OF THE MKRGU1 ARCHIPELAGO. 



237 



with low angular facets, about "026 millim. in greatest width, 

 rather than tubercles ; the spicule in any case looks as if it had 

 been shaped with a blunt knife ; there is no indication of whorls 

 except the median constriction ; size about '12 by 052 to '07 

 millim. ; abundant. 



Quadruple forms of stellate appearance, with surface present- 

 ing the character, now of (3), now of (4), and measuring about 

 •09 to "12 millim. across, are common. All the spicules are 

 colourless and transparent. 



Hab. King Island Bay. 



I have given the specific name on account of the great super- 

 ficial resemblance to a Plexaura which is exhibited. This fine 

 and interesting species is represented by a single dry specimen 

 rooted to a rock ; when spread out in life it may have stood about 

 12 inches high by 16 in greatest width. The agreement in pro- 

 portions between the different kinds of spicules, though not a 

 novel phenomenon in the iilcyonaria, is yet remarkable from its 

 closeness, and perhaps indicates a common origin of, at any rate, 

 spicules Nos. 2 and 3; perhaps the strange form No. 4 may 

 be regarded as of independent origin. Nos. 1 and 2 differ 

 markedly both from the latter and from each other (1) by the 

 size, (2) by the character of their tubercles. No. 2 resembles 

 in character the fusiform spicules of Leptogorgia ; No. 1, some 

 (?) in Muricea umbraticodes, Studer ; No. 4 is peculiar, so far as 

 I am aware, to this species, it being only distantly approached by 

 the fusiform spicules of Suberogorgia (Sclerogorgia) verriculata, 

 as figured by Kolliker (Icon. Histiol.). The angular character of 

 the tubercles is found also in the (however, much more constant 

 and regularly formed) spicules of Isis and Corallium. It should 

 be noted, as bearing upon the question of affinity, that all the 

 spicules are symmetrically equal-ended and symmetrically tuber- 

 culate, which points rather to Leptogorgian than Plexaurid or 

 Primnoid affinities, if such should be suggested for it. It is not 

 unlikely that the species ought to form the type of a new genus, 

 but I am not sufficiently confident of being able rightly to lay 

 down the characters of the genera in this section of the Alcyonaria, 

 and, in my ignorance of the distribution in the corallum of the 

 different forms of spicules, I have thought it best to place 

 it with 'Psammogorgia (Verrill, Trans. Conn. Acad. i. p. 414) 

 for the present, as it has many points of resemblance to that 

 genus, as defined by its author (Joe. cit.), although no " clubs " 



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