14 
All the others, with the dubious exception of 
lophonota , do have echinating spicules. Dami- 
riella has principal spicules that are strongyies 
whereas Damiriana has oxeas, otherwise the 
two are close. Damiriella is a rare genus, with 
only one species, itself rather rare, reported 
only from the Mediterranean coast of France. 
The name Damiriana is selected to show 
plainly the resemblance to Damiriella. 
Damiriana hawaiiana new species 
Fig- 7 
The holotype of this species is designated 
as spirit-preserved specimen, U. S. National 
Museum, Register Number 22737. It was 
collected September 10, 1947, at Moku O 
Loe, in shallow water near the pier. It has 
been common at location 3 (Fig. 2), just 
inshore of the bridge over the long lagoon. 
It seems to grow very slowly. Several times 
during 1947 and 1948 bits were removed for 
study, and by just that much the total quantity 
present seems to be semipermanently reduced. 
In the fall of 1948 what might be a total of 
one or two handfuls remained. 
In August, 1945, R. W. Hiatt carried out 
an extensive ecological survey on the south 
shore of the island of Hawaii, at a nearly 
inaccessible and therefore relatively natural 
and undisturbed region called Halape. He 
found at least one specimen of Damiriana 
growing on coral in a very exposed situation, 
quite in contrast to the quiet lagoon 
in Kaneohe Bay. 
On May 19, 1948, at Kailua on the north 
Kona coast (west side) of the island of 
Hawaii I found a small, somewhat aberrant 
specimen of this species growing just barely 
below low tide. 
Damiriana hawaiiana comprises first an 
amorphous basal region, often about the size 
of a hen’s egg. From this, one or a few r 
branches arise, little-finger size and shape. 
The color is a brilliant vermilion-red, and 
the consistency is soft, easily torn. The Kailua 
PACIFIC SCIENCE, Vol. IV, January, 1950 
specimen was dull orange rather than flame- 
colored. 
The surface is superficially smooth. The 
oscules may be terminal or lateral, may num- 
ber six or more per specimen, and open as 
wide as 6 mm. They are conspicuously clos- 
able by a membrane which is pulled inward 
from all sides, maintaining the circular out- 
line of the shrinking aperture. At least 5 
minutes are required for complete oscular 
closure. The surface is perforate with gross 
pores, which in some places almost touch 
each other, elsewhere are far apart. Each of 
these, about 1 mm. in diameter, is in turn 
filled with a finer network, the meshes of 
which are barely 150 /jl in diameter, 20 to 
30 such openings per sieve. In places there 
are scattered pores, not so grouped, each about 
40 g in diameter. 
The ectosome is a definite dermis, less than 
100 n thick, with its special spicules tan- 
gentially placed. The endosome is somewhat 
like "crumb of bread,” with its special spic- 
ules chiefly in confusion, or in vague tracts 
about 100 fi in diameter. They often are 
placed so as to outline chambers, as in the 
genus Myxilla. The flagellate chambers are 
spherical, 25 to 40 /x in diameter. There is 
abundant colloidal material present. 
A 
Fig. 7. Damiriana hawaiiana, spicules, from a 
camera lucida drawing, X 333. A, dermal tylotes. 
B, endosomal oxeas. C, sigmas. D, arcuate isochelas. 
The ectosomal megascleres are tylotes, 
usually about 5 by 200 /x, although in one 
specimen, otherwise typical, they were only 4 
by 170 g. This is a minor difference. The en- 
dosomal megascleres are oxeas, usually about 
