41 



.Professor Haswell kindly sent to me, from Burnie, Tasmania, 

 ■& few small specimens of Arenicola which belong to the species 

 A. assimilis, Ehlers, var. affinis, Ashworth, and about the 

 same time I received from the Naturliistorisches Museum, 

 -Hamburg, a single specimen from Barrow Island, off North- 

 west Australia, which proved to be A. cristata, Stimpson. 



Arenicola assimilis and its variety affinis are widely dis- 

 tributed in southern regions. A. assimilis has been recorded 

 from the Strait of Magellan, the Beagle Channel, and South 

 •Georgia, and the variety affinis from the first two localities, 

 from the Falkland Islands, Kerguelen, Tasmania, Xew 

 Zealand (Otago Harbour), and the islands to the south 

 (Stewart, Campbell, Auckland, and Macquarie Islands), 

 Plimmerton, near Wellington, N.Z., and from Table Bay 

 and Angra Pequena (Liideritzbucht), South Africa. These 

 records show that A. assimilis is a characteristically southern 

 species, and they present striking evidence for consideration 

 in relation to the former greater extent of the Antarctic 

 Continent and its influence on the present distribution of 

 animals. The records indicate that this species may be ex- 

 pected to occur on the south-east coast of Australia, and a 

 careful look-out should be kept for specimens which will 

 "probably seldom exceed 6 inches in length. 



Arenicola cristata is evidently widely distributed in the 

 warmer parts of the Indo-Pacific Ocean, although it has been 

 found only at a few stations. The writer has recorded speci- 

 mens from Suez, Japan, the Californian coast, and, as already 

 mentioned, Barrow Island. Specimens might be looked for 

 in suitable localities on the north coast of Australia. 



The writer would be glad to examine and report upon 

 •specimens of Arenicola from any Australian locality, or indeed 

 from any source. 



• Zoological Department, University of Edinburgh, 

 February 18, 1916. 



