36 
THE VOYAGE OF H.M.S. CHALLENGER. 
Dieman’s Land. The larger example, in the British Museum, measures upwards of 4 
inches in length, and an inch and a half in transverse diameter at the widest part. It 
is much tapered posteriorly. The coarse nature of the dorsal felt alluded to above is 
conspicuous in this large specimen. The large flattened yellowish-brown bristles with a 
metallic lustre, curve backward over the felt. The sides are furnished with the long 
iridescent hairs, which on the ventral surface have a rusty brownish hue. The dorsal 
and ventral cirri agree in having a dilatation below the slender clavate tip, a feature not 
seen in the small example from the Challenger. The dorsal bristles on the w^hole agree 
with the latter in structure, but the ventral show no trace of the woolly region, probably 
from friction. A curious arenaceous Foraminifer is parasitic on the middle of the ventral 
region of the body. The other large specimen (from Van Dieman’s Land) unfortunately 
had been sent in a dried condition, so that it is doubtful if it quite agrees wdth the 
former. All the dorsal bristles appear to be much worn. Mr. Haswell, in his excellent 
account of the Australian Aphroditacese,^ states that this species is not so common as the 
European form ; indeed, he had only seen a spirit-preparation. He mentions Port 
Stej)hens in addition to the above localities. 
Aphrodita echidna, De Quatrefages ? (PI. VII. figs. 1,2; PL VIa. figs. 2, 3). 
Aplirodita echidna, De Quatrefages, Anneks, i. p. 197. 
Habitat . — Trawled at Station 307 (in the Strait of Magellan), January 4, 1876 ; 
lat. 49° 24' 30" S., long. 74° 23' 30" W.; depth, 140 fathoms ; bottom temperature 7°’6 C., 
surface temperature 53'°0; blue mud. Also at Station 309 in the same Strait, January 
8, 1876 ; lat. 50° 56' S., long. 74° 15' W.; depth, 40 fathoms; blue mud. 
The body of the large example measures about 53 mm., and has a diameter of 25 mm. 
at its widest part, viz., the middle. 
The dorsum has a dull muddy green hue, marked at the sides by the points of the 
spines which barely project through the investment. The lateral regions are of a dusky 
ferruginous colour, and the same tint occurs on the anterior third of the ventral surface. 
The odour of the specimens is peculiar. The segments are about thirty-five. Numerous 
long-stalked Pedicellinse occurred on the large specimen. 
The head is smooth, prominent, and rounded, with the tentacle in the median line at 
the anterior border ; the tentacle is barely the length of the head, and the swelling below 
the tip of the long distal division seems to be slight. It is covered with a blackish 
deposit. No eyes are visible. The palpi have the usual length. 
The dorsal felt is formed of very distinct and nearly equal fibres, which have the 
ordinary hooked tip. The dorsal bristles (PL VIa. fig. 2) are short, and for the most 
1 Proc. Linn. Sue. N. S. Wales, vol. Yii., June 1882. 
