134 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



Salitat. — On old shells from moderately deep water. 



Localities. — Northumberland, on Buccinum midatum, and Fmus 

 ■antiqtms (Alder) : Station 114, off the Skelligs, depth, 80 fathoms, 

 on Buccinum undatum and Natica catenularia ; Station 80, off Slyne 

 Head, depth, 55 fathoms, on Trochus magus (Roy. Dub. Soc). 



Genus. — B[ippijea.eia, Busk. 



Hippuraria, Busk, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., Jan., 1874. Hincks, 

 Brit. Mar. Polyz., p. 548. 



Lagenella (part), Joliet. 



" Stem repent or erect, tubular, jointed, nodular. Zooecia with a 

 membranous area on the front or ventral side, attached to a peduncle 

 by a movable joint, and disposed in whorls or groups at the nodes." — 

 T. H. 



Hippuraria, so far as it has been investigated, appears to be a 

 Triticella in which the zooecia are clustered at the nodes of the stem, 

 and hence Mr. Hincks places it in the family Triticellidae, whilst Busk 

 makes of it a separate family, Hippuraridae. There is only one British 

 species known up to the present. 



Sippuraria egertoni. Busk. 



Hippuraria egertoni, Busk, Proc. Zool. Soc. Lond., Jan. 6, 1874, 

 p. 29, pi. V. Hincks, Brit. Mar. Polyz., p. 549. 



This species was founded by Busk upon a specimen obtained by 

 Sir Philip Egerton from Berehaven in 1873, growing on Gonoplax 

 angulatus. His description was based upon a small fragment, with 

 four nodes, which had been dried and re-expanded. There are many 

 points for which it is necessary that a re-examination of other speci- 

 mens should be made before an exact diagnosis can be formed. Its 

 principal characters are, that the stem is erect, jointed, with nodular 

 enlargements, from which the long clustered peduncles of the zooecia 

 spring. Busk describes the zooecium as having two compartments, a 

 smaller front, and a larger hind. 



Berehaven, in Bantry Bay, which has already yielded many rare 

 forms of marine life, is the only locality from which it has been 

 obtained. My reason for introducing this species here is to show the 

 great desirability that further search should be made on the same spot, 

 and to fully complete this peculiar family of Polyzoa, in which the 

 "West of Ireland has shown itself so predominant. 



