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AUSTRALASIAN ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION. 
Of these Antarctic expeditions, the “Southern Cross” (1898) had its winter 
quarters off Cape Adare in the Ross Sea; the “ Discovery ” ( 1901-1904), under Captain 
R. F. Scott, R.N., was held fast in the ice for two years in McMurdo Bay, South Victoria 
Land; both these places being to the south of New Zealand. The German South- 
polar expedition on the “ Gauss” (1901-1903) wintered off Kaiser Wilhelm II Land 
which lies to the south of Kerguelen ; while the two French expeditions on the 
“ Francais” (1903-1905) and on the “ Pourquoi Pas?” (1908-1910) explored the 
lands and islands to the south of America, wintering off Petermann Island* 
In the terms of Sir Clements Markham’s subdivisions of the Antarctic land- 
mass, the two English expeditions explored and wintered in the “ Victoria Quadrant”; 
the German in the “ Enderby,” and the French in the “ Weddell Quadrant” (see Waite, 
1916). 
We have consequently collections of Polychaeta from the seas extending more 
than half way round the Antarctic land-mass. 
During the voyage of the “ Erebus” and “ Terror” (1839-1843), under Sir 
James Clarke Ross, R.N., the Antarctic was visited, but no report on Polychaeta was 
issued. It is probable that the few isolated descriptions of worms from the 
“ Antarctic,” published by some of the earlier English Naturalists, such as Baird’s 
Eunice antarctica, were collected by that expedition. 
Other expeditions have visited the Antarctic in recent years, but the reports 
on the collections of Polychaeta either have not yet been issued, or certain families only 
have received attention. The Belgian expedition (1897-1899) conveyed by the 
“ Belgica,” has apparently published no report on the group. Of those obtained by 
the Swedish expedition (1901-1903) the family Maldanidae has been dealt with by 
Arwidsson. Of the Polychaetes gathered by the “Scotia” during the Scottish 
National Expedition (1902-1904) the families Serpulidae and Sabellidae have been 
reported upon by Helen Pixell ; and the Nereidae by L. N. G. Ramsay ; while the 
British Antarctic expedition (1907-1909), under Sir E. Shackleton, has not yet issued 
any report on the group. 
Although these various expeditions collected chiefly from the Antarctic and 
Sub-antarctic regions, yet most of them took any opportunity that was presented of 
gathering animals elsewhere ; but with these we are not concerned. 
In order to compare the results obtained by the “ Aurora ” with those of 
previous expeditions, it may be convenient to tabulate the number of species collected, 
and the number of new species recorded from the Antarctic seas. 
•The French expeditions obtained Annelids from various localities off the South Shetland group (e.g., ile Deception 
and Admiralty Bay), and from various stations near the islands lying to the north, and, chiefly, to the south of Graham 
Land, <? g , Terre Alexandre, Terre Failure, ile Booth VVandel (where Port Charcot is situated), ile Wiencke (Port 
T r< kroy), ile Petermann (at Port Circoncision), ile Anvers (where is Biscoe Bay), Ac. It will be sufficient to refer to these 
itie» general by the term “South American Antartie,” rather than repeat every locality when listing distribution. 
