25 
different species are formed, which can not even be considered as local species, but only as 
accidentally very extreme variants of one and the same species. 
By the so-called Indivisae I prefaced the description of the Siboga-specimens by a critical 
review of the formerly described species of Eucirripathes and Stichopathes , since especially in 
these genera a host of colonies was described as new species, and none has taken the trouble 
to group them. — With the branched genera I did not find this so very necessary; the joining 
of older species and a critical review of them might be inserted whenever it seemed necessary. 
The Siboga-material, truly very rich in unbranched specimens, opens a better prospect on good 
results in this department as in that of the branched colonies. There are many of these but 
not so many as to permit a grouping together of all the formerly described species, especially 
as these descriptions, even those of very young date, often are very defective and so wholly 
inefficient and useless. 
Some of the colonies are dried but the greater part of the specimens are preserved in 
spirits, so that in most cases it was possible to reckon to such a high degree with the polyps 
by the description of species. For the macroscopical examining this method of preservation 
leaves nothing to be desired; it is very much to be appreciated that by large colonies at 
least a small part was preserved in spirits and the rest dried. — Of course the colour of the 
polyps was wholly lost, so that I was forced to leave it out of account with the following 
descriptions and comparisons of species. 
DESCRIPTION OF SPECIES. 
ANTIPATH ARIA H. Milne Edwards. 
Family Antipathidae A. E. Verrill (em. Brook), 
i st Subfamily Homoeotaeniales s. f. n. 
Sibopathes g. n. 
i. Sibopathes gephura sp. n. (PI. VIII, fig. i). 
Stat. 280. 8°i7'.4S., i27°3o'. 7E. East of Timor. 1224 M. 1 spec. 
The length of the colony, snapped off at the base, is 1 dm.; the length of the principal 
stem is 7.5 cm., which is very slightly curved, and densely branched. In the first place there 
are two rows of branches nearly lying in a plane; the interbranchial distance in a row is about 
3 mm. and varies but slightly. The branches alternate regularly left and right, but the branches 
of one row are inserted just a little above the middle of the distance of two branches from 
the other row. Each row is composed of 26 branches. I he length of the lower branches is 
± 7 mm., which increases to ± i l /% cm. for the higher ones; but this holds good only for the 
unbranched ones for the 6 th , 13 th and 18 th branches on the right side (right and left are taken, 
facing the polyp-bearing aspect of the colony) bear pinnules, and evenso the 5 th , 6 th , 15 th , 
4 
SIBOGA-EXPEDITIE XVII. 
