﻿April, 1857.] 



ELLIOTT SOCIETY. 



127 



quite a distinct part when contracted. It maybe characterized as 

 an elongated ocelliferous bulb; upper portion of the digestive 

 trunk composed of a hyaline mass of large cells surrounding the 

 origin of the radiate tubes. This structure is an extraordinarily 

 developed epithelium. 

 Larva ? 



Remark. — The several genera in this group, are very closely 

 allied — Turris differs from Oceania only by its muscular bands — 

 and Saphenia only by its two highly developed tentacula. The 

 present genus Turritopsis, differs by the structure of its digestive 

 trunk and the position of its ocelli. I am now pretty well satis- 

 fied that these characters are sufficient to distinguish it generically. 



Distribution. — British Seas, Mediterranean, Charleston Harbor. 



TURRITOPSIS NUTRICULA. 



Syn. 0. Turritopsis Nutricula. Proceedings of Elliott Society, 

 Vol. I., p. 55, pi. 4 and 5. 



PI. 8, Fig. 1. {yotmg.) 



A deep-belled species, flat at top, with its profile descending 

 nearly vertically from the top for ab^ut a third the animal's height, 

 and sloping outwardly for the rest of the descent. The digestive 

 trunk is massive, filling a large portion of the bell-cavity. The 

 transparentor upper part in full-grown individuals, is nearly square 

 and about equal (in its expanded state) in height to the height of 

 the digestive cavity. The four sexual lobes are voluminous, 

 rounded below and separated by deep furrows. The four leaflets, 

 placed one for each of these furrows, are large, and have their 

 margins tufted with many pads of thread-cells. They are capable of 

 being extended upward along the corresponding furrows, so as to ap- 

 pear just above the sexual lobes, and thus be seen through the trans- 

 parent tissues of the animal from above. The whole trunk thus 

 described, generally hangs so low as nearly to reach the opening of 

 the vail. Sometimes a specimen may be found with these oral pre- 

 hensile organs protruded beyond the vail, and this even seems, in 

 some cases, to be habitual; but it is not the ordinary carriage. 

 The tentacula are about one hundred, sometimes a little over, 

 sometimes under that number. They are slightly clavate at the 

 extremity, and somewhat surpass the height of the disk in length. 

 They are usually carried tightly curled at the extremity. 



Although I have not been able to observe the hydroid larva of 

 this species, yet I have been able to observe the medusa at a very 



