REPORT ON THE HEX ACTINIA 11 



ring in the East Coast specimens, I can see no reason for consider- 

 ing the two distinct. In nearly all essential peculiarities there is 

 practical similarity, the striking differences being in the apparent 

 absence of variation in the number of siphonoglyphes and direc- 

 tives in the Puget Sound specimens. This difference will, how- 

 ever, be discussed later. 



One other point may be mentioned. M. inargiiiatuin has 

 been described from the coast of New Jersey to as far north as 

 Labrador, M, fimbriatiun from San Francisco and Puget Sound 

 and Dr. Calkins informs me that it also occurs at Sitka. There 

 is no record however of its occurrence in more northerly 

 regions, the report from the American Station of the Inter- 

 national Polar Expedition at Point Barrow (Murdoch '85) 

 making no mention of any species which can be considered a 

 Metridium. If, however, the East and West Coast species are 

 identical it is probable that further observation will reveal their 

 presence in the Arctic regions. 



The specific identity of the East and West Coast forms being 

 regarded as established, the question as to their identity with 

 the European M. dianthus may now be considered. As pointed 

 out above, suggestions as to their identity have been made, and, 

 indeed, the American form has been actuallv identified with 

 dianthus by some authors. Thus Couthouy ('38) speaks of the 

 occurrence in the Charles River at Boston of Actinia pluniosa 

 MuUer, and Dawson ('58) describes specimens from the Gaspe 

 basin ** which appear identical with the A. diantlnis of the British 

 Coast." 



Certainly the two forms resemble one another closely both in 

 external form and in coloration, three of the color varieties of 

 dianthus recognized by Gosse ('60) being identical with those 

 recognized for M. inarginatiun, while the fourth, the yellow, 

 also occurs in the American species, but has been considered 

 above as belonging to the salmon-colored variety. Of the 

 internal structure of dianthus several more or less complete 

 accounts exist, the most recent and most thorough being that 

 of Carlgren ('93), and on comparing this point by point with 

 what occurs in the American forms, the similarity is so great 



