Indo-Pacifk Corals, 3 — Wells 
191 
theca found in the angles of the branches, has 
fewer septa in the adult corallites, and has con- 
cave rather than tabulate endothecal dissepi- 
ments. The range of Bantamia thus appears to 
be extended from the Miocene time to the Re- 
cent epoch. B. merleti is apparently not a surface 
reef type but is confined to the deeper lagoon 
waters. 
Yabe and Eguchi considered Bantamia to be 
closely related to Galaxea , differing only in the 
almost complete reduction in Bantamia of the 
extensive vesicular endotheca of Galaxea (or 
the converse?). This skeletal difference implies 
an almost complete lack of edge-zone in the 
polyps of Bantamia , a distinction confirmed by 
B. merleti. The striking similarity of the calice, 
septa, and columella of the two genera is em- 
phasized by comparison of the calices of B. mer- 
leti (Fig. 3) and G. fascicularis (Fig. 5). On 
the other hand, a color photograph by Catala 
of the living holotype colony of B. merleti in- 
dicates a considerable difference in the polyps 
of the two genera. This is not clearly shown in 
the enlargement (Fig. 4), for the polyps are 
evidently not fully expanded. According to 
Fowler (1890: 409) and Matthai (1914: 59), 
the tentacles of Galaxea are ento- and exocoelic, 
arranged in two rings of 12 each around the 
prominent (when expanded) oral cone. Saville- 
Kent (1893: chromo pi. 4, figs. 8-12) and 
Yonge (1930: 24, fig. 10) show them in a sin- 
gle ring near the edge of the oral disc, the 6 
over the first cycle septa standing erect around 
the oral cone, the 6 of the second cycle and the 
12 of the third cycle smaller and normally point- 
ing outwards. The polyps of Galaxea are usually 
partly expanded even in daylight. In B. merleti 
the tentacles total 96, arranged in five alternating 
rings over the outer half of the oral disc, in the 
center of which is a small protuberant oral cone. 
It would appear that the inner three rings, total- 
ing 24 tentacles, are entocoelic, overlying the 
entocoeles of the mesenterial couples containing 
the first two cycles and developed parts of the 
third cycle of septa, in decreasing order of size. 
The next 24 tentacles, near the periphery, are 
also entocoelic without corresponding fourth 
cycle septa. The outer marginal ring of 48 small 
tentacles is probably exocoelic and extends like 
a fringe around the edge of the oral disc. 
The external morphology of the living reef 
corals is not yet well enough known to evaluate 
the taxonomic worth of such differences in ten- 
tacular number and arrangement. 
Holotype to be deposited in the U. S. Na- 
tional Museum. 
Locality: 35-40 m. depth, Banc Gail, Nou- 
mea lagoon, New Caledonia. 
REFERENCES 
Bedot, M. 1907. Madreporaires dAmboine. Rev. 
Suisse Zool. 15: 143-292, 46 pis. 
Fowler, G. H. 1890. The anatomy of the Ma- 
dreporaria, Part V. Quart. J. Micr. Sci. 30: 
405-422, pi. 28. 
Matthai, G. 1914. A revision of the Recent 
colonial Astraeidae possessing distinct coral- 
lites. Trans. Linn. Soc. Lond. Ser. 2 (Zool.) 
17: 1-140, pis. 1-38. 
Saville-Kent, W. 1893. The Great Barrier 
Reef of Australia. London. 
Wells, J. W. 1955. A survey of the distribu- 
tion of reef coral genera in the Great Barrier 
Reef region. Rep. Gt. Barrier Reef Comm. 
6: 21-29, chart. 
Yabe, H., and M. Eguchi. 1943. Note on the 
two Hexacoralla, Goniocorella dumosa (Al- 
cock) and Bantamia gerthi , gen. et sp. nov. 
Proc. Imp. Acad. Tokyo 19: 494-500, figs. 
1-5. 
Yonge, C. M. 1930- Studies on the physiology 
of corals, I. Feeding mechanisms and food. 
Gt. Barrier Reef Exped. 1928-29 Sci. Rep. 1 : 
13-57, figs. 1-34, pis. 1-2. 
FIGS. 1-4. Bantamia merleti n. sp. 1, 2, Lateral and calicular aspects of holotype corallum, XL 3, calices, 
X4; 4, partially expanded polyps of holotype, X4 (from color photo by R. Catala). 
Fig. 5. Calice of Galaxea fascicularis (Linn.), Amboina, X8 (Bedot, 1907: pi. 11, fig. 44). 
