44 (Bulletin of the Jhahiral History Society. 
in form and each bears a marginal fringe of large strong spines, forming 
powerful moutli-papillm. 
One of the most marked characters of the species is its always bright 
though often variable coloration, which varies with the sex. The fine 
specimens from L’Etang harbor are all a uniform brilliant red, which 
is said to be the case with those from Greenland. At other localities it 
occurs mottled with lighter shades, even to white and straw color, or of 
various shades of purple. Forbes tells us of specimens with the disk 
red, the arms white, tipped with red, and of another found by himself 
in which the body was red and the spiaiferous tubercles bright green. 
Prof. Alexander Agassiz says that it sometimes has bands of red and 
purple arranged concentrically, and that there occur all shades betw'eeu 
a brilliant red and a light orange or a dark violet. "When young they 
are usually nearly white. 
Crossaster lives always upon hard bottoms, in clear, cold water. It is- 
said to be very voracious, living upon various molluscs, and to be oc- 
casionally injurious to oyster beds. Nothing whatever is known of its 
development. 
14 . Solaster endeca, (Gmelin), Fokbes. [See Plate, 
Fig. 8.] 
“Purple Sun-Star.” 
Description. (A) p. 109, (T) p. 112, (U) p. 40. 
Figure. (A) p. 109, (T) pi. XVII., (U) pi. III. 
Distribution, {a) General; — Low-water mark to ninety 
fathoms. Massachusetts Bay northward to Davis Strait and 
around the Xorth Atlantic to the British Islands and France. 
Also Sitcha and Alaska. 
(b) In A. B. waters ; — Grand Manan, abundant on rocks at 
low-water mark, small ; large individuals, a foot in diameter, 
laminarian zone, Stlmpson, ('D). Bay of Fundy, low-water to* 
twenty fathoms, Verrill, (L). Eastport, low-water to fifteen 
fathoms, Verrill, (N). Pendleton’s Island reefs, and Bar Is- 
land at the mouth of L’Ethng harbor, Ganong, (X). Gulf of 
St. Lawrence, Whiteaves, (P). 
Upon our coast this Starfish is usually found in the same localities and 
very frequently associated with Crossaster papposus, though it prefers 
perhaps somewhat shallower water. At first sight it would seem to be 
closely allied to the latter species, and indeed was for a long time 
placed in the same genus with it, but a closer study shows that the 
two have little in common beyond the number of the rays. It is more. 
