VAN NAME: COMPOUND ASCIDIANS. 
417 
or outer end of the body, between the 
tubes, and more or less over the 
branchial sac, which is pale yellow or 
whitish below. The stomach is longi- 
tudinally sulcated, with bright orange- 
red ribs or glands; intestine bright 
orange or yellow. 
"This species is devoured by sharks, 
skates, and the tautog, although it 
would seem difficult for them to digest 
it, or get much nutriment from it. 
The supply is certainly sufficiently 
abundant" (Verrill and Smith, 1873, 
p. 402). 
Though sometimes found attached 
to large stones, the colonies are more 
often anchored by a mass of small 
stones, shells, or gravel, some of which 
become completely imbedded in the 
lower part of the colony. Rarely the 
base of the colony is simply buried in 
the sand. As already stated, the 
zooids are grouped in small circular 
or oval systems. These groups are 
separated from each other by a con- 
siderable amount of test substance. 
In presened specimens, the areas oc- 
cupied by these systems become de- 
pressed below the surrounding surface, 
for the zooids shrink more than the 
rather tough and resistant test in the 
intervening spaces. In fresh exam- 
ples, however, the surface is quite 
smooth. The longest, though per- 
haps not the most bulky colony in the 
collections is 580 mm. long in the 
presersed and somewhat shrunken 
condition, although not over 30 mm. 
\\ide at any point, but such long and 
narrow colonies are exceptional. 
en- 
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Text -fig. 25. — Amaroucmm -ftella- 
tum Verrill. Zooid. X 34. 
