ALCYONARIA— J. A. THOMSON AND DORIS L. MACKINNON. 677 



fifteen to eighteen in a row. These spicules are flat, yellow scales^ 

 circular, 8-shaped and irregular ; they are smooth, or bear a few 

 simple warts, and their margins are deeply dentate or serrate. 

 Their dimensions in millimetres are, '255 x -136 ; -204 x -102 ; -17 x 

 •068; -153 x -153. A low eight-rayed operculum is formed by 

 similar scales. 



The spicules of the ccenenchyma are yellow spindles and 

 cylinders (-187 x 035; .17 x -017; -136 x -051 mm.). Th«y 

 have relatively few, but large warts. There are also small 

 irregular bodies (-085 x -051 ; -051 x -034 ; -068 x -05 mm.). 



The general colour of the colony is orange-brown, the polyp& 

 are rather lighter. 



MOPSEA ELEGANS, sp. nov. 



(Plate Ixiv. figs. 3 and 4 ; pi. Ixviii. fig. 5 ; pi. Ixxii.) 

 Stations 34, 41, 42, 47, 48. 



Several beautiful golden-brown colonies, with rich dichoto- 

 mous, almost parallel, branching. The largest is 34 cm. in 

 height, with a spread of about 5 cm. ; the branches have an 

 average diameter of 2 mm. The axis shows the usual white 

 calcareous internodes with fine longitudinal fluting and short 

 amber-coloured nodes. 



There is some variety in the origin of the branches. In certain 

 cases the dichotomy is precisely at the node ; in other cases the 

 calcareous internode forms immediately below the node a slight 

 shelf from which a new branch arises with a horny node as the 

 first joint. The ccenenchyma is very thin, and, with the excep- 

 tion of a median line on each surface, is in great part hidden 

 by the numerous polyps. These occur in alternating rows 

 on each side, here and there encroaching on the free median 

 spaces. Most of the branches show two rows on each side in 

 their upper reaches, but in the lower parts of the colony three 

 or four rows are often seen. The polyps are somewhat club- 

 shaped, 0-75-1 mm. in height by about 0-5 mm, in maximum 

 breadth. They project at an acute angle to the axis, but the 

 upper parts are incurved. In the upper reaches there are about 

 twenty on each side in a centimetre. 



The superficial spicules are flat, often oval scales, with the 

 following dimensions in millimetres. — -073 x "066; -052 x -052 ; 

 38 X 0-55. Each scale shows a nucleus, often excentric, with 

 fine ridges radiating from it. One margin of the scale is entire, 

 the other bears more or less deep indentations, and the part of 

 the scale to this side of the nucleus is studded with small warts. 

 The whole might be compared to a ctenoid fish-scale, and they 

 overlap one another, the overlapped part being the smooth portion. 



