418 
Type-specimen in the Dominion Museum, Wellington. 
This species belongs to the euryaciis — luzonicus—anchistus group 
of the gQnus Persephonaster, as comprised by Fis her. This group 
being otherwise known only from the Philippine Seas the discovery 
of a new species in New Zealand Seas is very interesting. — It 
seems to be the nearest related to eiiryactis, from which it is, 
however, well distinguished through the different form of the rays, 
the arrangement of the subambulacral spines etc. (cf. Fisher Star- 
fishes of the Philippine Seas, p. 112). 
It may perhaps be questionable, whether this group of species 
is justly referred to the genus Persephonaster; but this question 
cannot, of course, be discussed here. 
Psilaster acuminatus Sladen. 
The two specimens sent differ from those mentioned above (p. 
274) in having somewhat slenderer arms and in the marginal plates 
being partly naked. There is some possibility that these specimens 
represent a second species, in which case there would be two 
species of the genus Psilaster in New Zealand Seas. This would 
account for the discrepancy pointed out above between the descrip- 
tion and the figures of Ps. acuminatus given by Sladen. But it is 
equally well possible that the more or less naked condition of the 
marginal plates is a character subject to considerable variation in 
Ps. acuminatus. Only a rich material can give the proof whether 
the New Zealand Psilasters form one variable species or represent 
two distinet species. 
The two specimens sent of Astrotoma Waitei Benham are per- 
fectly typical and do not give rise to additional remarks. 
