Station 49, south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, May 20, 1873 ; lat. 

 43° 3' N., long. 63° 39' W.; 85 fathoms ; gravel, stones. One specimen, $ . 

 Off the New England Coast, 18 to 301 fathoms ; off St. Kitts (Verrill). 



A small specimen dredged south of Halifax agrees so well with Professor VerrHl's 

 Heteroteuthis tenera that there can be little doubt as to its correct reference to that 

 species. The differences noticed are, the greater shortness of the ventral arms, which 

 are subequal to the dorsal and shorter than the lateral, whilst on the tentacular club the 

 disparity between the sizes of the suckers is not so marked as in Verrill's figure 

 (pl. xlvi. fig. 2a), and the suckers are more numerous, especially towards the proximal 

 end of the club. 



Having only a single small specimen at my disposal I did not remove the pen nor 

 the buccal organs. 



I cannot, however, agree with Verrill in referring this form to Heteroteuthis, Gray, 

 because the type of that genus (Rossia disjjar, Riippell), is a very different animal. 

 Among its points of distinction may be mentioned the following : — 



1. The fins are placed very far back, projecting beyond the hinder end of the body, 

 as in Verany's figures.-^ 



2. The anterior border of the mantle is of quite a different shape, being transverse 

 dorsaUy, coming forward on either side below the eye and having a notch for the 

 reception of the funnel. 



3. The length of the gladius is only one-sixth of the length of the body,"^ while in 

 Rossia tenera it is nearly half as long.^ 



4. The enormously large siickers are three or four in number and are situated on 

 the third pair of arms.^ 



5. The dorsal and dorso-lateral arms are united for half their length by a web, and 

 at their conjoined bases on the right side is situated the gland first described by 

 Troschel.s 



These points I have been able to substantiate by the examination of two male 



1 Ceph. medit., pl. xxiii. figs, d, e,f. ^ Stp., Sepiadarium eg Idiosepius, p. 217. 



2 Compare Ceph. N. E. Amer., pl. xlvi. figs. 2 and 26. 



* Troachel, Archiv f. Naturgesch., Jalirg. xsiii. Bd. i. p. 63 ; Claus, op. cit., Jahjg. xxiv. Bd. i. p. 259. 

 ^ Loe. cit. TroscLel also points out and rectifies Verany's erroneous statement that it is the females and not the 

 males which are provided with large suckers. 



