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PROCEEDINGS OF THE 



[April, 1857. 



extended, reaching very considerably below the bell-margin. It 

 is also capable of contraction, so that the lips appear distinctly 

 within the vail. The sexual glands abutt directly upon the 

 upper portion of the bell-wall, and extend very slightly radiately 

 with the radiate tubes. Four ridges corresponding to these glands 

 extend downward along the neck of the flask-shaped trunk, merg- 

 ing themselves at its extremity each into one of the leaf-shaped 

 oral tentacula, on the margins of which latter I have failed to find 

 tufts of thread-cells. The bulbs of the two tentacula are as usual 

 « in the group, large and elongate. They seem to be separated 



from the lash of the tentaculum, by a slight constriction. The 

 lash is very long and tapers gradually to its extremity — being 

 throughout irregularly nodose, but especially towards its ex- 

 tremity. Its outline, also, is difficult of definition. There are 

 traces of six other tentacula ; two of these are larger than the 

 rest, and are situate at the extremities of the two remaining radi- 

 ate tubes. They are all very faint and small, and for a long time 

 escaped my attention altogether. 



The color of the ovaries is a pale yellow or straw-color, the 

 tentacular bulbs are of a beautiful claret red; and the lashes of 

 these organs have a whitish, almost frosted appearance by reflected 

 light. 



It is a beautiful sight to see this species in motion, swimming, 

 like other shallow-belled species by rapidly repeated pulsations of 

 the disk with swiftness, trailing after it, its long tentacula which 

 alternately approach and recede from each other in graceful 

 curves, now curled together in an inextricable tangle and instantly 

 loosed again as if by magic, when suddenly they contract and 

 put an end to the exhibition. I have taken but few specimens of 

 S. apicata, one as early as June 5th, another as late as Septem- 

 ber 16th. It is therefore a rare, summer species in all probability. 



ii. sarsiadjE. Forbes. 



These Corynidians are distinguished from Oceanidse by having 

 usually an elongate digestive trunk, around which the sexual 

 organs are rather equally distributed. The digestive trunk is 

 terminated by a simple mouth, or one with scarcely undulated 

 margin. The number of tentacula appears to be limited to four. 

 The principal distinction lies in the form of the ocellary bulb, 

 which is concentrated, almost spherical, confined to the margin, 

 and usually containing a sinus which connects the radiate and 



