Bkaumont — Fauna and Flora of Valencia Harbour, Ireland. 757 



affects the wood ; and mimerous Polycliaete worms and the Gephyrean 

 Thalas&ema neptuni harboiu' in the peat. 



Zostera Beds occur in Beginnis Bay, along the eastern margin of 

 Beginnis Spit to the south of Church Island, west of the Foot near 

 Knightstown, and at Reenglass. Most of these are in part accessible 

 at low water of the best spring-tides. 



On some of the Zostera beds the Lucei'narians — Halidystus auricula 

 and Lucernaria campanidata — occur. South of Church Island, the first- 

 named may be picked off the Zostera in hundi'eds, and the latter is by 

 no means scarce. 



Hulks, deift tijibee, &c. — These may be conveniently noticed here. 

 Diuing our stay at Valencia, in 1896, two hulks were beached after lying 

 afloat in the harbour for many months. The whole of theii' under- 

 surface to the water-line was covered with a luxuriant growth of Tubu- 

 laria la/rynx and Ascidiella aspersa, with a sprinkling of Lepas anatifera, 

 and, in one case, a few fronds of Laminaria saccharina. On the happy 

 hunting- gi'ounds afforded by the Hydroid, jSTudibranchs crawled in enor- 

 mous numbers, many of them far exceeding the dimensions usual with 

 their species. Cavolina ( CutJiona) aurantiaca and Coryphella lineata 

 were abundant on both hulks ; Facelina Brummondi, F. coronata, Ben- 

 dronotus arborescens, and Lamellidoj^is lilamellata on one or other only, 

 though occuiTing on both; while Cavolina olivacea, Galvina p)icta aziA 

 G. exigua, and Boto coronata were present in small numbers only. 



Another animal occurring in extraordinary abundance on one hiilk 

 was the Pycnogonid PhoxicMlus spinosus, while on both a few speci- 

 mens of Ammothea echinata and Anoplodactylm petiolatus were found. 

 In other groups there were noted the Turbellaria, Leptoplana {tremel- 

 laris ?), Vorticeros atirimlatum, Plagiostoma vittatum, P. Girardi ; Ne- 

 mertines, Tetrastemma dorsale, T. melanocephalum, T. vermiculatum \ 

 young Antedon bifida ; Cyprcea europcea and young Pecten opercularis. 



The appearance of fijie colonies of Tubularia indivisa and Coryne 

 'vaginata, on a mooring buoy and boat belonging to Mr. Delap, which 

 had been afloat a few weeks only, gave Mr. Browne an opportunity of 

 observing the rapid gTowth of these Hydi'oids under favourable con- 

 ditions ; and also of comparing their habit when grown in such a 

 situation with that of colonies occurring under stones in the littoral 

 zone. Lepas anatifera also appeared on the boat, and attained full size 

 in an equally short time ; while the whole sui-face of another boat 

 which was raised after lying at the bottom of the harbour for some 

 months, and of several large drift logs, was covered by this species to 

 the exclusion of other organisms. 



