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THE BRITISH 


SHA-ANEMONES 


aND 


CORALS. 


IN COLOURS BY 
BOLOCERA TUEDIA : AIPTASIA COUCHII 
ANTHEA CEREUS SACARTIA COCCINEA 
5 S. TROGLODYTES 


ACTINOLOGIA BRITANNICA. 


A HISTORY 


OF 


THE BRITISH 


SEA-ANEMONES 


AND 


CORALS. 


WITH COLOURED FIGURES OF THE SPECIES 
AND PRINCIPAL VARIETIES. 


BY 


PHILIP HENRY GOSSE, F.R.S. 


LONDON: 
VAN VOORST, PATERNOSTER ROW. 
1860. 


BRARS 
MAY 31 1974 


W 
VeRsiry oF 108° 


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a ae ee 


Na at Nal i le ee el 


a eS 


. 


PREFACE. 


In writing the following pages, I have laboured to produce 
such a “History of the British Sea~Anemones and Corals,” as a 
student can work with. Having often painfully felt in studying 
works similar to the present, the evil of the vagueness and con- 
fusion that too frequently mark the descriptive portions, I have 
endeavoured to draw up the characters of the animals which I 
describe, with distinctive precision, and with order. It is said of 
Montagu that, in describing animals, he constantly wrote as if he 
had expected that the next day would bring to light some new 
species closely resembling the one before him ; and therefore his 
diagnosis can rarely be amended. Some writers mistake for 
precision an excessive minuteness, which only distracts the 
student, and is after all but the portrait of an individual. Others 
describe so loosely that half of the characters would serve as well 
for half-a-dozen other species. I have sought to avoid both 
errors : to make the diagnoses as brief as possible, and yet clear, 
by seizing on such characters, in each case, as are truly distinc- 
tive and discriminative. Further to aid the student, I have 
given the characters in a regular and definite order, so that he 
may at a glance compare species with species, or genus with 
genus, in their several parts and organs. 

In this I have received little aid—I may say almost literally 
none—from my predecessors. The “History of British Zoophytes” 


vi PREFACE. 


by Dr. Johnston has hitherto been the English naturalist’s only 
guide to the study of these creatures ; and notwithstanding the 
value of this work in many points, the almost utter worthless- 
ness of their specific characters has been often confessed. That 
excellent zoologist lived on a coast where the Anemones are feebly 
represented ; and hence his personal acquaintance with species was 
very small, or the result would doubtless have been different. 

The elaborate “ Histoire Naturelle des Coralliaires” of M. 
Milne-Edwards is liable to the same objection. A work of 
immense research, labour, and patience, it bears evidence in every 
page of being the produce of the museum and the closet, not of 
the aquarium and the shore. With those. species which possess 
no stony skeleton, the learned author evidently had no acquaint- 
ance,—or next to none ;—and hence he has merely reproduced 
the words of his authorities in all their vagueness ; while the 
distribution of the species into genera and families appears so 
full of manifest error to one personally familiar with the animals 
in a living state, that I have not attempted to follow his 
arrangement, 

I have been compelled, therefore, to draw up the characters of 
my subjects de novo ; and in doing so I have resorted to nature 
itself; I have studied the living animals. For the last eight 
years I have searched the most prolific parts of the British shores, 
—the coast of Dorset, South and North Devon, and South 
Wales ; and have moreover, as the following pages show, had 
poured into my aquaria the productions of almost every other 
part of our coasts,—from the Channel Isles to the Shetlands. 
For these last I am indebted to the kindness of many zealous 
scientific friends, whose names appear in this volume, and to 
whom I here express my grateful obligation ; especially distin- 
guishing Mr. F. H. West of Leeds, and the Rev. W. Gregor 
of Macduff, as pre-eminent in their contributions. 

The result is that seventy-five species ‘find their places in 
these pages, five of which are merely indicated, leaving seventy 
good species, exclusive of the Lacernariade. Of these twenty- 


PREFACE. Vii 


four only are described in Johnston,—the rest of his species being 
either synonyms or resting on insufficient evidence. Fifty-four 
British species have been examined by myself, perhaps a larger 
number than have come under the notice of any other naturalist ; 
by far the greater part in life and health ; and thirty-four of 
these have been added to the British Fauna by myself. 

A new feature in works of this sort, which will strike the 
student, perhaps needs a word of explanation ;—I mean the dis- 
tinguishing of the prominent varieties of each species by a 
diagnosis, and the assigning of a trivial name to each. Consider- 
ing the variability of many of the forms, I trust the convenience 
of this procedure will excuse the innovation. 

The analytical tables of the families, genera, and species, 
hitherto scarcely known in English zoological works, will, I 
think, be found useful; nor will the attempt to tabulate the 
geographical distribution of the species be devoid of interest to 
the philosophic student. 

The plates must speak for themselves : they have been printed 
in colours by Mr. W. Dickes, who has spared no effort to make 
them, as nearly as possible, fac-similes of my original drawings, 
which were made from the life. 

Nearly two years have been occupied in the progressive publi- 
cation of the work, as it has been issued in bi-monthly parts. 
Advantages and disadvantages attend this mode of publication. 
Among the former may be reckoned that the information is 
brought down to the latest period, and that the successive parts 
stimulate the zeal and co-operation of fellow-labourers ; the book 
thus embodying the knowledge of many, rather than of one. 
Among disadvantages must be put down, incongruities between 
the earlier and the later portions, statements made and opinions 
hazarded which are subsequently corrected, and omissions which 
are finally supplied. For these defects the author must cast 
himself on the kind consideration of his readers, who must be 


aware that no branch of science is at one stay even for a single 
month. 


Vill PREFACE. 


My labour has been performed con amore; I have looked 
forward to it for many years past; and it is with no small grati- 
fication that I see it completed. I send forth the result as one 
more tribute humbly offered to the glory of the Triune God, “ who 
is wonderful in counsel, and excellent in working.” 


P. H. Gossz. 


Torquay, December, 1859. 


LIST OF PLATES. 


I—1. Actinoloba dianthus, 2. Sagartia bellis. 3. S. troglodytes. 
4, 5, 6. S. rosea. 7. S. venusta. 8, 9. S. sphyro- 


CO a, igtiat «<9. went ante hinitve feudyn 3 ee Sues page 12 
TI.—1, 8. Sagartia nivea. 2, 3,4. S. miniata. 5. 5 Oe ats be 

6. S. parasitica. 9,10. S.ornata . .. . aoe: ae 
IIL—1, 2. Sagartia troglodytes. 3. S. viduata. a ge 

6. S. pura. 7,8 Adamsia palliata . . . . - 106 


IV.—1. Tealia crassicornis. 2, 3. sorts sara 4, B. Ballii. 
Dyer Ry aia! Oe oF POU as avis. eee 


V.—1. Bolocera Tuedie. 2. Antheacereus. 3. Aiptasia Couchii. 
4. Sagartia coccinea. 5. S. troglodytes . . . . . Front. 


VI.—1 to 6. Actinia mesembryanthemum. 7. A. chiococca. 8. Sa- 
gartia chrysosplenium. 9. Anthea cereus. 10. Tealia 
duets. 13.8 viduaia, oS ef 8 


VII.—1. Phellia gausapata. 2. P. murocincta. 3. Gregoria fenes- 
trata. 4. Bunodes coronata. 5, 6. Edwardsia carnea. 
7. E. callimorpha. 8. Cerianthus Lloydii. 9,10, Hal- 
campa chrysanthellum. 11. H.microps ... . . 228 


VIIL—Hormathia Margarite. 2. Phellia Brodricii. 3. Peachia 
hastata. 4. P.undata. 5. Pte Churchie. 6. yi 
anthus Mitchellii . . . .. 4 : . 234 


IX.—1 to 5. Corynactis viridis. 6. Bolocera eques. 7. Zoanthus 
sulcatus, 8. Z. Alderi. 9,10. Z. Couchii. 11. Aure- 
liania augusta. 12. A. heterocera. 13. Capnea san- 
SEMI? cata ce ace <a eR 


LIST OF PLATES. 


X.—1. -Lophohelia prolifera. 2. Peachia triphylla. 3. Sphenotro- 
chus Wrightii. 4. S. Macandrewanus. 65. Zoanthus 
Couchii.. 6. Paracyathus Taxilianus. 7, P. pteropus. 

8. P. Thulensis. 9. Hoplangia Durotrix. 10,11. Bala- 
nophyllia regia. 12, 13. Caryophyllia Smithii. Zo face p. 308 


XI—AnatomicaL DETaIts. 1. Ideal demi-section of a Sagartia. 
a. septum; 0. septal foramen; c. stomach; d. liver; 

- €, ovarian mesentery ; f. ovary ; g. craspedal mesentery ; 
h. craspedum ; 7. acontia, 2. Fragment of craspedum 
(S. bellis) with its mesentery (magnified). 3. The same 
craspedum under pressure (more highly magnified). 
4. Fragment of acontium (S. bellis). 5. Portion of 
column containing cinclides (A. dianthus). k. fully open ; 
l. slightly open; m. closed. 6. Chambered cnida (Ca- 
ryophyllia) before discharge. 7. Chambered cnida (Tealia) 
discharged. m. ecthoreum; o. strebla; p. pterygia. 
8. Chambered cnida discharging, showing the ecthoreeum 
in process of evolving. (N.B.—The strebla and pterygia 
are here omitted, for the sake of greater clearness. ) 
9. Tangled cnida (Corynactis). 10. Spiral cnida (Tealia) 
discharging. 11, 12. Globate cnide (S. parasitica). 
q. peribola . eine tke s Weis Siyeetan ae OSS 


XII.—Maeniriep Ficurss. 1. Phellia picta. 2. Zoanthus sulcatus. 
3. Edwardsia carnea. 4. Caryophyllia (tentacle). 5. Zo- 
anthus Alderi. 6, Halcampa microps. 7. Gregoria 
fenestrata. 8. Phellia murocincta . ee aS 


a Te EN Se Se ee eS 


INTRODUCTION. 


TuouGH the following “History of the British Sea- 
anemones and Corals” is intended for general readers, it 
seems desirable that it should be petite et by a brief 
résumé of what is known concerning the anatomy and 
physiology of this order of animals. I have commenced the 
text of the work with a general description of the con- 
stituent parts of their bodies, in order to establish a 
determinate orismology for the class, and shall here assume 
that the reader is sufficiently familiar with the various 
rain and the terms by which they are indicated. 

e Sea-anemones present a low grade of animal 
existence, and are commonly represented as exceedingly 
simple in structure. The term “ Animal-flowers,” by 
which they were known to the early observers, and which 
has been perpetuated in the Greek equivalent “ ANTHOZOA,” 
cae to the class by some modern naturalists, has been 

ought to express the fact, that a vegetable type of 
organization is scarcely less proper to them than an animal 


one. It is, however, to the accidental resemblance which 


these beautiful forms often bear to a highly-coloured and 
many-petaled flower, that the name owes its appropriate- 
ness, rather than to any close assimilation to the vegetable 
structure. The Sea-anemone is an indubitable animal, and 
its organization is more complex than is usually supposed. 
This will be seen as we proceed with the successive ex- 
amination of the organs.* 


* In all cases in which I do not adduce any other authority, the following 
statements may be considered as given on the authority of my own dissec- 
tions and observations. 


xii INTRODUCTION. 


1. Tegumentary System. The skin is sufficiently distinct. 
After a few hours’ maceration in fresh water (Sag. bellis), 
the epithelial and pigmental cells are easily removed with 
a hair-pencil, leaving the outer layer of muscular fibre bare. 
If the specimen be immersed in spirit for a day or two 
(A. dianthus), the integument may be separated in flakes, 
which, under the microscope, are seen to be composed of a 
multitude of short corrugated fibrille, set in no definite 
direction, interspersed with clear granules, pigment grains, 
and cnide. 

An examination of the living animal (dianthus, bellis, 
erassicornis, Hale. chrysanthellum, Cor. viridis, &c.) shows 
that the skin is composed of three elements, though these 
cannot always be separated. A layer of epithelial ciliated 
cells forms the first tunic: these are constantly in process 
of being thrown off from the true skin, in the form of 
mucus; but in some cases (Phellia, Hdwardsia) they 
entangle foreign matters, and retain their cohesion as an 
investment more or less dense, and more or less firmly 
adherent to the skin. Below this is the true skin, of a 
more granular character, and carrying, imbedded in its 
thickness, a multitude of cnide, whose discharging points 
are directed outwards. Intimately connected with this 
layer, but still lying sufficiently beneath it to be regarded 
as a distinct stratum, are the pigment-cells, which impart 
the colours to the animal. 

The tentacles of Acpiasia and Anthea (less conspicuously 
also of S. bellis) are lined with a dense layer of cells, forming 
to the naked eye a dark brown lining. Some peculiarities 
of these cells I have detailed (at page 167, enfra): it is 
probable that this layer may have some special function yet 
unrecognised. 

2. Muscular System. In most species the muscular frame- 
work of the body is beautifully distinct, and the tissue is 
readily isolable. The column is a cylinder of muscular 
tissue, consisting of two layers, the outer composed of 
transverse, the inner of longitudinal, fibres. The trans- 
verse fibres are the more strongly marked: they average 
about ‘0001 inch in diameter, and are never striate. 

The cylinder which forms the column, is closed in most 
species by two extremities, which are flat, like the top and 
bottom of a tin canister: the former is the disk, the latter 
the base. Each of these is but a continuation of the same 


INTRODUCTION. xili 


two layers of fibre that compose the column-wall,—the 
outer transverse fibres becoming concentrically circular ; 
the inner longitudinal ones converging to, or towards, a 
centre. In general, the boundaries of these divisions are 
distinctly marked by an abrupt angular change of the 
direction of the inner fibres; but in some species (ILYAN- 
THIDZ, Turbinolia, &c.), the body tapers ually to a 
int below, without any angular change of direction. 

The fibres of the inner layer meet at a central point in the 
base, except in those species which have a central foramen 
there; but in the disk they sustain another change of direc- 
tion, bending abruptly down at right angles, so as to form 
an inclosure in the axis of the column, parallel to the outer 
wall—the fibres of the outer layer still coating them. This 
downward prolongation forms the stomach, which will be 
presently described. ; 

In T. crassicornis the angle which is formed by the in- 
bending of the fibres to form the disk, is strengthened by a 
muscular cord, about half a line in thickness, consisting of 
annular fibres, and evidently acting as a sphincter : it is this 
band that forms the parapet. 

In Sagartia (bellis, miniata, nivea, &c.) the muscular 
tunic, in contraction, corrugates into a reticulate or honey- 
comb-like pattern, inclosing shallow cells of much regu- 
larity. It is, I think, these inclosed areas, any one of 
which may be considered as a cell, with perpendicular 
walls of muscular tissue, that constitute the sucking warts, 
by means of which minute fragments of shell or gravel 
are grasped, and retained with considerable force. If this 
exposition is correct, all of the corrugated cells are capable 
of becoming suckers at the will of the animal; but, in fact, 
only a few are so used atatime. The cells (nivea, miniata) 
are about ‘014 inch in depth and longitudinal diameter, 
while their transverse diameter may average about ‘084 
inch, It is the outer layer of muscles that constitutes 
these corrugations. : 

The sucking warts in the Bunodide, are of similar 
character; but here the elevation of the muscular tunic is 
more permanent, and the walls of the individual cells are 
thicker, and are incurved towards each other. 

To the muscular system belong the Septa. These are 
thin plates of muscular tissue, comprising the two layers of 
transverse and longitudinal fibres, doubled on each other, 


XiV INTRODUCTION. 


and stretching vertically through the cavity inclosed by 
the column. Each principal septum (Plate XI. fig. 1, a), 
in any of the normal species, is inserted, by its outer edge, 
into the column-wall throughout its entire height; by its 
lower edge, into the base, from the wall to the centre; by 
its upper edge, into the disk, from the margin to the mouth ; 
and, by its inner edge, into the stomach, from the lip, almost 
to the free bottom of that viscus. From thence the inner edge 
recedes with an arching outline, and is free, until it is 
ieveraer merged in the lower edge at the centre of the 
base. Between these primary septa, others are developed 
in succession, partitioning off the imperfect chambers thus 
formed. But the septa of each successive cycle, while still 
inserted in the column-wall throughout, spring from the 
stomach at higher and higher points, and terminate at 
Cast more and more remote from the centre of the base. 

he number of septa depends, to a certain limit, on the age 
of the individual, but in Peachia it never exceeds twelve, 
and in Halcampa microps, eight. 

In Peachia, the tissue of the septa is very dense, and 
still more so in 7. crassicornis, where it assumes a firmness 
almost cartilaginous, and a decided blue colour. 

The muscular tissue of the disk protrudes in the form 
of hollow cones, which are the tentacles: each of these 
springs from an interseptal chamber, and hence their deve- 
lopment is in cycles corresponding to that of the septa. 
The fibres which compose their walls are very delicate. 

3. Nervous and Sensory System. I have been as unsuc- 
cessful as my predecessors, in my search for nervous threads 
or ganglia; still, I have little doubt that such exist. I 
should expect their presence in the form of a ring, sur- 
rounding the mouth, perhaps with a pair of ganglia at the 
a tubercles, distributing threads to the tentacles. 

have never observed any trace of auditory vesicles or 
otolithes, nor any organs that I could regard as eyes; not 
even in the rudimentary form of those aggregations of pig- 
ment-cells, that occur on the margin of the Naked-eyed 
Meduse. A delicate sense of touch certainly exists, dis- 
tributed over the entire surface, but specially localized in 
the lips and the tentacles. The occasional elongation of 
one or more of these latter organs, and their employment 
(as described at pp. 34—36, infra), indicate the existence 
of an active tactile faculty, and not merely of passive 


~~) i. ———— 


ae 


OE OS FT a ae eg eS 


INTRODUCTION. XV 


irritability. The tips of the tentacles are bristled with the 


~ minute points, called by Dr. T. S. Wright pocils,* 


which he considers as delicate tactile organs. ese are 
peony oncsenige on er meee heads of the rere 

Corynactis and Caryophyllia. am not sure whether 
I ought to regard, as an organ of taste, the surface of the 
tana of the stomach, which in 7. crassicornis I find 
covered with innumerable papille, not quite uniform in size 
or shape, some being more pointed, others more round, and 
averaging about ‘0003 inch in diameter. 

4. Seng System. This is very simple, consisting 
essentially of a short tube descending from the centre of 
the disk, with an open extremity hanging loose in the 
body-cavity (Plate XI. fig. 1,¢). I have already observed 
that the inner edges of the septa are inserted into its outer 
wall, and these maintain it in place, while by their trans- 
verse contraction they can draw asunder its surfaces, and 
by their longitudinal contraction they can either lengthen 
or shorten it. The stomach-wall itself, however, is muscular; 
pone at least the layer of transverse fibres, though I 

ve not quite satisfied myself of the presence of the longi- 
tudinal layer. 

The form of the stomach is not that of a cylinder, but of 
a flattened sac, or of a pillow-case unsewed at both ends. 
This form may be well seen in pellucid specimens of A. 
dianthus, and in the smaller ILYANTHID#, and it may be 
examined by dissection in others. The excessive contrac- 
tion of the parts, and the copious excretion of mucus, do, 
however, present great obstacles to satisfactory demonstra- 
tions under the scalpel. I have therefore resorted to 
accessory means. A specimen of TZ. crassicornis fully 
expanded I treated with laudanum, drop by drop. It 
immediately expelled the water contained in the tentacles, 
causing these organs to shrink and shrivel, but not re- 
tracting them. The mouth, which had been pursed together, 
began slowly to open, and dilated greatly, almost to the 
concealment of the tentacles, the summit of the now 
flattened animal being almost wholly occupied by the 

ping orifice. An excellent opportunity was thus afforded 
or examining the structure of the stomach, which was 
revealed without the excretion of mucus. The languor, 
too, induced by the narcotic, allowed the parts to be freely 


* See Edin. New Phil. Journ., April, 1857. 


XVI INTRODUCTION. 


touched with instruments without much effort at con- 
traction. 

The gular tube is remarkably corrugated longitudinally, 
the folds being so full, that a transverse section would 
present a series of figures 8. In the present state of con- 
traction there were horizontal corrugations also. At a 
short distance below the mouth the stomach ends abruptly, 
the edge, thin and delicate, hanging freely like a much 
folded curtain into the cavity. At each angle of this 
flattened sac the gonidial groove was conspicuous from top 
to bottom, inclosed by two slender columns of the firm 
cartilage-like muscle. 

The diameter of the digestive tube is, when at rest, not 
greater than that of the mouth; indeed, the walls are in 
contact; nor, so far as my observation extends, are the 
ever separated except for the reception of food. 

It has been customary to represent the stomach as a sac 
pierced at the bottom “by one or more valvular openings 
which communicate with the cavity of the body.”* But 
the case is as I have stated it: the free folded membrane 
hangs perpendicularly ; nor is there any thickening of the 
edge, nor any structure which at all resembles a sphincter. 
In tall specimens, I have observed, through the semi- 
transparent integuments, food pass into the stomach, and 
have marked that the morsel is invariably retained, never . 
passing through to the general cavity; but I am persuaded 
that this is effected by the common contractility of the 
walls, and not by a sphincter. 

When morsels of food, such as fragments of butchers’ 
meat, are swallowed by Anemones, they are retained for 
some hours, and then vomited; and because little change 
has passed upon the solid parts it has been rashly concluded 
that no process of digestion takes place in these animals. 
On this foolish hypothesis it is difficult to see why food 
should be swallowed at all, or what need the animal has of 
mouth or stomach. Their ordinary food, however, is not 
mammalian muscle, but the far softer and more fluid flesh 
of Crustacea, Mollusca, and Annelida. Nothing is more 
common than to find large specimens of A. mesembryan- 
themum ox T. crassicornis discharge, soon after their capture, 


* Siebold’s Comp. Anat. § 37. “The stomach with its circular aperture 
at the dase” (Teale). Johnston, indeed, denies it any aperture at all :— 
“ There is no — other visible exit from the stomach than the mouth.” 


INTRODUCTION. xvii 


the shell of a crab, or a limpet, from which the entire flesh 
has been removed and replaced by a tenacious glaire. No 
doubt the first part of the process consists largely of ma- 
ceration, and continued pressure, by means of which the 
juices of the food are extracted. 

The nutritive matters thus obtained are then subjected 
to the action of the bile. No anatomist, I believe, has as 
yet attributed a liver to these animals, but I have little 
doubt that such is the character of a structure which I am 
about to describe. In dianthus, crassicornis, Peachia undata, 
and others, the stomach-wall is lined on the interior side of 
its upper portion (the side, I mean, which is within the 
interseptal chambers) with a thick highly-coloured sub- 
stance. In the first two named this is yellow or orange, in 
the last salmon-red. This lining is (dianthus) about half a 
line in thickness, of a pulpy tissue, arranged in ous 
lobules, covered with a cittatad epithelium (Plate XI. fig. 
1,d). On being crushed down, the pulp is found to be 
composed of a nearly uniform mass of a ae fat-cells, the 
largest of which are about ‘0003 inch im diameter, and the 
smallest immeasurable points. Cnide occur numerously in 
the true stomach-wall, but none in this lining-coat. I am 
justified, then, in presuming this organ, from its colour, 
form, position, and structure, to be a liver.* 

In Aiptasia I find what I think an analogous structure, 
but with a slightly varied position. The septa, instead of 
being inserted into the stomach-wall from the point where 
they spring off to the summit, recede from it at their upper 
part, where their edges carry rounded pulpy lobes, which 
under pressure consist of a clear tenacious sarcode, i 
a moderate number of brown pigment-cells. The sarcode 
is composed of globose cells, averaging ‘0005 inch in 
diameter, each containing more or fewer oil-globules, 


* As an example of the need of caution in such observations as these, 
I may be pardoned for mentioning the following circumstance :—While 
viewing the surface of the pulpy tissue above described under a good 
reflected light with a power of 133 diameters, I saw it forming i 
lobes, with deep narrow sinuous depressions. Over the surface, and 
chiefly following the lines of the sinuosities, I noticed meandering white 
lines, like very slender branching threads. The thought that I had dis- 
eoyered veritable nerves immediately occurred to me; but turning the 
the light, +. ergy set to test the observation with a different angle of 
ight, I foun been looking at merely the light reflected from the 
edge of the smooth lobules / at . . 


XViil INTRODUCTION. 


averaging ‘0005 inch, but some attaining 0003. These 
are very numerous in the mass. 

5. Circulatory and Respiratory systems. These exist in so 
simple a condition that we can scarcely separate them in 
our investigations. Dr. Williams has distinguished by the 
term Chylaqueous fluid, “that fluid which occupies the 
gastric and perigastric cavities of all animals below the 
Annelida.” * It is far less vitalized than true blood, but 
still it is not mere water, being impregnated with organized 
corpuscles and slightly albuminized. In the animals of 
the class before us there is no blood, and no vascular system, 
but the cavity of the body is ample, and is copiously 
occupied by a transparent fluid, which has by some been 
mistaken for sea-water. I have, however, proved by ex- 
periments, recorded elsewhere,t on numerous species, that 
this fluid is copiously provided with organic corpuscles, 
circular or ovate disks, granulose in character, of a clear 
yellow colour, varying from ‘0001 to ‘0008 inch in diameter, 
the larger ones inclosing oil-globules. The fluid coagulates 
on the addition of ttitric acid, showing that it holds albu- 
men in solution. 

It would appear that the action of the stomach is confined 
to the solution and extraction of albumen and oil, which 
are carried with sea-water into the general cavity, the com- 
pound being a chylaqueous fluid; and that it is in the 
upper part of the interseptal chambers that it is acted upon 
by the biliary secretion. 

_ For the free circulation of this fluid to every part of the 
interior, the whole body is lined with a delicate, strongly 
ciliated epithelium. ‘The ciliary current is upward: when 
a pellucid dianthus has its fosse much exposed, it is quite 
easy to see the current driving up from every part of the 
interior along the whole inner wall, and passing into the 
tentacles, up which the atoms are then hurled. I believe 
there is no change in the set of this current: for though 
atoms are seen, especially at the bottom of the tentacles, 
occasionally to pass annularly or diagonally ; and though 
of course there must be a‘return of the fluid driven up- 
ward—for there does not appear, with the closest watching, 
a trace of exit at the tip of the tentacles; and though, 
indeed, atoms are seen, though rarely, to pass downward,— 
I think these irregular and retrograde movements are 


* Phil. Trans. 1852. + Annals of Nat. Hist.; March, 1858. 


—— ee ne 


INTRODUCTION. xix 


merely the mechanical result of the impact of the ciliary 
current on the closed tip. If so, the current runs upward 
on the whole inner surface of the walls, and then returns 
_ down the centre. And this, I am persuaded, is the case. 
That the tentacles are perforated at the tip is, however, 
certain : but it is closed or opened at the will of the animal, 
the outer annular layer of fibres acting as a sphincter. 
Nothing is more common than to see a fully expand indi- 
vidual of TZ. crassicornis, when suddenly alarmed, eject 
slender streams of water from the tips of its tentacles; and 
_- [have seen an instance in which, the animal being but just 
_ covered with water, the jets were projected to a height of 
_ three inches above the surface. In S. bellis, after macera- 
tion, the slightest pressure on these organs causes the 
_ pigment to ooze out at the tip. In many that I so treated, 
_ not one allowed it to escape at the side; nor in any case 
_ was there the least appearance of resistance, suddenly 
_ yielding as if by a rupture; nor did the aperture in any 
' ease enlarge, nor was it in any case otherwise than at the 


| precise extremity. From which circumstances I infer a 
' natural foramen there; and think that it exists in all 
| species, except those (as Corynactis and Caryophyllia) 
| which have a globose appendage at the extremity of the 
tentacle. 

| The circulation of the nutrient fluid is aided by a curious 
| apparatus of foramina, of which I have met with no 
_ deseription. It is difficult to find them in dissection, for 
_ they appear to close with contraction; but in bells, on 
_ making a transverse section just below the disk, I have 
_ found a small round aperture in each primary and secon- 
_ dary septum, through wk I could thrust a probe without 
laceration. It is during life, however, that, under certain 
+ favourable circumstances (for they cannot at all times be 
_ detected), they must be studied. In dianthus, when very . 
_ much distended, I have seen the principal septa perforated 
_ with a large circular foramen in the midst of their broadest 
ede resembling iron girders supporting a floor, excavated 
for lightness (Plate XI. fig. 1,). In Anthea cereus they 
are conspicuous ;* but I have been unable to detect them 
in T. crassicornis or in Corynactis. 

* The most satisfactory observations I have made on these perforations 
_ were on a specimen of Anthea cereus, var. sulphurea. Being very much 
_ expanded, and distended to translucency, the base adherent to the side of 
_ a glass tank, the column greatly “os the base, the window opposite, 


Xx INTRODUCTION. 


That the function of Respiration should be widely dif- 
fused and very simple in these animals will follow from 
what has been said. The chylaqueous fluid, consisting 
largely of sea-water admitted freely from without, is itself 
a reservoir of oxygen, and thus its organized elements are 
perpetually aérated. We have already seen how the ciliary 
currents within maintain a constant succession of the 
bathing fluid upon every part; and there can be no doubt 
that some mode of exit is provided for the effete water. 
What this is, however, I know not. In Cerianthus, which 
has a posterior foramen to the body-cavity, I have seen the 
water forcibly ejected from this aperture (see infra, p. 272) ; 
I have also marked a sudden jet d'eau from the disk (pro- 
bably from the mouth, but of this I was not sure) of 
T. crassicornis, which shot up some mucous shreds with 
force to the surface, a height of some five inches. Perhaps 
these expulsions, and those from the tentacle-tips already 
alluded to, may be set down as so many expirations (per- 
haps periodical) of deoxygenated water. 

Ancillary to respiration, as renewing the water in the 
vicinity of the animal, is the ciliation of the external sur- 
face. This is strong and uniform on the tentacles, but 
I have never been able satisfactorily to trace it on the 
column. It is first visible at the margin, flowing in an even 
current up the tentacle, on every side, from the foot to the 


I saw with a lens, for an hour together, with the utmost distinctness, a 
small circular (oval in perspective) foramen in each septum. That is, I saw 
‘them in a dozen or more successive septa, without interruption. The 
diameter of the foramen was about the same as that of a tentacle near the 
tip, in its ordinary state of extension. That the foramina were in films 
whose surfaces were coincident with the line of vision, and not transverse 
to it, I proved, by moving my eye to the right and left, by which the 
foramen became more and more round, or more and more linear, the line 
in the latter case being that of the axis of the column. Hence they must 
have been in films running from the column-wall towards the axis perpen- 
dicularly, as regards the position of the animal ;—conditions which agree 
with the septa, and with them only. 

The next day, with a very favourable sight, I traced the foramina conse- 
cutively for half the cireumference ef the animal. In this space there 
were 49 septa (perhaps one more than the half, for I bisected only with my 
eye) ; and I found that the foramina are pierced through those which are 
entire (by far the greater number), but that the series is interrupted irre- 
gularly by those imperfect septa, which span the cavity like an arch. The 
latter were invariably two together, differing much in the height of 
the arch, and graduated in this respect. The detail of the numbers of the 
consecutive septa, in the half-animal, stands thus :— 


Perforate—- 18 ope Bap LO: eA re 3D aie 
Impertorate—- 4. 2 5) 2. a 2 42 a Se eee 


a 


INTRODUCTION. xxi 


tip, where it passes off. Balanophyllia presents an exce 
jes) to this rule, which I aver Seand to hold good in all 
_ other examined cases. In this instance, the tentacles, which 
_are densely clothed with palpocils, seem to me destitute of 
external cilia, while all the scarlet parts are furnished with 
these latter. The ciliary currents flow down the sides of 
the column, and wp the conical mouth from the whole 
cireumference of the disk. 
6. Reproductive System. The ACTINARIA increase by 
taneous fission, by gemmation, and by generation. 
_ Fission takes place either by a longitudinal division of the 
' entire animal from above downwards, or by separation of 
small fragments from the edge of the base, which soon 
_ develop themselves into minute and apparently young indi- 
_yiduals. The former mode appears to be not uncommon 
_ with Anthea cereus (see infra, p. 169); and an imperfect 
_ form of the same produces double-disked individuals of 
_ Aectinoloba and Actinia. The latter mode is common with 
' several of the Sagartiade (see pp. 19, 66, 86, 110). 
Gemmation,—the production of buds from the parent 
' individual—occurs largely in the order before us, but prin- 
Ae apely in those which have a stony skeleton. According to 
_ Mr. Dana, whose classification I have followed, the Astrz- 
' ACEA always bud from the disk, the CARYOPHYLLIACEA 
_ invariably from the side or base. But a specimen of 
_ A.dianthus has come into my possession,—through the 
kindness of L. Winterbotham, Esq. of Cheltenham,—which 
_ has two young individuals projecting one from each side, 
_ at about mid-height,—an indubitable example of lateral 
_ gemmation. The animal has continued in the same condi- 
_ tion for nearly a year, with no tendency to separate its 
ee peated is of course the normal mode of increase of 
_ the race. The sexes are sometimes united in one indi- 
| vidual (S. troglodytes, p. 100); sometimes separate (Stom- 
_ phia Churchie, p. 225). The testes and the ovaries cannot 
be distinguished from each other by a cursory examination; 
_ each consists of a pulpy mass, usually of an orange or pale 
salmon-colour, attached to the free edges of the septa. The 
_ peritoneal membrane which invests each side of the septum 
is produced beyond the muscular layers in the form of 
_ @ mesentery of two films in contact (Plate XI. fig. 1, e). 
At some distance from the edge of the septum, the films 


XXil INTRODUCTION. 


separate, and inclose the reproductive organ (f), uniting — 


again beyond it into a second mesentery (g), which is 


bounded by the craspedum (h) presently to be described. — 


Both mesenteries are full and plaited, especially the cras- 
pedal one. 

The spermatic fluid is discharged in a turbid cloud 
through the mouth, and is diffused through the surrounding 


water (pp. 99, 100). The ova are also discharged through ~ 


the mouth, or through the gonidial grooves (pp. 97, 98, 99). 
The development of the egg is into an infusorium-like 
germ, differmg in shape in different species, but always 
covered with vibratile cilia, and freely locomotive. HExam- 
ples of the occurrence of these will be found infra (passim), 
and many highly interesting details have been recorded in 
the magnificent works of Sir J. G. Dalyell. The manner 
in which the development of the Anemone proceeds has 
been illustrated by Dr 

surface of the globose embryo becomes the general cavity ; 
the edges then become incurved and descend into the cavity, 
forming the stomach; septa spring from the inner wall 
beginning from the summit and extending downwards, and 
tentacles bud from around the mouth. Eggs, germs, or 
fully formed young, are discharged indifferently through 
the mouth: in the latter two cases the embryos have passed 
their earlier developments within the general cavity. 

7. Teliferous System. In common with some nearly 
allied forms the ACTINARIA are furnished with a system of 
armature of most extraordinary character. It is compara- 
tively a recent discovery that their tissues contain exces- 


sively minute bodies, in the form of oblong or oval transpa-— 


rent vesicles, which have the power of shooting out a long 
thread of extensive tenuity. agner first drew the atten- 
tion of physiologists to these organs, thongh he mistook 
their functions for that of spermatozoa; an error which was 
ena epe8e by Dr. Wyman, in his observations recorded in 

ana’s magnificent work on Zoophytes. Their true cha- 


racter has, however, been sufficiently established by many 


observers, including Wagner, Erdl, Quatrefages, Kélliker, 
Agassiz, and myself. These bodies I have called cnide, 
or thread-cells. 


The cnide, in the Actinoid Zoophytes, are not confined 


to one organ or set of organs. They are found in various | 


* Annals Nat. Hist. for Feb. 1853. 


. Cobbold ;* a depression in the © 


= 


et 


: INTRODUCTION. xxiii 
tissues, and in different regions of the body. They abound 
in the walls of the pos 8 in the marginal spherules (of 
Actinia proper), in the corrugated integument that sur- 
rounds the mouth, in the walls of the stomach, and in the 
epidermic mucus that is thrown off from these last-named 
parts on the stimulus of irritation. But there are certain 


‘special organs in which they are crowded to an extraor- 
el 


egree, and which, so far as I] know, have no other 
function than that of being magazines of the enide. These 
organs are of two kinds, which I have designated respec- 
tively as craspeda, and acontia. 
e Craspeda. The peritoneal membrane of the septa, 
haying formed, by the contact of its two lamine, a kind of 
mesentery, separates again to inclose the ovary; again 


unites into a second mesentery, the edge of which is ty 


puckered, and thickened in the form of a cylindrical cor 
closely resembling the bolt-rope of a ship's sails, or still 
more the cording in the hem of a flounced garment. This 
marginal cord, bound throughout its length to the ovary, or 
to ies septum, by a mesentery, I call the Craspedum 
(Plate XI. fig. 2). 

So far as my examinations have gone, the craspeda are 
found in all AcrinariA, and for the most part in great 
profusion. In T. crassicornis, for instance, they constitute 
an inextricable tangle of white frilled cords, seen every- 
where below and behind the stomach, and protruding 
through every wound of the integuments. The thickness 
of the cord does not, as has been stated, “increase from 
above downward.’ Nor does it ‘terminate in the.coats of 
the stomach :” if we gradually cut away the stomach, piece- 
meal, until the free edge has disappeared, we still find the 
eraspeda bordering the mesenteries of the septa, until the 
latter are lost at the point of their convergence in the centre 
of the floor of the visceral cavity. 

The craspedum, under pressure, displays the following 


‘elements. (1.) A clear, colourless, highly refractile sar- 


code, which, under extreme pressure, has a tendency to 
draw out into strings, and long-tailed drops, like a thick oil 
on a wetted surface. (2.) Minute scattered granules, very 
irregular in shape. (3.) Mulberry-like aggregations of 

ules, of a clear yellow hue, compactly built together, 
and firm, which have the appearance of being inclosed in a 
definite cell-wall. These are generally ovate, but are some- 


XXiv INTRODUCTION, 


what irregular in form. (4.) Cnide, in greater or less 
abundance, according to the species. As the craspedum 
flattens under pressure, these are crowded at the edges, and 
are seen to be arranged, more or less distinctly, side by 
side; their long axes set at right angles to the axis of the 
craspedum, and their emitting extremities either close to its 
edge, or projecting from it. he more dense their aggrega- 
tion, the more definitely is this arrangement maintained ; 
doubtless because displacement of their original position is 
more readily effected by the flattening action of the com- 
pressorium, when the cnide are more loosely scattered in 
the fluid sarcode. The peritoneal membrane which invests 
the whole is richly ciliated on its entire surface. (Plate XI. 
fig. 3. 

Fn Acontia. Certain species of the Zoophytes under 
consideration have the faculty of shooting forth from the 
mouth, as well as from minute orifices scattered over the 
‘surface of the body, slender flexible filaments, usually of 
an opaque white hue, but sometimes, as in Adamsia 
palliata, of a brilliant lilac tint. In some instances, as in 
Sagartia parasitica, S. miniata and Adamsia palliata, these 
threads are protruded in great profusion, coiled up in 
irregular spirals, and forming tangled masses that resemble 
bundles of sewing cotton. It appears to be a means of 
defence; and any of the species just mentioned may 
readily be excited to display these weapons by a slight 
irritation of the surface of the body. The slightest touch 
is usually a sufficient stimulus to the extension, which will 
often continue to proceed for some time, the filaments 
shooting forth from various points with great force and 
rapidity. ‘They have a strongly adhesive power, which, 
however, is not dependent on any superficial viscosity, but 
on the projectile power of the contained cnide, of which I 
shall presently speak. 

If we carefully watch one of these threads, we shall 
erceive that after a time it is gradually withdrawn again 
into the body, by the orifice at which it was protruded. In 
the case of S. parasitica, a large species, these filaments, 
which I designate by the term acontia, sometimes extend 
six inches from the body, in a straight line. Yet in a few 
minutes the whole has disappeared. It is gradually cor- 
rugated into small irregular coils, at the end which is 
attached to the animal; and these little coils are, one after 


PEST EO iS he ea” 


INTRODUCTION. XXV 


-another, sucked in, as it were, through an imperceptible 


orifice. 
Acontia are less universal than craspeda, for whereas 


the latter are always present, so far as I know, in this 


order, the former are found only in the Sagartiade, and 
ponsps in the Bunodide. In Sagartia bellis they spring 

m the mesenteries that carry the craspeda; generally 
two acontia from each mesentery, and most frequently 
in pairs. Their point of insertion may be anywhere in the 
‘cent of the mesentery, great irregularity prevailing in 
Though at first it seems a solid cylinder, the acontium is 
really a flat narrow ribbon, with involute and approximate 
edges, which can at pleasure be brought into contact, 
and thus constitute a tube (Plate XI. fig. 4). Like the 
eraspedum, of which it seems to be a form modified for 
a special use, its surface is richly ciliated; and the ciliary 
currents not only hurl along whatever floating atoms chance 
to approach the surface, but cause the detached fragments 
themselves to wheel round and round, and to swim away 
through the water. Though there is not the slightest 
trace of fibrillz in the structure of the acontium, even under 
a power of 800 diameters, the clear sarcode, of which 
its basis is composed, is endowed with a very evident 
contractility. 

Under pressure, the edges of the flattened acontium 
appear to be thronged with clear viscous globules, over- 
lapping one another, and protruding; indicating one or 
more layers of superficial cells, doubtless forming the 
peritoneal epithelium. As the pressure is increased, these 
ooze out as long pear-shaped drops, and immediately 
assume a perfectly globular form, with a high refractive 
power. Below these is packed a dense crowd of cnide, 
arranged transversely. 

The Cinclides. The emission of the acontia is provided 
for by the existence of special orifices, which I term 
Cinclides. The integument of the body, in the Sagartie, 


is perforated by minute foramina, having a resemblance in 


appearance to the spiracula of insects. ‘They occur in the 
interseptal spaces, opening a communication between these 
ii pe external water. 

€ appearance of the cinclides may be compared to 
that which would be presented by the lids of the human 


XXVi INTRODUCTION. 


eye, supposing these to be reversed; the convexity being 
inwards. Hach is an oval depression, with a transverse 
slit across the middle. When closed, this slit may some- 
times be discerned merely as a dark line (Plate XI. fig. 5, m), 
the optical expression of the contact of the two edges; but, 
when slightly opened (Z), a brilliant line of light allows the 
passage of the rays from the lamp to the beholder. From 
this condition the lids may separate in various degrees, 
until they are retracted to the margin of the oval pit, and 
the whole orifice is open (k). © 

The dimensions of the cinclides vary not only with the 
species, and probably also with the size of the individual, 
but with the state of the muscular contraction of the integu- 
ments, and, as I think, with the pleasure of the animal. 
In a small specimen of S. dianthus, I found the width of _ 
a cinclis, measured transversely, g}sth of an inch; but that 
of another, in the same animal, was more tlian twice as 
great, viz. 30th of an inch. This was on the thickened 
marginal ring, or parapet, which in this species surrounds 
the tentacles, where the cinclides are larger than elsewhere. 
Watching a specimen of S. nivea under the microscope, 
I saw a cinclis begin to open, and gradually expand till it 
was almost circular in outline, and gtsth of an inch in 
diameter. I slightly touched the animal, and it in an 
instant enlarged the aperture to zjoth of an inch, In a 
specimen of 8, bellis, iss than half grown, I found the 
einclides numerous, and sufficiently easy of detection, but 
rather less defined than in dianthus or nivea. They occurred 
at about every fourth intersept, three intersepts being blind 
for each perforate one, and about three or four in linear 
series, but not quite regularly, in either of these respects. 
In this case they were about sth of an inch in transverse 
diameter, a large size,—and I measured one which was 
even 3th of an inch. By bringing the animal before the 
window, I could discern the light through the tiny orifices 
with my naked eye. 

From several good observations, and especially from 
one on a cinclis, widely opened, that happened to be close 
to the edge of the parapet of a iieanihiie, perceived that 
the passage is not absolutely open, at least in ordinary, but 
that an excessively thin film lies across it. By delicate 
focusing, I have detected repeatedly, in different degrees 
of expansion, and even at the widest, the granulations of a 


INTRODUCTION. xxv 


membrane of excessive tenuity, and one or two scattered 
enide, across the bright interval. On another occasion, in 
the ease of a cinclis at the edge of the parapet—a position 
singularly favourable for observation—I saw that this 
subtle film was meme * pushed out until it assumed the 
form of a hemispherical bladder, in which state it remained 
as long as I looked at it. At the same time the outline of 
the cinclis itself was sharp and clear, when brought into 
focus farther in. The film, whatever it be, is superficial, 
and does not a to be a portion of the integument 

per. I take MI to be a film of mucus (composed of 
ea epithelial cells), which is constantly in process 
of being sloughed from all the superficial tissues in this 
tribe of animals, and which continues tenaciously to invest 
their bodies, until, corrugated by the successive contractions 
of the animals, it is washed away by the motions of the 
waves. As, however, one film is no sooner removed than 
another commences to form, one would always expect 
external pores so minute as these to be veiled by a mucus- 
film in seasons of rest. 

That the cinclides are the special orifices through 
which those missile weapons, the acontia, are shot and 
recovered, rests not merely on the probability that arises 
from the coexistence of the two series of facts I have 
above recorded, but upon actual observation. In a rather 
large S. dianthus, somewhat distended, placed in a glass 
vessel between my eye and the sun, I saw, with great dis- 
tinctness, by the aid of a pocket-lens, many acontia 
protruded from the cinclides, and many more of the latter 
widely open. The acontia, in some cases, did not so 
accurately fill the orifice but that a line of bright light (or 
of darkness, according as the sun was exactly opposite 
or not) was seen, partially bordering the issue of the 
thread, while the thickened rim of the cinclis surrounded all. 

The appearance of the orifices whence the acontia 
issued was that of a tubercle or wart, and the same appear- 
ance I have repeatedly marked in examples observed on 
the stage of the microscope; namely, that of a perforate 
pimple, or short columnar tube. This was clearly manifest, 
when the animal, slowly swaying to and fro, brought the 
sides of the cinclis into partial perspective. 

On another occasion I witnessed the actual issue of the 
acontia from the cinclides. I was watching, under a low 


XXVlii INTRODUCTION. 


power of the microscope, a specimen of S. nivea, while, by 
touching its body rudely, I provoked it to emit its missile 
filaments. Presently they burst out with force, not all at 
once, but some here and there, then more, and yet more, 
on the repeated contractions of the corrugating walls of the 
body. (aatienslle the free extremity of a filament would 
appear, but more frequently the bight of a bent one, and 
very often I saw two, and even three, issue from the same 
cinclis. The successive contractions of the animal under 
irritation, caused the acontia already protruded to lengthen 
with each fresh impetus, the bights still streaming out in 
long loops, till perhaps the free end would be liberated, 
and it would be a loop no longer; and sometimes a new 
thread would shoot from a cinclis, whence one or two long. 
ones were stretching already; while, as often, the new- 
comers would force open new cinclides for themselves, The 
suddenness and explosive force with which they burst out, 
appeared to indicate a resistance which was at length 
overcome :—perhaps—in part at least—due to the epithelial 
film above mentioned, or to an actual epiderm, which, 
though often ruptured, has ever, with the aptitude to heal 
common to these lowly structures, the power of quickly 
uniting again. 

It appeared to me manifest, from this and other similar 
observations, that no such arrangement exists as that which 
I had fancied ;—that a definite cinclis is assigned to a 
definite acontiwm, or pair of acontia, and that the extremity 
of the latter is guided to the former, with unerring accu- 
racy, by some internal mechanism, whenever the exercise 
of the defensive faculty is desired. What I judge to be the 
true state of the case is as follows: The acontia, fastened 
by one end to the septa or their mesenteries, lie, while 
at rest, irregularly coiled up along the narrow interseptal 
fosse. The outer walls of these fosse are pierced with 
the cinclides. When the animal is irritated, it immediately 
contracts; the water contained in the visceral cavity finds 
vent at these natural orifices, and the forcible currents carry 
with them the acontia, each through that cinclis which 
happens to lie nearest to it. The frequency with which 
a is forced out shows that the issue is the result of a 
merely mechanical action; which is, however, not the less 
worthy of our admiration because of the simplicity of the 
contrivance, nor the less manifestly the result of Divine 


INTRODUCTION. Xxix 


wisdom working to a given end by perfectly adequate 
means. ‘The ejected acontia, loaded with their deadly 
cnide in every part of their length, carry abroad their 
fatal powers not the less surely, than if each had been 
provided with a proper tube leading from its free extremity 
to the nearest cinclis. 

The Cnide.—I come now to describe those minute but 


potent organs which constitute the object of all the mecha- 


nism above described. Four distinct forms of these cap- 
sules have occurred to my investigations; and these I shall 
treat of in turn. , 
(1.) Chambered Cnide (Cnide camerate). This is 
perhaps the most generally distributed form, as it is 
manifestly the most elaborately armed. It may be well 
examined in Caryophyllia Smithit. The globular heads 
of the tentacles seem, under pressure, to be literally com- 
posed of these capsules, the ends of which project side by 
side, as close as they can be packed, one against another. 
The form of these is long and slender, almost linear. The 
craspeda are also similarly studded with cnide, which are, 
however, of longer dimensions, and of fuller form. As I have 
seen no chambered cnide, in any species, so large as these, I 
shall take them as a standard for description, alluding to 
those of other species only when they differ from these. 
They are perfectly transparent, colourless vesicles, of a 
lengthened ovate figure, considerably larger at one end 
than at the other (Plate XI. fig. 6). One of average 
dimensions measures in length ‘004 inch, and in greatest 
diameter -0005. In the larger (the anterior) moiety, is 
seen, passing longitudinally through its centre, a slender 
chamber, fusiform or lozenge-form, about °00015 inch in 
its greatest transverse diameter, and tapering to a point at 
each extremity. The anterior point merges into the walls 
of the enide at its extremity, while the posterior end, after 
having become attenuated like the anterior, dilates with a 
funnel-shaped mouth, in which the eye can clearly see a 
double-infolding of the chamber-wall. After this double 
fold the structure proceeds as a very slender cord, which, 
foe back towards the anterior end of the capsule, winds 
oosely round and round the chamber, with some regularity 
at first, but becoming involved in contortions more and 
more intricate as it fills up the posterior moiety of the 
cavity. The fusiform chamber appears to be marked on 


s 


XXX INTRODUCTION. 


its inner surface with regularly recurring serrations, which 


are the optical expression of that peculiar armature to be 


described presently. 

Under the stimulus of pressure, when subjected to micro- 
scopical examination, and doubtless under nervous stimulus, 
subject to the control of the will, during the natural exer- 
cise of the animal’s functions, the enide suddenly emit 
their contents with great force, in a regular and prescribed 
manner. It must not be supposed, however, that the pres- 
sure spoken of is the immediate mechanical cause of the 
emission: the contact of the glass-plates of the compres- 
sorium is never so absolute as to exert the least direct force 
upon the walls of the capsule itself; but the disturbance 


produced by the compression of the surrounding tissues. 


excites an irritability which evidently resides in a very 
high degree in the interior of the cnide ; and the pro- 
jection of the contents is the result of a vital force. 

In general the eye can scarcely, or not at all, follow the 
lightning-like rapidity with which the chamber and its 
twining thread are shot forth from the larger end of the 
enida. But sometimes impediments delay the emission, 
or allow it to proceed only in a fitful manner, a minute 

ortion at a time; and sometimes, from the resistance of 
riction (as against the glass-plate of the compressorium), 
the elongation of the thread proceeds evenly, but so slowly 
as to be watched with the utmost ease; and sometimes the 
process, which has reached a certain point normally, be- 
“comes, from some cause, arrested, and the contents of the 
_ cell remain permanently fixed in a transition state. Thus 
a long continued course of patient observation is pretty 
sure to present some fortuitous combinations, and abnormal 
conditions, which greatly elucidate phenomena that nor- 
mally seemed to defy investigation. 

In watching any particular enida, the moment of its 
emission may be predicted with tolerable accuracy by the 

protrusion of a nipple-shaped wart from the anterior 
extremity. ~This is the base of the thread. The process 
of its ppc te is often slow and gradual, until it has 
attained a length about equal to twice its own diameter, 
when it suddenly yields, and the contents of the enida dart 
forth. At this instant I have, in many instances, heard a 
distinct crack or crepitation, in the examination of cnide 
both of this species and of S. parasitica. 


en 


Fi 
ie 
bi 
; 


i th 


INTRODUCTION. XXxX1 


When fully expelled, the thread or wire, which I distin- 


guish by the term ecthoreum (Plate XI. fig. 7, 2), is often 


oy: thirty, or even forty times the length of the enida ; 
ough, in some species, as in most of the Sagartie, it 
frequently will not exceed one-and-a-half, or two times the 
length of the enida. 

he ecthorea, which are discharged by chambered cnide, 
are invariably furnished with a peculiar armature. The 
basal portion, for a length equal to that of the enida, or a 
little more, is distinctly swollen, but at the point indicated 
it becomes (often abruptly) attenuated, and runs on for the 
remainder of its jeneth as an excessively slender wire of 


artia, the attenuated portion is obsolete. 

t is chiefly upon this ventricose basal portion that the 
elaborate armature is seen, which is so characteristic of 
these remarkable organs. For around its exterior wind 
one or more spiral thickened bands, varying in different 

ies as to their number, the number of volutions made 
by each, and the angle which the spiral forms with 
the axis of the ecthoreum. The whole spiral, formed of 
these thickened bands, I designate the screw, or strebla 


Sie diameter throughout. In the short ecthorea of 


(Bg. 7 0). 
the ecthorea emitted by chambered cnide from the 
cr of T. crassicornis, the screw is formed of a single 
band, having an inclination of 45° to the axis, and be- 
coming invisible when it has made seven volutions. In 
those from the same organ in S. parasitica we find a 
screw of two equidistant bands, each of which makes 
about six turns,—twelve in all,—having an inclination of 
70° from the common axis. In those similarly placed in 
Caryophyllia, the strebla is composed of three equidistant 
bands, each of which makes about ten volutions—thirty in 
all—with an inclination of about 40° from the axis. In 
every case the spiral runs from the east towards the north, 
supposing the axis to point perpendicularly upwards. 
Sometimes, especially after having been expelled for 
some time, the wall of the ecthoreum becomes so attenu- 
ated as to be evanescent, while the sérebdla is still distinctly 
visible. An inexperienced observer would be liable, under 
such circumstances, to suppose that the screw, when formed 
of a single band, as in 7! crassicornis, is itself the wire; 
an error into which I myself had formerly fallen. An 


XXXli INTRODUCTION. 


error of another kind I fell into, in supposing that the 
triple screw of the wire in C. Smithii was a series of 
imbricate plates: the structure of the armature is the same 
in all cases (with the variations in detail that I have just 
indicated) ; and the structure is, 1 am now well assured, 
a spiral thickened band, running round the wall of the 
ecthoreum on its exterior surface. I have been able, when 
examining such large forms as those of Corynactis and 
Caryophyllia, with a power of 750 diameters, to follow the 
course of the screw, as it alternately approached and receded 
from the eye, by altering the focus of the objective, so as 
to bring each part successively into the sphere of vision. 

These thickened spiral bands afford an imsertion for a 
series of firm bristles, which appear to have a broad base 
and to taper toa point. Their length I cannot determin- 
ately indicate, but I have traced it to an extent which 
considerably exceeds the diameter of the ecthoreum. These 
barbed bristles 1 denominate pterygia. (See fig. 7, p.) 

The number of pterygia appears to vary within slight 
limits. As well as [ have been able to make out, there are 
but eight in a single volution of the one-banded sérebla in 
f. crassicornis ; while in the more complex screws of S. 
parasitica, Cor. viridis, and Cary. Smithii there appear to 
be twelve in each volution. 

The barbs, when they first appear, invariably project in 
a diagonal direction from the ecthoreum ; and sometimes 
they maintain this posture ; but more commonly, either in 
an instant, or slowly and gradually, they assume a reverted 
direction. 

From some delicate observations, made with a very good 
light, I have reason to conclude that the sérebla, and even 
the pterygia, are continued on the attenuated portion of the 
ecthoreum, perhaps throughout its length. In Corynactis 
and Caryophyllia I have succeeded in tracing them up a 
considerable distance. In the latter I saw the continuation 
of all these bands, with their bristles; but the angle of 
inclination had become nearly twice as acute as before, 
being only 22° from the axis. The appearance of the 
attenuate portion, as also of the base of the ventricose part, 
is exactly that of a three-sided wire, twisted on itself; the 
barbs projecting from the angles. 

(2.) Tangled Onide (Cnide glomifere). This form is 
very generally distributed, and is mingled with the former 


INTRODUCTION. XXXili 


in the various tissues. In the genus Sagartia, however, it 
is by far the rarer form, while in Actinia and Anthea, 
it seems to be the only one. 

The pretty little Corynactis viridis is the best species 
that Iam acquainted with for studying this kind of enide. 
Their figure is near that of a perfect oval (Plate XI. fig. 9), 
but a little flattened in one aspect, about 004 inch in the 
longer, and -0015 in the shorter diameter. Their size, 
therefore, makes them peculiarly suitable for observations 
on the structure and Aunetions of these curious organs. 
Within the cavity is a thread (ecthoreum) of great length 
and tenuity, coiled up in some instances with an approach 
to regularity, but much more commonly in loose contor- 
tions, like an end of thread rudely rolled into a bundle with 
the . 

The armature of this kind does not differ essentially from 
that already described. It is true, I have detected it only in 

actis, where the short ecthoreum of the tangled enida 
is surrounded throughout its length by a barbed strebla of 
three bands. The barbs are visible under very favourable 
conditions for observation, even while the tangled wire 
remains enclosed in the enida, but their optical expression 
is that of serratures of the walls, without the least appear- 
ance of a screw. This is the only species in which I have 
actually seen the armature of the ecthoreum in this kind of 
cnida, but I infer its existence from analogy, in other 
species, where the conditions that can be recognised agree 
with those in this, though the excessive attenuation of the 
parts precludes actual observation of the structure in 
question. 

(3.) Spiral Cnide (Cnide cochleate). In a few species, as 
8. itica, T. crassicornis, and Cerianthus Lloydii, 1 have 
found very elongated fusiform cnide which seem composed 
of a slender cylindrical thread, coiled into a very close and 
regular spiral. In some cases the extremities are obtuse, but 
in others, as in TZ. crassicornis, the posterior extremity 
tuns off to a finely attenuated point, the whole of the spire 
visible even to the last, the whole bearing no small resem- 
blance to a multispiral shell, as one of the Cerithiade or 
Turritellade (Plate XI. fig. 10). The ecthoreum is dis- 
charged reluctantly from this form, and I have never seen 
an example in which the whole had been run off. So ex- 
cessively subtle are the walls of the enida, that it was not 

e 


XXXIV INTRODUCTION, 


until after many observations that I detected them, in an 
example from 7. crassicornis, which had discharged about 
half of the wire; Lhave not seen the slightest sign of arma- 
ture on the cethoreum. So far as my investigations go, 
these spiral cnide are confined to the walls of the tentacles, 
in which, however, they are the dominant form. 

(4.) Globate Cnide (cnide globate)? In the acontium 
of 7. parasitica flattened under pressure, and finally ex- 
pressed from its substance, are numerous more or less 
globose or ovate vesicles, which’ gradually push out a 
cylindrical protuberance at each end, sometimes to a length 
equal to that of the original form (figs. 11, 12). These 
vesicles appear filled with a fluid of different refractive 

ower from that of the clear sarcode in which they are 
folsed: but no sign of contained thread have I been able 
to detect, nor have I seen any discharge beyond the pro- 
trusion above spoken of. I am not at all sure that these 
vesicles are consimilar in function with the true cnide ; 
and I am still more doubtful about the bacillar bodies 
ound in the acontioid filaments of T. crassicornis. 

In the indubitable enide,—those which I have distin- 
guished as (1) Chambered and (2) 'Tangled,—the emission 
of the ecthoreum is a process of distinct eversion. This is 
not a solid but a tubular prolongation of the walls of the 
enide, turned in, during its primal condition, like the finger 
of a glove drawn into the cavity. ‘Some of the observa- 
tions on which I ground this conclusion I have already 
eo but it may not be impertinent to repeat them 

ere, with others which have since occurred to me, all 
proving the same fact. In the discharge of the ecthoreum 
of the tangled enzde, it frequently runs out, not in a right 
line, but in a spiral form; whenever this is the case, each 
band of the spire is made, and stereotyped, so to speak, in 
succession, while the tips go on lengthening: the tip only 
progresses, the whole of the portion actually diechsiaged 
remains perfectly fixed ; which could not be on any other 
supposition than that of evolution. In the discharge of the 
chambered kind, the ventricose or basal portion first 
appears; the lower barbs fly out before the upper ones, 
and all are fully expanded before the attenuated portion 
begins to lengthen. This again is consistent only with the 
fact of the evolution of the whole. On several occasions of 
observation on the chambered cnide of Caryophyllia, I 


por ee 
'.; a; 


peices pr peres 


_ portion. But perhaps the most instructive and convine 


LE TNE IE Ty FT PT CE TE a aa aad 
> eee OF 


o 7 i . 


Ce SI ai ae 


INTRODUCTION. XXXY 


have actually seen the unevolved portion of the ecthoreum 
ing out through the centre of the evolved ventricose 
example of all was the following. One of the large tailed 
enide of Corynactis viridis had shot about half of its wire 
with rapidity, when a kind of twist, or “ kink,” occurred 
against the nipple of the enida, whereby the process was 
suddenly arrested. The projectile force, however, continuing, 
caused the impediment to yield, and minute portions of the 
thread flew out, piecemeal, by fits and starts. By turnin 
the stage-screw t brought the extremity of the dischi 
ortion into view, and saw it slowly evolving, a little at a 
time. Turning back to the cnida I saw the kink gradually 
give way, and the whole of the tangled wire quickly flew 
out through the nipple. I once more moved the stage, fol- 
lowing up the ecthoreum, and presently found the true 
extremity, and a large portion of the wire still inverted ; 
slowly evolving indeed, but very distinct throughout its 
whole course, within the walls of the evolyed portion 


ao : 7 

From all these observations, there cannot remain a doubt 
of the successive eversion of the entire ecthoreum. It may 
be asked, What is the nature of the force by which the 
contained thread is expelled? That it is a potent force, 
is obvious to any one who marks the sudden explosive 
violence with which the nipple-like end of the enida gives 
way, and the contents burst forth; as also the extreme 
rapidity with which, ordinarily, the whole length is evolved. 
A curious example of this force once excited my admiration : 
the ecthoreum Pott a cnida of Corynactis viridis was in 
course of rapid evolution, when the tip came full against 
the side of another cnida already emptied. The evolution 
was momentarily arrested, but the wall of the empty 
capsule presently was seen to bend inward, and suddenly 
to give way, the ecthoreum forcing itself in, and shooting 
round and round the interior of the cnida. 

The most careful observations have failed to reveal a 
lining membrane to the cnida. I have repeatedly dis- 
cerned a double outline to the walls themselves—the 
aa: expression of their'diameter; but have never 

etected any, even the least, appearance of any tissue 
starting from the walls, as the ecthoreum bursts out. My 
first supposition, reluctantly resigned, was, that some such 


XXXVi INTRODUCTION, 


lining membrane of high contractile power, lessened, on 
irritation, the volume of the cavity, and forced out the 
wire, 

The enida is filled, however, with a fluid. This is very 
distinctly seen, occupying the cavity, when from any im- 
pediment, such as above described, the wire flies out 
fitfully—waves, and similar motions, passing from wall to 
wall: sometimes, even before any portion of the wire has 
escaped, the whole mass of tangled coils is seen to move 
irregularly from side to side, within the capsule, from the 
operation of some intestine cause. Zhe emission itself is a 
process of injection; for I have many times seen floating 
atoms driven forcibly along the interior of the ecthoreum, 
sometimes swiftly, and sometimes more deliberately. 
. Nothing that I have seen, would lead me to conclude that 
the wall of the endda is ciliated. 

I consider, then, that this fluid, holding organic cor- 
puscles in suspension, is endowed with a high degree of 
expansibility ; that, in the state of repose, it is in a con- 
dition of compression, by the inversion of the ecthoreum; 
and that, on the excitement of a suitable stimulus, it 
forcibly exerts its expansile power, distending, and con- 
sequently projecting, the tubular ecthorewm,—the only part 
of the wall that will yield without actual rupture. 

The cnide cannot, I think, be regarded in the light of 
cells, since they are but the contents of other vesicles, 
which thus present a higher claim to the character of cell- 
wall. In the craspeda of S. parasitica, may be seen many 
of the chambered cnide, bearing this outer envelope, 
which, without determining anything concerning its nature, 
I shall distinguish as the pertbola. Many of the enide have 
ruptured their investing membrane, which gives way at no 
special point, sometimes at the anterior end, sometimes at 
the posterior, and as frequently, all down the side. The 
peribola thus ruptured, may be seen in many instances still 
hanging about the enida, while others are quite free from 
any remains of it, and in some cases I have seen the enida 
still enveloped in its peribola, unruptured. 

The peribola I have seen investing, and hanging around 
the enide of the spiral and globate kinds, and this cireum- 
stance has afforded me an additional ground for presuming the 
latter to belong to this category of organs (figs. 11, 12, g). 

It appears necessary that the cnzda should set itself free 


———EEEEEeeeeee 


INTRODUCTION. XXXVIi 


by the rupture of its peribola, before it can effect the 
emission of its ecthoreum. At least I have never met with 
an example of the contrary. 

It has long been known, that a very slight contact with 
the tentacles of a polype is sufficient to produce, in any 
minute animal so touched, torpor and speedy death. Since 
the discovery of these entde, the fatal power has been 
supposed to be lodged in them. Baker, a century ago, in 
speaking of the Hydra, suggested that “there must be 
something eminently poisonous in its grasp;” and this 
suspicion received confirmation from the circumstance that 
the Entomostraca, which are enveloped in a shelly covering, 
frequently escape unhurt after having been seized. The 
stinging power possessed by many Meduse, which is suf- 
ficiently intense to be formidable even to man, has been 
reasonably attributed to the same organs, which the micro- 
we shows to be accumulated by millions in their tissues. 
- Though I cannot reduce this presumption to actual 
certainty, I have made some experiments, which leave no 
reasonable doubt on the subject. First—I have proved 
that the ecthoreum when shot, has the power of penetrating, 
and does actually penetrate, the tissues of even the higher 
animals, Several years ago, I was examining one of the 
purple acontia of Adamsia palliata: no pressure had been 

but a considerable number of enide had been spon- 
taneously dislodged. It happened, that I had just before 
been looking at the sucker-foot of an Asterina, which 
remained still attached to the glass of the aquatic box, by 
means of its terminal disk. The cilia of the acontium had, 
in their rowing action, brought it into contact with the 
sucker, round which it then continued slowly to revolve. 
The result I presently discerned to be, that a considerable 
number of the enide had shot their ecthorea into the 
flesh of the sucking disk of the Echinoderm, and were seen 
sticking all round its edge, the wires imbedded in its sub- 
stance even up to the very capsules, like so many pins 
stuck around a toilet pin-cushion, 

To test this power of penetration still farther, as well as 
to try whether it is brought into exercise on the contact of 
a foreign body with the living Anemone, I instituted the 
following experiment. With a razor I took shavings of 
the cuticle, from the callous part of my own foot, as from the 
ball of the toe, and from the heel. One of these shavings I 


XXXVili INTRODUCTION. 


presented to the tentacles of a fully expanded T. crassicornis. 
After contact, and momentary adhesion, I withdrew the 
cuticle, and examined it under a power of 600 diameters. 
I found, as I had expected, cnide studding the surface, 
standing up endwise, the wires in every case shot into the 
substance. They were not numerous—in a space of ‘01 
inch square, I counted about a dozen. 

I then irritated a S. parasitica till it ejected an acontium, 
and taking up with pliers another shaving of the cuticle, 
allowed it to touch the acontiwm, which instantly adhered 
across its surface. I now drew away the cuticle gently, so 
as not to rupture the acontium, and examining it as before, 
immediately saw dense groups of cnide, standing endwise 
on the surface, the ecthorea all discharged and inserted in 
the substance almost to the very capsules. The groups 
were set in a sinuous line, across the cuticle, where the 
acontium had adhered, with scattered cnide between them 
on the same line. In one of these groups I counted thirty- 
five entde in an area about *0025 inch square. 

These examples prove that the slightest contact with the 
om organs of the Anemone is sufficient to provoke the 

ischarge of the cnide ; and that even the densest condition 
of the human skin offers no impediment to the penetration 
of the ecthorea. 

As to the injection of a poison, it is indubitable that 
pain, and in some cases death, ensues even to vertebrate 
animals from momentary contact with the capsuliferous 
organs of the ZoopHytTa. The very severe pain, followed 
by torpor, lasting for a whole day, which Mr. George 
Bennett has described as experienced by himself, on taking 
hold of Physalis pelagica, was produced by the contact of 
the tentacles. The late Professor Edward Forbes has 
graphically depicted the “prickly torture’ which results to 
“tender-skinned bathers,” from the touch of the long 
filamentous tentacles—“ poisonous threads” —of the Cyanea 
capillata of our own seas; and observes that these ampu- 
tated weapons severed from the parent-body, sting as fiercely 
as if their original proprietor itself gave the word of 
attack. I have been assured by ladies that they have felt 
a distinct stinging sensation, like that produced by the 
leaves of the nettle, on the tender skin of the fingers, from 
handling our common Anthea cereus ; while, on the other 
hand, 1 have myself handled the species, scores of times, 


OR OE ee 


PS” 


i ] ey wee 


. INTRODUCTION. MD .>. 6.4. 


with impunity. And I have elsewhere* recorded an in- 
stance, in which a little fish, swimming about in health and 
vigour, died in a few minutes with great agony, through 
the momentary contact of its lip with one of the emitted 
acontia of Sagartia parasitica. 1t is worthy of observation, 
that, in this case, the fish carried away a portion of the 
acontium sticking to its lip; the force with which it ad- 
hered being so great, that the integrity of the tissues yielded 
first. The Acontium severed, rather than let go its hold.t 

Now, in the experiments which I have detailed above, 
we have seen that this adhesion is effected by the actual 
impenetration of the foreign body, by a multitude of the 
caeins, whose barbs resist withdrawal. So that we can 
with certainty associate the sudden and violent death of 
the little fish with the intromission of barbed ecthorea. 

I have instituted some experiments with a view to try 
whether acid or alkaline properties could be detected in the 
(presumed) fluid which is discharged. First with a solu- 
tion of indigo, and afterwards with the expressed juice of 
violets, 1 occupied the plate of the compressorium ; and in 
the flattened drop wide the enide in the acontium of S. 
parasitica to emit. In the case of the indigo, the colouring 
matter remained in the form of masses, but the juice of 
violets affords an apparently homogeneous fluid, even when 
reduced by pressure to an excessively thin film. I could 
not detect, even with the most careful scrutiny, the slightest 
tinge of discoloration of the blue fluid,—not the most 
delicate shade of red or green—along the side of the 
emitted ecthorea, nor in the vicinity of the enide. And 


* “The Aquarium,” ed. 1. p. 115. 

+ Dr. Waller has recently recorded an interesting experiment which he 
made with Act. mesembryanthemum. He allowed its tentacles to touch 
the tip of his tongue. “The result was such as to satisfy the most scep- 
tical respecting the offensive weapons with which it is furnished. The 
animal seized the organ most vigorously, and was detached from it with 
some difficulty after the lapse of about a minute. Immediately a pungent 
acrid pain commenced, which continued to increase for some minutes, 
until it became extremely distressing. The point attacked felt inflamed 
and much swollen, although to the eye no change in the part could be 
detected. These symptoms continued unabated for about an hour, and a 
slight temporary relief was only obtained by immersing the tongue in cold 
or warm water. After this period the symptoms gradually abated, and 
about four hours later, they had entirely disappeared. A day or two after, 
a very minute ulceration was perceived over the apex of the tongue, which 
disappeared after being touched with nitrate of silver.”—(Proc. Roy. Soc. 


P 
_ - April 14, 1859.) 


xl INTRODUCTION, 


though, in order to obtain a greater intensity of colour, I 
allowed a drop of violet-juice to dry on each plate of the 
compressorium, so that with a power of 800 diameters, the 
whole field was of a deep uniform translucent blue—still 
the ejected wire produced no.change of tint. 

Such a test as this is not sufficient to prove that no acid 
or alkaline property exists in the discharged fluid, and still 
less that no poisonous fluid at all is effused; since that 
most concentrated poison, the venom of the rattlesnake, is 
said to change vegetable blues to reds, in so slight a degree 
as to be scarcely perceptible.* 

Admitting the existence of a venomous fluid, it is diffi- 
cult to imagine where it is lodged, and how it is injected. 
The first thought that occurs to one’s mind is, that it is the 
organic fluid which we have seen to fill the interior of the 
enida, and to be forced through the everting tubular ectho- 
reum. But if so, it cannot be ejected through the ex- 
tremity of the ecthoreum, because if this were an open 
tube, I do not see how the contraction of the fluid in the 
enida could force it to evolve; the fluid would escape 
through the still inverted tube. It is just possible that 
the barbs may be tubes open at the tips, and that the 
poison-fluid may be ejected through these. But I rather 
incline to the hypothesis, that the cavity of the ecthoreum 
in tts primal inverted condition while it yet remains coiled up 
in the cnida, is occupied with the potent fluid in question, 
and that it is poured out pues 2 within the tissues of 
the victim, as the evolving tip of the wire penetrates farther 
and farther into the wound. 

Perhaps it is not too much to say that the whole range of 
organic existence does not afford a more wonderful example 
than this, of the minute workmanship and elaboration of 
the parts, the extraordinary mode in which certain pre- 


scribed ends are attained, and the perfect adaptation of the. 


contrivance to the work which it has to do. 


* In a communication made by Dr. M‘Donnell to the Royal Society, 
some experiments were detailed, which had led the observer to believe that 
electricity was the power in question. In a subsequent paper, however, 
that gentleman gave up his hypothesis. (Proc. Roy. Soc. Jan. 14, and 
Nor. 18, 1858.) 


BRITISH SEA-ANEMONES. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION 
AND EXPLANATION OF TERMS. 


As it is of great importance in scientific description to 
employ precise terms for the various parts of the objects 
_ described, and for the conditions of those parts, and to use 
the same terms always in the same sense, I here define the 
| terms which I propose to use in this work. 


_ The principal parts of the body of a Sea-Anemone are 
_ the following:—the base; the column; the disk; the 
_ tentacles; the mouth; the-cavity. 


1. THe Base (Basis). 


| This is the lowest part of the animal, usually forming 
| a flat area, by means of which it adheres to other bodies. 

It is often EXPANDED (expansa), its outline being consi- 
| derably broader than a section of the column. In some 
| eases, as in Edwardsia, it becomes very small, loses its 
function, and finally, as in Certanthus, disappears. In 
_ Adamsia, it is greatly extended laterally into two wings, 
_ which, curving round, meet and unite by their edges, 


_ forming a complete circle. This form of base may be 


_ distinguished as ANNULAR (annularis). 
& , B 


2 GENERAL DESCRIPTION 


2. Tur CoLtumn (Colwmna). 


The body rises in a more or less cylindrical shape, when 
the base is attached, like the trunk of a tree, often grace- 
fully and rapidly diminishing from the basal expansion, 
and sometimes dilating towards the upper extremity :—this 
I call the cotumn. At the SUMMIT (vertex), the column is, 
as it were, cut off transversely, forming a distinct MARGIN 
(margo). In some cases, as in Actinoloba, the margin rises 
into a thickened PARAPET (tichium) or low wall, separated 
from the tentacles by a groove or FOSSE (fossa). In others, 
there is neither parapet nor fosse. The margin may be 
NOTCHED (crenata); or, instead of notches there may be 
distinct tentacles, constituting the outer row of these organs; 
in this case the margin is TENTACULATE (tentaculata). 

The surface of the column may be quite sMooTH (/evis) ; 
studded with low warts,—WARTY (verrucosa); or marked 
with longitudinal sunken lines,—FURROWED (sulcata). 
When the furrows are deep and the intermediate spaces 
swell out in a rounded outline, it is INVECTED (tnvecta) ; 
when the column is surrounded by transverse wrinkles, it 
may be called INSECTED (cnsecta) ; when these insections are 
so deep as to seem to cut-off or divide the body into parts, 
it is CONSTRICTED (constricta) ; when the surface is crossed 
by numerous longitudinal-and transverse wrinkles, it is CAN- 
CELLATED (cancellata) ; when minutely and very irregularly 
wrinkled, like the bark of a rough tree, it is CORRUGATED 
(corrugata). Some of these conditions are not permanently 
characteristic of any species, but are assumed temporarily 
during the changes of form induced by contraction. As 
to substance, the column may be tough and resisting, 
approaching a LEATHERY consistence (cordacea) ; FLESHY 
(carnosa), when soft but moderately firm; or PULPY 
(pulposa), when very soft and yielding. 


( : 
4 


i 
: than the rest; these may be termed GONIDIAL RADII (radii 


i gonidiales). 


AND EXPLANATION OF TERMS. 3 


The WARTS (verruce), in some species, are hollow, and 
furnished with a muscular arrangement by which a vacuum 


_ is formed, and the edges adhere firmly to foreign bodies; 
_ these may be called suckers (acetabula). Other species 
_ have the skin and the muscular beds beneath it pierced 
with minute orifices, for the emission of armed threads ; 


these may be called LOOP-HOLES (cinclides). 


3. THe Disk (Facies). 


This is the flattened upper extremity of the column, as 
the base is the flattened lower extremity. Its outline is 
circular; and this is recognised without difficulty when, as 
is usually the case, the edge is PLANE (plana); but some- 


_ times the edge is wAvy (undulata), as in Bellis ; or even 


deeply FRILLED (sinuosa), as in dianthus. In Actinia 


_ proper, the disk bears, just within its margin, a row of 


SPHERULES (spherule marginales) ; and, in every species, it 
carries the TENTACLES, and is pierced at the centre by the 
MOUTH. CONVERGING LINES (radii) cover the surface of the 
disk, starting from each tentacle-foot and meeting around 
the mouth. One RADIUS on each side of the disk, leading 
to each MOUTH-ANGLE (gonidium), is often more marked 


4, Tue TENTACLES (Tentacula). 


___ These are hollow cones springing from the surface of the 
_ disk, and arranged in one or more series of circles towards 
_ its margin. When there are more circles than one, that 
circle which is nearest the centre may be called the First 
_ ROW (series prima) ; that which stands next to it towards 
_ the margin the sEconD (series secunda) ; and so on till we 
_ reach the OUTERMOST (series extima). With respect to 
_ each individual tentacle, its FRONT (antica) is that aspect 


B2 


4 GENERAL DESCRIPTION 


which is next to the centre; its BACK (postica), that which 
is next to the margin; its RIGHT and LEFT SIDES (latus 
dextrum, l. sinistrum), those which depend upon these 
indications. Each tentacle has a FooT (radix) and a TIP 
(apex). 

5. Tue Moutu (0s). 


The entrance to the stomach is placed, as has been stated 
above, in the centre of the disk. It is surrounded by a 
generally thickened Lip (labiwm), which is sometimes 
elevated on a CONE (colliculus), and sometimes level. The 
LIP may be SMOOTH (/eve), or FURROWED (sulcatum) ; at 
each of two opposite points,—the MOUTH-ANGLES (gonidia), 
—there are placed two TUBERCLES (lentigines), between which 
opens an imperfect tube or groove formed by the approxi- 
mation of two cartilaginous bands: these grooves, one at 
each mouth-angle, may be termed GONIDIAL GROOVES 
(canales gonidiales). Their function appears to be that of 
oviducts. (In Actinoloba, there is but a single mouth- 
angle, and a single groove). From the lip descends 
into the cavity of the body a membranous veil, much 
gathered into folds, but free at the lower edge, like a sack 
without a bottom; this is the STOMACH (stomachus), of 
which the portion immediately below the lip may be 
conveniently termed the-THROAT (gula). 


6. THe Cavity (Venter). 


The whole of the region included between the walls of 
the column and the stomach-wall, and between the free 
edge of the stomach and the base, may be indicated by 
this term. It is divided into imperfect chambers by 

* In Actinopsis, a singular form recently described by Messrs. Danielssen 
-and Koren from the Norwegian coast, the gonidial tubercles are prolonged 


into a pair of long and rigid semi-cylinders, the sides of which are bent 
downwards, and the tips of which are cleft. 


AND EXPLANATION OF TERMS. 5 


P perpendicular muscular PARTITIONS (septa), all of which are 


inserted into the column-wall, but advance into the cavity 


4 in various degrees. Some are inserted by their inner edge 
- into the stomach-wall, completely dividing-off the cavity : 


_ these may be called PRIMARY SEPTA (septa primordialia). 


_ Others are placed intermediately between these, which do 
- not reach the stomach-wall; these are SECONDARY SEPTA 
_ (s, secundaria). Others, again, are intermediate between 
_ these and the former, whose height is still lower (these may 
_ be distinguished as TERTIARY (s. tertiaria); and so on, if 
_ there be any series beyond this. The spaces thus parted 
| off in the cavity, I would call mNTERSEPTS (¢ntersepta). 
' The free edges of the secondary and tertiary septa, and also 
of the primary ones below the stomach, carry a thin 


membrane which encloses the OVARIES (ovaria), and is 


terminated by a sort of CORD (craspedum), much twisted 
and involved. Long MISSILE CORDS (acontia) are in some 
species attached by one end to the partitions, and lie coiled- 
up, or float freely, in the intersepts: these are, by the volun- 
tary contractions of the animal, forcibly ejected through the 
loop-holes, into which they are then gradually withdrawn. 
Both the eraspeda and the acontia are almost wholly com- 
_ posed of THREAD-CAPSULES (cnide), which contain a coiled 
. WIRE (ecthoreum). This wire is shot out under particular 
stimulus, and is an efficient weapon of offence ; it is usually 
surrounded with one or more spiral bands composing the 


vd SCREW (strebla), each of which carries a series of BARBS 


(pterygia) ; and the whole apparatus is a vehicle for the 
infusion of some highly venomous fluid. 
The different conditions assumed by the animal, may be 


_ distinguished as the FLOWER (anthus), when the disk with 


its tentacles is expanded ; the BUTTON (oncus), when these 
are retracted and concealed by the closing over them of the 
summit of the column. 


CLASS ZOOPHYTA. 


ANIMALS of radiate structure; of gelatinous or fleshy 
substance ; more or less column-shaped ; having, in general, 
one end permanently attached or temporarily adherent to 
. foreign bodies ; the other end forming a flat disk surrounded 
by one or more circles of tentacles, and pierced in the 
centre by a mouth opening into the digestive cavity ; 
furnished with offensive weapons in the form of capsules 
imbedded in the tissues, each of which encloses a projectile 
poisoning dart; possessing no special organs of sense. 


ORDER ACTINOIDA. 


The visceral cavity inclosing the stomach, and divided 
into compartments by perpendicular partitions of membrane 
which support the reproductive organs; germs ejected 
through the mouth. 


SUB-ORDER ACTINARIA. 


Tentacles twelve or upwards, rarely warty ; membranous 
partitions sometimes simple, sometimes depositing solid 
calcareous plates, which, with the surrounding walls, con- 
stitute the corallum. 


TRIBE I—ASTRAZACEA. 

Tentacles many, in imperfect series, or scattered; coral- 
lum (when present) calcareous, consisting of cells containing 
many radiating plates; the plates prolonged outward beyond 
the cells which enclose them. (N.B. No known British 
- species of this Tribe deposits a corallum.) 


TRIBE IJ.—CARYOPHYLLACEA. 
Tentacles many, in two or more series ; mostly increasing 
by lateral buds; generally depositing a corallum, which is 
invariably calcareous, and many-rayed. 


‘ TRIBE IIL—MADREPORACEA. 


Tentacles in a single series, twelve (rarely more), some- 
times obsolete: gemmiparous; gemmation lateral: coral- 
ligenous ; corallum calcareous; cells [calyces] quite small : 
rays (septa) six to twelve, or obsolete : interstitial surface 
not lamello-striate. (Not British.) 


TRIBE IV.—ANTIPATHACEA. 


Animals with six tentacles, forming at the base horny 
secretions (fleshy, enveloping a horny axis). (Not British.) 


TRIBE I1L—ASTRAACEA. 


AWALYSIS OF THE NON-CORALLIGENOUS FAMILIES. 


Base adherent at pleasure. ? 
’ Tentacles compound (Nof British). . . . 2. . . Metridiade. 
Tentacles simple. 
Column pierced with loop-holes. . . . . ... Sagartiade. 
Column imperforate. 
Column smooth. 
Bicenel mates Ode se Antheade 
OS ea ae oer Actiniade. 
Column warted. . . . . Kota. Sane Bunodide. 
Base non-adherent. 
Lower extremity rounded, simple . . . ... . Ilyanthide. 


Lower extremity inclosing an air-chamber (Not British) Minyadide. 


8 
TRIBE I.—ASTRASACEA. 


All the members of this Tribe with which we are fami- 
liar on the European shores are simple, and destitute of 
a corallum. But when those of all seas are taken into con- 
sideration, we find that the majority are compound and 
coralligenous. ‘The increase of these is effected by the 
budding forth of new polypes from the single primary 
polype; and it is in the manner of this gemmation that 
the tribe Astreacea differs from the Caryophylliacea. In 
the former, increase invariably takes place by the extension 
of the summit, and not of the side or base. The process of 
widening, in budding polypes, may be confined to the parts 
exterior to the disk and visceral cavity below, or the disk 
and cavity may continuously enlarge; in the latter case, 
the buds open in the disks, the process of budding being 
the cause of their enlargement (DANA). 

The greater part of the Astrwacea increase by disk-buds, 
and spontaneous subdivision; the disk of the polype, and 
the cell of the corallum, gradually widening by growth, 
and finally separating into two portions, which become in- 
dependent. A few only widen exteriorly to the disk, or in 
the interstitial spaces between the cells of aggregate corals 
(DANA). ; 

The polypes in both this and the following tribe are 
many-tentacled; but, while this character distinguishes 
them from the two other tribes, it is of no assistance in 
discriminating those species with which we have to do. 
Moreover, as our Astreacea are all simple, it is difficult to 
apply the rule derived from the manner of gemmation. 
The spontaneous fission of some species, however, as 
Aetinoloba dianthus, partially, and Anthea cereus completely, 
may help us to assign their affinities; and their general 
resemblance, ¢nter se, and that of the whole to the polypes 
of the coralligenous Astreacea, leave little room for un- 
certainty. 


af 
‘ 
; 


4 as a foot, on which to creep, somewhat in the manner of a 
_ snail. They have always simple, smooth tentacles, arranged 


in (generally) uninterrupted circles at the margin of the 


9 


FAMILY I.—METRIDIADA. 


(No European species.) 


FAMILY Il1.—SAGARTIADA. 


I have thought fit to associate in this group those genera 


_ of the Tribe, which have the following characters :—They 


do not deposit a corallum. They have a broad base, capable, 


_ at the pleasure of the animal, of firmly adhering to foreign 


bodies, such as rocks, stones, and shells; or of being used 


disk, but often encroaching far upon its surface. Their 
body is for the most part pulpy or fleshy, generally lubri- 


- cated on the surface with copious mucus; its exterior is 


often studded with sucking cavities, hich have the power 
of adhering to foreign bodies, by the formation of a vacuum 


_ within the cavity, its muscular edges being appressed by 


the weight of the supetcumbent atmosphere and water. 


_ The margins of these cavities do not rise into conspicuous 
| warts when inactive. The integument is pierced with 

loop-holes (cinclides),—special orifices, through which are 
emitted and retracted fleshy cords (acontia), which have 
_ their origin in the membranous partitions of the body- 
cavity. These are filled with capsules (enide), which are 
_ generally chambered, and which shoot a very short, but 
_ densely-armed wire (ecthoreum). 


10 


ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA. 
Tentacles moderately long, slender. 


Disk perfectly retractile. 
Column destitute of suckers . . . . . . . Actinoloba, 
Column furnished with suckers. . . . . . Sagartia. 


Column clothed with a rough epidermis . . . Phellia. 
Disk imperfectly retractile. 
Base annular; parasitic on shells . . . . . Adamsia. 
Base entire; not parasitic. . . Gregoria. 
Tentacles mere warts; set in eadinting’ hands (Not 
British). . . ear ea OMA 


11 


GENUS I. ACTINOLOBA (Buarnv.). 


Actinia (LInNN.). 


Cribrina (EHRENBERG). 
Sagartia (Gosse). 


Base considerably broader than the column; its 


_ outline often undulate, but entire. 


Column pillar-like, in the expanded state; the 
_ margin forming a thickened parapet, or low wall, 
_ separated from the tentacular disk by a groove or 
_ fosse. Surface perfectly smooth, without suckers, 
but pierced with loop-holes, Substance approaching 
to pulpy. 
Disk deeply frilled at the margin; thinly mem- 


_ branous. 


Tentacles short, slender, not arranged in distin- 
guishable circles, scattered at their commencement 
about half-breadth of the disk, becoming gradually 
_ smaller, more numerous and densely crowded as they 
approach the border. 
|  . Mouth surrounded with a thick lip; furnished with 
_ only a single gonidial groove, surmounted by a single 
pair of tubercles. 

___ Acontia emitted somewhat reluctantly, but copi- 
ously upon occasion. 

Only one British species. 


ASTRAACEA. SAGARTIADA. 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. -— 


Actinoloba dianthus. 


Prats I. Fig. 1. 


Specific Character. Body smooth, columnar when distended ; five inches 
and upwards in height: mouth strongly furrowed, rufous: tentacles 
marked with a ring of white. f 


Actinia dianthus. Exxis, Phil. Trans. lvii. 436; tab. xix. fig. 8. 
Jounston, Br. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 232; pl. xliii.. 
Daye, Anim. of Scotland, 235; pl. xlviii. 
figs. 6. 7; xlix. Gossz, Aquarium, Ed. 2. 
182; pl. v. Tuawsett, Manual of Sea Ane- 
mones, 56; pl. i. 


senilis. Linn. Syst. Nat. 1089. 

judaica. Isr. Syst. Nat. 1088. 

pentapetala. Penn. Br. Zool. iv. 104. 

plumosa. Miter, Zool. Dan. iii. 12; tab. Ixxxviii.; 

figs. 1, 2. 

aurantiaca. JorDAN, Annals. N. H. Ser. II. vol. xv. 85. (juv.) 
Actinoloba dianthus. BuarInvitiE, Actinologie, 322. 
Sagartia dianthus. GossE, Man. Marine Zool. i. 28. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to shells and stones: expanded considerably beyond 
the diameter of the column. 

Column. Smooth, lubricated profusely with mucus; destitute of suckers, 
warts, wrinkles, furrows, and corrugations. Substance fleshy, approaching 
to pulpy. Form cylindrical, terminating in a simple thickened parapet, 
which is separated from the outer tentacles by a fosse. 

Disk. Widely expanded, thin, greatly overhanging the column, deeply 
frilled. : 

Tentacles. Exceedingly numerous, moderately large and scattered at 
about the middle of the semi-diameter of the disk, but becoming smaller 
and closer outward, until they are excessively crowded, and very minute 
at the margin. In extreme youth they are comparatively few, and much 
longer in proportion. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone; lip thick, divided into lobes by strongly 
marked furrows, A single groove only at one of the mouth-angles, guarded 
by a pair of tubercles. 


JOOMAMAS } ) 7 
VLSNMNGA Viluvovs , S Viluvovs 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE, 13 


CoLour. 


Column. Olive, olive-brown, umber-brown, red-lead, pale-orange, salmon- 
_ red, flesh-colour, cream-white, pure white. [“Lemon-yellow,” “ peach- 
~ blossom.” —DatyEtt. ] 

Disk. Agrees with the column. 

Tentacles. Generally agree with the column, but in the olive and brown 
varieties, they are sometimes almost wholly pellucid-white, and in all cases 
they are marked with a single transverse bar of white, near their middle ; 
most conspicuous in youth. 

_ Tip. Always rufous, or orange-red ; whatever the hue of the body. 


#4 


Size. 
‘Specimens occasionally attain six inches in height, and three in thickness. 


Locality. 


All round the coasts of Europe, in deep water, and on dark rocks 
between tide-marks. 


Zs VARIETIES. 


| -—S-«* These might be made as numerous as the various shades of colour above- 
- mentioned; but for practical purposes it may be sufficient to distinguish 
the following :— 

a. Brunnea. Including the shades of brown, from dingy blackish olive, 
to warm umber, or fawn-colour. Sometimes, as in examples that have 
fallen under my own observation, the tentacles, in these brown specimens, 
are almost white, marked with the more opaque white bar. There is not 
the slightest reason to assign these, as has been suggested, to another 
species. 

5 8. Rubida. The various tints of red, from the full minium-scarlet to the 
__ peach-blossom and fiesh-colour, may be classed under this variety, which 
___ is perhaps the most abundant of all. 

~~ ». Flava. Sir John Dalyell enumerates “ lemon-yellow” among the hues 

of this species ; but it must be a very rare variety. I have never seen it. 

| 3. Sindonea. Perhaps this is the most elegant variety ; the animal being 
_ lad in translucent white—“ simplex munditiis,” as if arrayed in the finest 
_ Coan vestments. It is not uncommon. 


This noblest of our native Sea-anemones seems to be 
entitled to generic separation from the Sagartie, with 
which I have hitherto associated it. Its form and habit, 
its puckered disk, its crowded and fringe-like tentacles, its 
thickened parapet and deep fosse, and the presence of only 


14 SAGARTIADA. 


a single mouth-groove, are well-marked characters peculiar 
to it among our British species. ‘This last peculiarity 
isolates the species from every other with which I am 
acquainted. 

The generic appellation Actinoloba, I have adopted from 
De Blainville, who formed the genus in his “ Actinologie” 
(1834). It is sufficiently expressive ; but objectionable on 
account of its construction. It is a good canon that no 
generic name ought to form a part of a second generic 
name. In this case the word is constructed out of Actinia, 
and AoBos, a lobe or flap: it means, therefore, “ the lobed 
Actinia.” If it had been formed of the element a«riv, 
a ray, the construction would have been unobjectionable, 
though the word would have been false in signification ; for 
what the French zoologist wished to express was “a lobed 
Actinia,” not ‘ a creature with lobed rays (= tentacles).” 

The specific name, dianthus, is due to a pretty fancy of 
Ellis, the father of English Zoophytology. Observing the 
resemblance which the Actiniw bore to composite or many- 
petaled flowers,—a resemblance which is perpetuated in 
the popular appellation, Sea-Anemones,—he named such as 
were known to him after those lovely objects; bellis, the 
daisy ; mesembryanthemum, the fig-marigold ; dianthus, the 
pink. I do not know that we are to seek for special 
resemblances to the particular flowers chosen; one poly- 
petalous flower might have served as well as another : still 
less shall we find any etymological significance in the 
appropriation. For the latter we must go back to the 
flower. In the present case, the pink and carnation. genus 
is named dianthus, some say, for its great beauty (820s, 
divine, dvOos, flower); but it may be from its tendency to 
become double (8, the sign of duplication, SuavO)s, having 

full or double flowers): the lexicons moreover give S:avOéw 
(from 81a), to bloom. 


Se So 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. 15 


_ Miiller has called dianthus the most beautiful of all the 
Anemones,—“ Actiniarum pulcherrima ;” and his verdict 
is surely correct, so far as it refers to European species. 
When we see a full-grown specimen of some of the more 
_ delicately coloured varieties,—the pale orange, the flesh- 
- coloured, or the clear white,—rising erect from its broad 


- base like the stem of a massive tree, crowned with its 


_ expansive disk of myriad tentacles, we cannot but consider 
| it a most noble, as well as a most lovely object. It is only 
| in expansion that it is beautiful. The button will some- 
times shrink down to an abject flatness, scarcely more 
than an eighth of an inch in height in the centre, the cir- 
cumference spread out on every side to cover an irregularly 
outlined area of some five or six inches in diameter, but 
no thicker than a card. In this condition it is almost a 
repulsive object, but, perhaps in a quarter of an hour, you 
look at it again, and the change seems magical. The 
animal has risen, and swollen, and distended its body 
with clear water, till the tissues appear plump, and almost 
transparent ; it now forms a noble massive column, some 
five inches high, and three thick, from which the delicate 
frilled disk expands, and arches over on every side, like 
the foliated crown of a palm tree. Then again, on some 
cause of alarm, real or supposed, it will suddenly draw 
_ in its beautiful array of frills, contract around them its 
_ parapet, and assume a distended bladder-like figure, with 
_ the clustering tentacles just protruding from the slightly 
_ . open aperture. 

It is under the veil of night that the Anemones in 
general expand most readily and fully. While the glare 
_ of day is upon them, they are often chary of displaying 
M their blossomed beauties; but an hour of darkness will 
often suffice to overcome the reluctance of the coyest. 
The species before us is not particularly shy ; it may often 


16 SAGARTIADA. 


be seen opened to the full in broad daylight; but if you 
would make sure of seeing it in all the gorgeousness of its 
magnificent bloom, visit your tank with a candle an hour 
or two after nightfall. | 

The membranous disk appears to be truly circular in 
outline, but so fully frilled that it is impossible to expand 

‘it on a plane. There are commonly from five to eight 
broad and deep involutions, which are sometimes simple, 
sometimes compound ; in the latter case forming a semi- 
globular head of close slender tentacles, almost furry in 
character. 

Mr. W. A. Lloyd has favoured me with the following 
note, on a tentacular peculiarity in this species :— 

“In a marine tank belonging to a customer of mine, 
there is an Act. dianthus having one single long slender 
tentacle, high overarching the great fleecy mass of ordinary 
tentacles, and acting independently of them, very different 
from anything I have ever before seen in this species, and 
similar to the one solitary tentacle sometimes present in 
A, bellis.” 

When very young, neither the frilled involution of the 
disk, nor the smallness of the tentacles, nor their crowded 
condition, is characteristic of the species. It is then very 
likely to be mistaken by an inexperienced observer for 
another form, or to be described as new. Professor Jordan 
has, I feel sure, fallen into this very excusable error; for 
the specimens which he has described* under the name of 
Actinia aurantiaca were certainly none other than infant 
dianthuses. ‘Their size,—about half-an-inch high; their 
hue,—orange or almost salmon-colour; their tentacles,—of 
a greyer tint, with a whitish bar; their locality,—the 
under surface of an inclined mass of rock ; their numbers,— 


* In the Annals of Nat. Hist. for Feb. 1855, 


eee) Se ee ee 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. “ 17 


_ many of the same size associated together; their habit,— 
hanging pendent from the midst of the acorn-shells and 
. sponges, “like a rain-drop ready to fall;”—all agree 
i : exactly with the young of dianthus. My friend, inva 
private letter, tells me, moreover, that he is certain they 
_ were immature, from the length of the tentacles; and that _ 
. his brother suspected them to be the young of dianthus, 
"because he found old dianthus at the same spot. There 
can be no doubt that Mr. Charles Jordan is right. 
| A very heterodox notion seems to have obtained cur- 
 rency, that this species differs from other Actinic‘in that it 
| is incapable of altering its place, when once it has selected 
it. Dr. Johnston says,—and his statement is the more 
_ surprising since he had seen “several hundreds of indivi- 
~ duals,’—“ As A. dianthus is a permanently attached species, 
and cannot be removed without organic injury to the base, 
it has some claim to be made the type of a genus.” (Brit. 
_ Zooph. p. 234). If this were correct, the claim (which I 
have allowed on other grounds) would indeed be well 
founded ; but the statement is erroneous. Sir John Dalyell, 
| 4 again, while allowing that dianthus shifts its position spon- 
_ taneously, affirms that it cannot be compelled to do so with 
| ‘ impunity. In illustration of this assertion he mentions the 
ease of a very large one, which was attached to a stone too 
_ wide to be put into any of his vessels. In this emergency 
ie pabrensed the stone, laying it across the top of a jar, so 
_ that the Anemone should hang suspended in the sea-water. 
_ He had hoped that the animal would voluntarily quit its 
A and descend into the jar, but it did not; and, after 
"stretching itself for some days, it ruptured its body across 
_ the centre, apparently by its own weight,-and died.* 
_ Notwithstanding these excellent authorities, however, I 


* Rare and Rem. Anim. of Scotl., 235. 
Cc 


18 SAGARTIAD A. 


can unhesitatingly affirm, both that the species travels as 
freely as any in captivity, and that it may be removed from 
its attachment with the utmost ease and impunity. In “The 
Aquarium” (p. 192) I had given evidence of both these 
facts, and experience has since confirmed them in number- — 
less instances. Instead of repeating my own observations, — 
however, I will fortify them with the authority of my friend . 
Mr. Merriman, of Bridgnorth, who has favoured me with 
the following remarks on this subject :— 
“‘ Dr. Johnston’s statement is not confirmed by my © 
experience any more than yours. I have a very fine speci- _ 
men of dianthus, which persisted in crawling up the side of © 
my glass,—a circular one,—until part of its disk was actu- | 
ally above ‘high-water level.’ A few days ago it became ~ 
necessary to empty my glass. Accordingly I drew off the — 
water, and the dianthus hung in the most disconsolate way, — 
looking very like an old wet kid-glove. Finding I could — 
not finish my operation without entirely removing him, I — 
worked him off with the back of my nail. Of course, at the — 
first rude touch on his base, he shrank up into a ball, in — 
which shape he continued, when I dropped him into some — 
water to remain until I could restore him to his own home. 
While here he became quite like a ball of cotton, so many | 
were the nettling-threads that he threw out on all sides. — 
In two hours’ time I put him back into the glass, having — 
taken the precaution to place a bit of slate upright behind © 
him, that I might not have the same difficulty again. In — 
less than six hours he had stuck as firmly to the slate as he © 
had previously done to the glass, and he has continued 
most magnificent ever since.” | 
In spite of Sir John Dalyell’s assertion, that this species — 
is “less hardy than most,” the fuller aquarian experience of — 
the present day enables us to affirm that no British species — 
is more readily preserved in confinement than dianthus. — 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. 19 


There are probably thousands of specimens of ‘this fine 
eae now living in the aquariums of Great Britain and 
_ Treland; and a large number of these have been several 
f ~ years in » They continue to live and flourish, 
_ expanding and erecting themselves with the greatest free- 
- dom; nor do they seem at all affected by the turbidity of 
__ the water, provided it be free from impurity. I have had 
some specimens of rather large size continue for many 
hi months i in water so loaded with green Alga spores as to be 
almost. opaque, yet during the whole period they appeared 
perfectly at éase, and even increased their number by 
_ fissiparous division. It is the frequent habit of the species 
t= to crawl up the perpendicular side of the tank which it 
"inhabits, till it reaches the water's edge, a situation which 
seems particularly grateful to it; for there it remains from 
| week to week, daily (or rather nightly) projecting its 
columnar form in a horizontal direction, at the very surface, 
_ and then expanding its beautiful frills, so that the air 
_ bathes a part both of its body and its tentacles. 
I have never seen this Anemone increase its kind by 
| proper generation, that is, by the discharge of ova, or of 
i _ young. But no species more freely increases by sponta- 
| neous division. When a large individual has been a good 
__ while adherent to one spot, and at length chooses to change . 
_ its quarters, it does so by causing its base to glide slowly 
along the surface on which it rests ;—the glass side of the 
_ tank, for instance. But it frequently happens that small 
irregular fragments of the edge of the base are left behind, 
as if their adhesion had been so strong, that the animal 
a found it easier to tear its own tissues apart than to over- 
| come it. The fragments so left soon contract, become 
smooth, and spherical or oval in outline, and in the course 
ofa week or fortnight may be seen each furnished with a 
- margin of tentacles and a disk—transformed, in fact, into 
c 2 


20 SAGARTIADA. 


perfect though minute Anemones. Occasionally a separated 
piece, more irregularly jagged than usual, will, in contract- 
ing, constringe itself, and form two smaller fragments, 
united by an isthmus, which goes on attenuating until 
a fine thread-like line only is stretched from one to the 
other; this at length yields, the substance of the broken 
thread is rapidly absorbed into the respective pieces, which 
‘soon become two young dianthuses. 

_ It is to this tendency to spontaneous division that I 
would attribute the frequent occurrence in this species of 
monstrosity, such as two disks uniting into a single column. 
This is very common. Dr. Johnston supposes that such 
cases are produced by the coalescence of two individuals 
which happened to be in contact, and he accounts for its 
frequency by the gregarious habit of the species.* The 
possibility of two individuals thus uniting, remains, how- 
ever, to be proved; while the fissiparous habit, which is 
patent, is quite sufficient to produce the phenomenon. 

I have been informed of a case, in which a young one 
was produced by gemmation from the base of the adult, 
without previous separation of the fragment. 

When erect, and fully distended with water, the integu- 
ments and tissues become translucent, and, in parts, even 
transparent. In this condition, when favourably placed,— 
as when in front of a window, or with a candle just behind 
it,—an excellent opportunity is afforded of examining the 
internal arrangement of the organs, free from the confusion 
which the excessive contraction consequent upon dissection 
induces. ‘The septa are seen stretching away into the general 
cavity, and the acontia lying in many coils along the inter- 
septs; while ever and anon a minute coiled fragment, torn 
from some acontium, is seen driven to and fro along the 


* Br. Zooph. 2nd Ed., 233. 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. 21 


-intersepts, by the action of the cilia with which the inte- 
rior membranes are covered. Occasionally, such a spiral 
fragment is driven into the interior of a tentacle, which is 
indeed but a continuation of the interseptal chambers—and 
here it is hurled to and fro in the ciliary currents, now 
shooting forward to the tip, then slowly retrograding, then 
again whirled towards the tip, which it appears to make the 
most strenuous efforts to reach; the combination of the 
twofold ciliary action,—that which is dependent on the cilia 
that line the interior of the tentacle, and that which results 
from its own richly ciliated surface,—imparting a vacilla- 
tion and ever-varying impetus to its movements that may 
easily be mistaken for independent life. I have myself 
fallen into this error.* 

The proper habitat of dianthus is the coralline zone. 
The trawlers in West Bay and Torbay bring up populous 
colonies from a depth of twenty fathoms. In Weymouth 
Bay it is specially abundant; and yet this apparent pre- 
eminence may be rather due to the fact that this celebrated 
locality has been so perseveringly dredged. Be it so or not, 
I can testify to the profusion with which the bottom of this 
bay, from the deep sea of the offing to three fathoms or less, 
is stocked with this fine Anemone. The oyster and scallop- 
banks of Portland and Brixham are favourite haunts. It 
is the habit of the species to live in society; and both the 
dredge and the trawl are constantly bringing to light 
clustered groups, as well as single individuals. Family 
groups are sometimes very numerous, as many as twenty 
being not uncommonly crowded on a single oyster-shell,t 

* Devonsh. Coast, 116. 

+ Dr. Battersby informs me that, in the summer of 1856, one of the 
trawlers brought into Torquay a water-logged board, about two feet long 
by one broad, on which were crowded between four and five hundred 
specimens of A. dianthus, of all sizes, but a considerable proportion of 


them large, What was curious was, that all on one side the board were 
white, all on the other orange. 


22 _ SAGARTIADA. 


Of course, in so limited a space, a large proportion of this 
number must consist of small individuals ; and specimens in 
several gradations of development may often be observed, 
suggestive of as many generations, from the gigantic fore- 
father of the family to the tiny great-grandchildren that 
crowd around his foot, no larger than split peas. From the 
fissiparous tendency above noticed, it is probable that these 
multiplications are but essential parts of one individual, not 
his descendants ; analogous to the multiplication of a plant 
by cuttings as distinguished from that by seeds. There is 
no real process of generation in either case. What confirms 
my suspicion, that such is the true explanation of these 
congregated groups of dianthus, is the fact that, in general, 
all the members of each colony are of the same variety of 
colour. Now and then, however, we do see in the cluster a 
specimen of quite a different hue, as, for example, a dark 
olive one in the midst of a flesh-coloured group. In this 
case we must presume that there has been the deposition of 
a real germ,—the product of a really generative function— 
either from one of the individuals already settled there, or 
from some stranger. Flat stones, but more commonly 
large bivalve shells, such as oysters, pectens, and pinne, 
are the sites usually selected for the colonies of dianthus. 
But though the floor of the sea is the proper home of the 
species, it is found, in certain favourable localities, to con- 
gregate in great numbers within tide marks. Where a 
breadth of semi-cavernous rock, honeycombed by mollusks, 
and studded with Alcyonia, Tunicata and Sponges, darkly 
overhangs a tide-pool, as around Petit Tor, and in the 
caves of Tenby and Lidstep; or where an immense boulder 
has so fallen upon others as to present a broad under-sur- 
face to the flowing tide; I have seen scores on scores of 
dianthuses hanging, dank and flaccid, from the rock, each 
with a globule of crystal water, suspended like a dew-drop 


THE PLUMOSE ANEMONE. 23 


from its drooping head. In general these are young indi- 
 yiduals: I have never met with one between tide-marks, 
_ that exceeded an inch in diameter when contracted. What 
_ becomes of them as they attain riper years I do not know ; 
_ I can only conjecture that they may retire, during the flow 
_ of the tide, to a more genial seclusion at a tideless depth. 
_ Mr. Peach tells me that he finds the species in pools be- 
_ tween tide-marks at Peterhead ;—“ hundreds I have seen, 
_ some white and others brilliant red, side by side in the 
_ same pool.” The same excellent observer assures me that 
he has obtained it four inches in height between tide-marks 
| in that vicinity. 
_ The following list of British localities will show the 
general distribution of this species. 
_ Peterhead, Keith Inch (plentiful), C. W. Peach: Frith 
of Forth, Sir J. G. Dalyell: Berwick Bay, Dr. G. John- 
ston: Northumberland and Durham, J. Alder: Scar- 
borough, Filey, F. H. West: Sandgate (rare), Z. L. IWil- 
liams: Guernsey, E. W. H. Holdsworth: Plymouth, C. 
Spence Bate: Selsey, Bognor, G. Gatehouse: Weymouth 
Bay, P. H. Gosse: Teignmouth (young), R. C. Jordan: 
Torquay (young); Torbay, P. H. G.: Dartmouth, and up 
_ the Dart as far as Dittisham, EZ. W. H. H.: Falmouth, 
W. P. Cocks: Lundy, Morte, Rev. G. Tugwell: Tenby, 
P. H. G.: Liverpool (under the pontoons of the landing- 
stage), F. H. W.: Mersey Estuary, Hilbre Island, Z. L. W.: 
Morecambe Bay, Ff. H. W.: Clyde, near Glasgow (at low 
ebbs), Miss Anne Church: Cumbrae, Rev. D. Landsbo- 
rough: Belfast and Strangford Loughs, Dublin Bay, Dr. 
E. P. Wright.* 


* Most of the above references rest on the authority of private commu- 
nications made to me by friends; whose names, having been once given 
at length, I shall thenceforward cite by their initials. 


mA, 


EE ENN eee CRE RIO Ma Ty iy 


Dat Se a 


24 SAGARTIADA, 


Perhaps the most magnificent Actinia known is A. Pau- 
motensis, described and figured in Dana’s “‘ Zoophytes.” It 
was found at the Isle of Raraka, in the Paumotu group, by 
the naturalists attached to the American Exploring Expe- 
dition. It is twelve inches in diameter of disk, which is 
deeply frilled. 

A, reticulata, from Terra del Fuego, is another fine and 
richly coloured species; with a frilled disk, and tentacles 
very numerous and fringe-like. Both these must doubtless 
be assigned to the genus Actinoloba. 

A, Achates, a species dredged by the same Expedition, in 
thirty fathoms, on the east coast of Patagonia, has the 
frilled character of dianthus, with but three rows of ten- 
tacles, which are not specially crowded. It is evidently 
intermediate between dianthus and bellis; but further 
examination is necessary to determine to which genus it 
rightly belongs. 

I may, however, venture to exhibit the affinities of our 
Anemone in the following gradation ; distinguishing exotic 
species by [ ] :— 

[Paumotensis. | 
[reticulata. | 
DIANTHUS. 
[Achates, ] 
bellis. 


25 


GENUS II. SAGARTIA (Gosse). 


Actinia (Lryy.). 
Cribrina (EHRENB.). 
Actinocereus (BLAINV.). 
_ Base broader than the column; its outline often 
 undulate, but entire. 
Column in the expanded state pillar-like, sometimes 
fe low and thick, sometimes tall and slender; the 
margin notched or tentaculate, without parapet or 
 fosse. Surface studded with suckers, which do not 
form permanent warts; pierced with loopholes. Sub- 
stance fleshy, or pulpy. 
‘ Disk sometimes wavy ; more commonly plane, some- 
times slightly turned-over at the edge. 
4 Tentacles varying in number, form, and arrangement 
in the different species. 
Mouth generally elevated on a more or less con- 
spicuous cone; furnished with two gonidial grooves, 
each with its pair of turbercles. 
_ Acontia emitted freely and copiously. 


— 


ie 


NATURAL ORDER OF THE BRITISH SPECIES. 


1. bellis. 7. nivea. 

2. miniata. 8. sphyrodeta, 
3. rosea. 9. pallida. - 
4. ornata. 10. troglodytes. 
5. ichthystoma. 1l. viduata. 

6. venusta. : 12. parasitica, 


26 


ARTIFICIAL ANALYSIS OF THE SPECTES. 


Body salver-shaped ; disk strongly waved . . . . . .  bellis. 
Body of the usual form; disk nearly plane :— 


Tentacles without markings :— 
Disk and tentacles white. . . . 1... +. - nwea. 
Disk orange; tentacles white . . . . . . + . venusta, 


Tentacles with characteristic marks :— 
With a B-like mark at the foot . . . . . . . troglodytes. 
A broad black bar above a narrow one at the foot :— 
Outer tentacles scarlet. . . . . + « « « « méniata. 
All the tentacles rose-purple. . . . « . «© + 108€0. 
Two broad black bars at the foot. . . . . . . ornata. 


Two narrow black bars at the foot . . . . . . “tchthystoma. 
A dark line down each side :— 
The lines unbroken. . . . . oe ee Viduata.— 


The lines broken into several Sleigh: + + « parasitica. 
Tentacle foot enclosed— 
Within a purple circle . . - + « « sphyrodeta. 
Within two unconnected sanitn cma nea: . - pallida. 


SAGARTIADZ. 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. 
Sagartia bellis. 
PLaTE I. Fig. 2. 
__ Specifie Character.—Body salver-shaped, the disk forming a shallow cir- 


r cup, often wavy at the margin, of which the column is the foot. 
2s small, numerous, in six rows, the outer ones mere crenations of 


Exits and SoLanDER, Zooph. 2. JOHNSTON, 
Br. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 228; pl. xlii. figs. 1*, 
3—6. Gossz, Devonsh. Coast, 25; pl. i. 


figs. 1, 2. 
pedunculata. Pennant, Br. Zool. iv. 102. 
Templetonii. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Polyt. Soc. 1851. 8, 
pl. ii. figs. 10, 14. 
Actinocereus pedunculata. Buatnv., Dict. Sci. Nat. 1880; Ix. 194. 


EsReEns., Corall. 41. 
Gosse, Linn. Trans. xxi. 274: Man. Mar. 
Zool. i. 28; fig. 41. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


ta Base. Adherent to rocks; expanded considerably beyond the diameter 
hs of the column ; the outline often undulate. 
Column. Smooth on the lower half, on the upper studded with suckers, 
- ‘to which in freedom are often firmly attached minute fragments of shell, 
4 gravel, &c.; generally without wrinkles, furrows, or corrugations; but 
“occasionally invected. Substance firmly fleshy. Form exceedingly variable, 
sometimes being thick and low, nearly equalling the disk in diameter ; 
é put, when expanded to the utmost, the column generally takes the form 
of a comparatively slender, lengthened, and perfectly cylindrical footstalk, 


jute notches which form the outermost row of tentacles. 
| Disk. In the condition just mentioned, this is a broad horizontal plate, 
_ or aslightly concave saucer, of which the rim is perfectly circular, though 
_ this form is often disguised by its being thrown into undulations, some- 
___ times approaching to frillings. 
__ Tentacles. Small, but numerous, arranged in about six rows; the first 
and second series containing about twelve each, the third about twice 


28 SAGARTIADA, 


as many; the fourth again doubled; the fifth increasing in about the 
same proportion; and the sixth including about thrice as many as the. 
fifth. Thus the total number may be about five hundred. Those of the 
first row usually stand erect, the others decline more and more as they 
recede, until the last two or three rows lie quite horizontally, on the disk, 
to which the sixth row forms an exquisite fringe. Those of the first row 
rarely exceed one-fourth of an inch in height, and the others diminish 
regularly ; those of the sixth are very minute; the longest (for they are 
not equal) scarcely exceeding the sixteenth of an inch in length, and some 
being mere tubercles; these are slender, and set so close together, that 
sixty are contained within an inch. Those of the inner rows are usually 
marked with a depressed line or groove, down the middle of the front. 
Mouth. -Not raised ona cone. Lip-moderately thin, finely furrowed. 


CoLour. 


Column. Lower part flesh-colour, often flushing into pink; gradually 
paling upward to white, drab, or buff in the middle part: this as gradually 
becoming dull violet on the upper third, where the suckers usually are 
conspicuous as pale spots, 

Disk. Dark brown or black, the radii separated by fine lines of rich 
vermilion, commencing at the mouth, and diverging till they meet the 
tentacles, passing a little way up the sides of each. 


TENTACLE OF 8. BELLIS (front). 


Tentacles, Yellowish-brown, studded with whitish specks, and varied 
with white or grey patches. There is commonly a dark-brown space near 
the base, bounded, above and below, by a band of pure white. Frequently 
groups of tentacles thus mottled alternate with equal groups of uniformly 
dull-brown ones; the regions of the discal border from which they re- 
spectively spring, corresponding in some measure, being either brown or 
lavender.grey. In many specimens a single tentacle, or sometimes two 
opposite ones, of the first series, are rather larger than the rest, and of an 
unspotted cream-white ; when these occur, it is generally in connexion 
with one or two white gonidial radii. In other specimens there is no 
trace of such a distinction. 

Mouth. Lip and throat white.* 


* The student will please to observe that the specific description is the 
description of but one condition, or variety. It is convenient to have a 
starting-point or standard of comparison, but it must not be supposed that 
this particular condition is the one proper to the species, and that the other 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. 29 


Sze. 


_ The average diameter of the disk is about one inch and a half; but large 

' specimens attain a breadth of twoinches. The height is dependent on the 
depth of the hole which they inhabit ; in general it is about an inch, but 
sometimes it is as much as three inches, the column in this case being 
about three-eighths of an inch in thickness. 


LOcALITyY. 


_ The south and west coasts of England and Ireland, abundant ; almost 
, unknown in Scotland. Crevices, and holes in rock, chiefly in tide-pools. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Tyriensis. The condition described above, which is perhaps the most 
' eommon ; at least on our south-western coasts. 
_  B. Versicolor. Disk dull yellowish-grey, with radiating broad bands of 
_ black; tentacular border alternately pale blue and dull black. One large 
7 tentacle of first row pellucid horn-brown ; the rest dark grey, or white, in 
_ -alternate groups. Column rose-pink on lower half, purple-grey on upper. 
_ Thus there are seven distinct colours in this variety, which yet is not at all 
_ showy. 

y. Eburnea. Disk ivory-white (TUGWELL). 

3. Modesia. Disk deep umber-brown, mottled with grey at the first row 
of tentacles, and merging into grey, lavender, or white, towards the third 
or fourth row. Tentacles mottled with brown and grey. 

e. Sordida. Column dull wainscot-yellow, paler at the basal region. 
Disk blackish-brown, freckled with grey and white spots. Tentacles 
similarly coloured. General form thick and clumsy, without the usual 
tendency to assume a salver-shape. 


| “varieties” are deviations from it. Those which I name versicolor or 

_ 4modes‘a, for example, might as well have been selected for the standard as 
_ Tyriensis. Indeed the only true idea of the species must include all its 
“ We may attempt,” observes a master in science, “to reach what is 

called the typical furm of a species, in order to make this the subject of a 
_ conception. But even within the closest range of what may be taken as 
typical characters, there are still variables; and, moreover, no one form, 
_ typical though we consider it, can be a full expression of the species, so 
long as variables are as much an essential part of its idea as constants. 
The advantage of fixing upon some one variety 2s the typical form of a 
species is this,—that the mind may have an initial term for the laws 
_ embraced under the idea of the species, or an assumed centre of radiation 
_ for its variant series, so as more easily to comprehend those laws.”— 


(Dana’s “ Thoughts on Species.”) 


30 SAGARTIADA 


¢ Stellata. Disk pale buff; a broad darker circle at the commencement — 
of the tentacular border. Tentacles long and pointed; very pale stone- 
drab, each varied with pellucid patches, which give a pretty and delicate j 
effect. But what is most peculiar is the alternate depression and elevation — 
of the margin, a kind of frilling, which imparts to the disk a star-like form, 
usually of seven rays. This is a large and well-marked variety. 


The genus Sagartia was established by me in a Memoir* 
read before the Linnean Society, March 20th, 1855. I then 
included in it dianthus, as well as the species to which I — 
now confine it. The character on which I mainly relied 
in constituting it, appears to me, on maturer consideration, 
to mark a group of higher value than that of a genus; and 
I have accordingly used it to characterise a family. Hence 
it became necessary to make a fresh diagnosis of the genus, 
which, though large, appears a very natural one. The 
name I have chosen alludes to the peculiar mode of dis-— 
abling their prey, by means of missile cords, which is 
possessed pre-eminently by the species of this group, re- 
calling to my mind a graphic passage in the writings of 
the Father of History. In the army of Xerxes, he says,— 
“ there was a certain race called Sagartians. The mode of — 
fighting practised by these men was this:—when they — 
engaged an enemy, they threw out a rope with a noose at — 
the end; whatever any one caught, whether horse or man,_ 
he dragged towards himself, and those that were entangled — 
in the coils were speedily put to death.” t 

The specific appellation of the present subject is the 
botanic name of a favourite flower,—the modest Daisy ;— 
bellis, from bellus, pretty. 


Though the Daisy Anemone is, as I have shown, subject 
to considerable variety, and has no one very strongly — 


* « Description of Peachia hastata, &e.” Linn. Trans. xxi. 267. 
+ Herodotus, vii. 85. 


eC hE i La 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. 31 


_ marked, and at the same time constant, specific character, 
_ there is scarcely any of our species more readily or more 
certainly recognisable. Its variations are circumscribed’ 
_ within appreciable limits, both of colour and form, and it 
has little tendency to merge into the characteristic con- 


dition of any other (British) species. Indeed, but {for the 


_ needless multiplication of genera, I should be tempted to 
_ separate it from the other Sagartie, constituting for it, in 
association with two or three closely allied forms from the 
_ southern hemisphere, a distinct genus. 


From the elegance of its form, and its ready power of 


accommodating itself to captivity, few of our native species 
| are more favourite tenants of an aquarium than this. Its 


habits, too, render it easily accessible. Within the limited 


range of its habitat it is for the most part abundant. The 


rugged, indented, rocky shores of Devon and Cornwall 


seem to be the metropolis of the species: and here the 


tide-pools, fissures, and honeycomb-like burrows of the 
Saxicave, are densely crowded with the pretty Daisy. 

The broad front of Capstone Hill, at Ilfracombe, is 
broken, within the range of the tides, into a succession of 
narrow horizontal shelves, the angles of which run down 
into long fissures. The limestone promontory, known as 
Petit Tor, on the south-east coast of Devon, presents many 
ledges very similar in character, but more eroded into irre- 
gular holes and cavities. In both of these localities, bellis 
abounds, generally of the beautiful scarlet-lined variety, 
Tyriensis. Each usually occupies a little hollow, being 
attached by its base to the bottom, and expanding its 
beautiful disk over the edge. In the broader basins, 
moreover, which the waves have worn, 

= hollows of the tide-worn reef,” 
overshadowed by ribbon-shaped sea-weeds,—which are the 
very counterparts, in the sea, of the hart’s-tongue fern 


32 SAGARTIADE. 


fronds which overarch the green hedge-banks just above,— _ 
larger and finer specimens occur, apparently each broad 
coin-like disk stuck on to the smooth wall of the cavity, 
but really, as you find when you attempt to capture it, 
imbedded in its own proper cranny, into which it can 
retire out of danger. 

' But it is as common to find colonies of the species, 
inhabiting the long narrow fissures, covered with but an 
inch or two of water when the tide is out; five, ten, or 
even twenty individuals crowded together in a line as close 
as their bases, firmly planted side by side, will admit. 
Here, of course, when expanded, the puckered edges of — 
each disk press upon and fit into the mutual irregularities 
of the others; and the effect is very attractive, when the 
variety is that patched one, pale blue and black, which 
I have named versicolor. 

I have much admired them in this condition along the 
foot of the lofty overhanging cliffs at Watcombe, between 
Teignmouth and Torquay. Huge masses of the red con- 
glomerate have fallen from above, and are piled in con- 
fusion along the whole sea-line.. And these seem to have 
formed a natural breakwater, protecting the base of the 
cliff from the action of the waves. Hence the lower part 
of the rock remains in situ, while all the upper and middle 
portions have been detached by the influence of rains and 
frosts, and have fallen; and this lower part forms a suc- 
cession of sloping terraces, averaging perhaps some twenty 
feet above low-water mark. Lach successive terrace dips 
to the northward at a very gentle angle with the horizon, 
so that the explorer has to mount from one to another in 
turn, while he pursues the line of coast, as each slope 
successively brings him to the water’s edge. These ter- 
races are very rough, but not unpleasant to walk upon; 
and their angles are occupied with water, forming long 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. 33 


narrow shallow pools, the bottoms of which run down into 
_ thin crevices. In these crevices reside the Daisies in 
question, in great numbers, and some of them of very large 
_ dimensions, as three inches in diameter, when fully ex- 


_ panded. They are, however, as I have said above, mostly 


so crowded together, that they are not able to spread their 
 blossom-disks fully, but are fain to accommodate each 
other, by allowing the protrusions of one sinuous and frilled 
_ margin to fit into the recesses of another. They thus con- 
_ stitute lines of variegated frills, in which the individuals 
cannot be separated by the eye of the beholder; and though 
no brilliant hues appear, there is sufficient contrast between 
_ the black and the white, the blue and the grey, all 
_ puckered and convoluted as the fringed outlines are, to 
_ gratify the eye. 

| Nor are these very difficult of possession. For the con- 
glomerate, though hard, yields readily to the chisel, and 
the edges of the crevices present in many cases fair angles 
for the blows of the experienced collector. 

The Daisy is not unfrequently brought up in the dredge 
from a few fathoms’ depth. In Weymouth Bay I have 
repeatedly obtained it thus, but still maintaining its wonted 
troglodyte habit; for its favourite domicile is one of the 
deep angular chambers formed by the leafy expansions of 
_ that fine coral-like Polyzoan, Eschara foliacea. 

But Weymouth possesses a breed of the species which 
deviates much more widely from the normal habit. It is 
_ the variety which I have called sordida, having an eye not 
less to its filthy dwelling-place than to its dirty colour. 
The broad expanse of fetid mud, either wholly bare at 


low tide, or covered only with a foot or two of water, that 
- floors the two inlets called the Fleet and the Backwater, 


is studded with multitudes of these dingy Anemones. 
The soft slimy mud affords no proper surface for adhesion ; 
D 


34 SAGARTIADZ. 


and hence the animals can scarcely be said to adhere in the 
manner of the family, but simply to rest on the broad 
base. This is not, however, indicative of any defect in ~ 
the power of adhesion; for on being removed to a basin — 
of sea-water, they are soon found firmly attached to the 
bottom and sides. | 

With these exceptions I have not found dellis at Wey- 
mouth ; which is the more remarkable since the long ledges — 
of low rock, broken into fissures, and excavated into num-= — 
berless hollows, would seem to present a favourable site for 
it. But since my residence there, it has yielded, in con-— 
siderable abundance, the beautiful variety stellata ; which, 
as I understand, occurs to the north-east of the town. 

In Dr. Johnston’s Brit. Zooph. (p. 231) may be found 
some curious figures by Mr. Cocks, illustrative of the pro- — 
tean mutability of shape manifested by this species. This 
depends on the power of distending the body generally 
with water, together with that of strongly seine 
some part, the constriction ever moving its place. 

Several of the Sagartie (as S. bellis, miniata, and 
troglodytes) have a singular habit of elongating to an im- 
mense extent one of the tentacles, while all the rest remain 
in the ordinary condition. The phenomenon has once or 
twice fallen under my own observation, but I will describe 
it in the words of some of my kind correspondents, who 
have from time to time directed my attention to it, 

It seems to have been first noticed in S. troglodytes by — 
Mr. Hugh Owen of Bristol, who, in May, 1856, mentioned 
the fact in a letter tome. Soon afterwards he observed the 
same phenomenon in “a loosely-formed dellis, with longer — 
tentacula than usual, found ina cave at Tenby.” “I was, a 
few days since,” he writes, “ watching it closely, when one 
tentacle began to extend itself; and for an hour I watched © 
its motions. The animal is about an inch and a half in 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. 35 


extreme diameter, and it threw out its tentacle to a dis- 
tance of three inches from the margin. Of course all colour 
disappears, and it requires one to be looking for the fact 
to observe the transparent membranous nature of the ex- 
tended limb. I tried if its object was seeking for food, by 
dropping a scrap of meat in the way of the tentacle: it was 
seized and carried to the oral disk instantly.” 

The same gentleman in a subsequent letter (dated 7th — 
July, 1856) thus continues his observations :—“ Another 
specimen of bellis, from Ilfracombe, of a dark self-colour 
(chocolate or umber-brown), is constantly extending the 
tentacles to full four times their length under ordi cir- 
cumstances; and on one occasion I have seen a tentacle 
on each side thrown ont so long as to command fully a circle 
of six inches in diameter. After the extension, I observe that 
the tentacle assumes for several hours a white appearance, 
increasing in intensity towards the extreme tip. This ex- 
treme extensility is interesting, as showing the resources of 
the animal in commanding a larger range for feeding: and 
the modus operandi is no less curious; for, after having 
reached the utmost length, any nearer spot is examined by 
curling the tentacle into a variety of elegant curves and 
rings.” 

Mr. E. W. H. Holdsworth has also favoured me with 
some interesting observations on the same curious habit. 
Referring to an example which he had already described to 
me in the case of S. mintata, and which will be detailed in 
its place,* this excellent observer says :—“‘ Since my last 
letter I have seen the elongation of one of the tentacles of 
the first row in bellis. The ordinary shape and proportious 
were retained, but the arm was stretched to more than 
twice its natural length, yet without any appearance of 
unnatural tension or straining: it was constantly in motion, 


* See infra, p. 44. 
D2 


36 SAGARTIADA. 


apparently feeling about for something, but assumed its 
usual size after a few hours. It was altogether very dif- 
ferent from what I have observed in the case of miniata.” 

The Daisy is prolific in captivity. Mr. Holdsworth tells 
me that he has known 146, 160, and nearly 300 thrown 
out from single individuals in one day. They appear be- 
tween the tubercles at the summit of the gonidial grooves ; 
these grooves evidently acting as ducts for the transmission 
of the fully-formed young from the intersepts to the exter- 
nal world, and doubtless for that of the ova, when these are 
discharged. The characteristic form and markings are dis- . 
tinctly recognisable in the newly-born young; their prin- 
cipal distinction, besides size, consisting in the fewness of 
their tentacles, which are commonly twelve in number, and 
in the comparative length of these organs, which is much 
greater than in the adult. Mr. Holdsworth says: “I have 
observed in this species, as well as in dianthus, and 
[ Bunodes| gemmacea, that the size of the young varies with 
that of the parent,—large parents producing large young 
ones, and vice versd. I have noticed it repeatedly ; and the 
fact may perhaps be accounted for by the greater capacity 
of the larger parent affording room for a further development 
of the young before they are expelled than could be 
admitted of in the case of a smaller individual; for the 
mature ova, I imagine, are always of the same size in the 
same species.” 

IT have already remarked that this species is easily kept 
in the Aquarium. It requires, however, some caution and 
skill in the manner of its capture; for, as it resides in holes 
and crevices of the solid rock, it cannot be worked off with 
the nail, like some others, but must be cut out with a steel 
chisel. And, unless this operation be carefully performed, 
there is danger of tearing away the animal from its base, 
the central portion of which may be left behind. In this 


COME iho hot 


THE. DAISY ANEMONE. 37 


ease it will expand in captivity, and look healthy to the 
eye of the tyro; but, when examined, it will be seen to be 
0 a stick thrust in at the mouth coming out at the 
Specimens so mutilated never recover. 

oat more than ordinary treatment is required: for 
S. bellis. It is desirable that it should be gently pushed, 
base downward, into a hole of a piece of rock ;—flints are 
often found suitable for it;—or, if such cannot be readily 
obtained, two pieces of stone may be set side by side,-and 
the Daisy dropped between them. Then it will soon attach 
itself to the bottom or sides of the crevice, and expand 
its beautiful disk, like a broad coin, at the top. 

8. bellis appears to be meeentiely a southern form. Sir 
John Dalyell, in his twenty years’ experience, seems never 


_- to have met with it on the Scottish Coast; nor has it, so far 


as I know, occurred on the Scandinavian or Danish Coasts, 
nor on either shore of the German Ocean. On the south- 
western shores of Scotland, however, it has recently been: 
found in some numbers. ; 

- On the other hand, it has recently been obiained near 
Biaboiess Mr. Holdsworth finds it “ by myriads” near 
Oporto; Rapp and Lamarck give the Mediterranean gene- 
rally as its habitat; and De Blainville, more specially, la 
Mer de Naples. 

The following list of British localities is as eekniote as 
I have been able to make it. 

Guernsey (abundant), #. W. H. H.: Selsey, G. G.: 
Weymouth, P. H. G.: Torquay, P. H. G.: Dartmouth, 
E. W. H. H.: Falmouth, W. P. C.: Mount’s Bay, 
Gaertner: Lundy, G. T.: Ilfracombe, P. H. G.: Tenby 
(rare), P. H. G.: Holyhead, Z. L. W.: Man, F. H. W.: 
Puffin Island, Z. Z. W.: South Corrigills, Arran, 7. S. 
Wright: Cumbrae, D. Robertson: Rathlin, J. Templeton: 
Balyholme Bay, W. Thompson: Dublin Bay, E. P. W. 


38 SAGARTIADA, 


Of foreign species the beautiful S. decorata (DANA), found 
in the Lagoon of Honden Island, is closely allied to our 
bellis. 

S. Fuegensis (DANA), from Terra del Fuego, avery fine 
species with rich yellow column and disk, and grass-green 
tentacles, has much in common with the subject of this 
article, but it has far more prominently the characters, that 
the tentacles are short, and spring isolatedly from the disk. 

S. impatiens (DANA) has the habit of elongating the 
column pillar-wise, and of variously constringing and writh- 
ing the body; thus appearing to be intermediate between 
bellis and viduata. 

It seems to be through bellis and. Fuegensis, that the 
genus Sagartia leads off to the curious Discosoma 
nummiforme of the Red Sea, in which the column 
has no appreciable height, the animal being a very 
thin, flat, circular plate, with the tentacles reduced to 
minute warts, arranged in groups which form radiating 
bands, 

Of native species S. parasitica and B, clavate present, in 
the expanded character of their disks, marked relations 
with ellis. But a still closer affinity exists between bellis 
and Acptasia amacha, in the characters both of the: disk and 
of the column, as I shall notice more particularly when I 
come to describe the latter. 

It ought never to be forgotten that the order of sequence 
which we are compelled to adopt in treating of creatures 
in a book—that of placing each species between two others 
—can by no means express all their relations. Every 
species stands in the midst of many others, some closer to 
it, some more remote, to which it is linked more or less 
obviously. “Ten or twenty links would often be insuffi- 
cient to express these numerous relations.” * To obviate 


* Cuvier, 


THE DAISY ANEMONE. - 39 


: in some measure the false impressions liable to be pro- 
duced by this unavoidable order of linear suecession, I 


endeavour to represent some of the radiations of relation; in 


: the following manner, observing that more direct affinity is 
: (aR by the perpendicular order. 


dianthus 
[Achates] A. amacha 
parasitica BELLIS B. clavata 
[Fuegensis] ? [impatiens] 
[Discosoma] miniata viduata. 
rosea 


The late Edward Forbes described* what he considered to 
be “the Actinta bellis of British authors, not of Rapp,” 
but which certainly cannot be referred to the species as 
now recognised. He obtained several specimens by dredg- 
ing on the Manx coast in September ; and it would be worth 
while to examine that prolific locality afresh for the animal, 
which will probably prove an unnamed species. “The 
body is cylindrical, of a reddish, or reddish white colour, 
regularly and finely striated longitudinally and transversely, 
and having glands of a bright yellow colour, small and not 
_ very numerous, scattered over the surface. At the oral 
end the body bulges, forming a calyx [cup], on which the 
furrows are fewer but more granulose. When the disk is 
expanded, this calyx laps back, and is then almost even 
with the expanded tentacula. Disk angular, in my speci- 
mens square, surrounded by three or four rows of short 
tentacula, thickly set, of a white or brownish colour, varie- 
gated; having generally a white line down the centre of 
each. The disk is broad, brownish, or orange, with white 


* In the Annals N. H. for May, 1840. 


40 - SAGARTIADA. 


lines. The margin of the mouth is bright orange. The 
animal can project its disk forward in a pouting manner. 
Tentacula and disk retractile. The specimens described. . 
were about one inch long when expanded, but I have seen 
larger.” 

I have marked with italics the principal points in the 
above description, which seem inconsistent with the suppo- 
sition that bells can be the species intended. The figures 
(which are engraved from the late Professor’s drawings, in 
Johnston’s Brit. Zooph., 2d Ed. pl. xlii. figs. 3 to 6) can no 
more be reconciled with our dellis than the description. 


_ ASTRAACEA. 77; SAGARTIAD#. 


THE SCARLET-FRINGED ANEMONE. 
Sagartia miniata. 
Puate ll. Figs. 2, 3, 4. 


Specific Character. Tentacles with two sub-parallel dark lines along the 
front : a white space at foot, crossed by a broad black bar, and a narrow 
one below it. Outer row of tentacles with a scarlet core. 


 Actinia miniata. Gosse,. Annals N. H. Ser. 2, vol. xii. 127. 
ornata. T. S. Wricut, Proc. Roy. Phys. Soc. Edinb. 1855. 
Bunodes (?) miniata. Goss, Man. Mar. Zool. i. 29. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks and shells: slightly exceeding the column. 

; Column. Minutely corrugated, studded on the upper half with large 
_ suckers. Substance fleshy. Form thick, the height rarely exceeding the 
breadth ; not very variable. : 

Disk. Undulate, scarcely exceeding the diameter of the column; radii 
strongly marked, and covered with transverse striz. 

Tentacles. Moderately numerous, arranged in about four rows. Those 
of the first row average in length about half the diameter of the disk ; the 
others diminish outwards, the last row being not more than one-fourth as 
long as the first. They are lax, and are usually arched over the margin, or 
thrown into sigmoid curves. 

Mouth. Not raised onacone. Lip strongly crenate. 

Acontia. Emitted freely and copiously. 


ie Rye 


¥ 


CoLour. 


Column. Deep rich brown, of a tint intermediate between burnt sienna 
and scarlet, sometimes merging into deep orange, paling into buff or light 
red towards the base, and often deepening into purplish-brown towards 
the summit. Suckers pale buff, which in the button-state become con- 
fluent, and form pale radiating bands, around the pursed aperture. - 

Disk. Yellowish or greenish-grey, the radii distinctly mottled with 
darker grey or brown ; very variable. Sometimes one, or a pair, of broad 
white gonidial radii. 


se 


aaa : is ‘ ws Peres} 


42 SAGARTIADA, 


Tentacles. Pellucid pale-brown, or yellowish, indistinctly annulated with 
_ dusky. The front face of each (except the outer row) is 
marked with two longitudinal dusky lines, parallel with 
the sides, and meeting at the summit: these are some- 
times interrupted by a pale band crossing the middle of 
the tentacle. Below them, at the tentacle-foot, is a large 
space of white, which is crossed by two bars of black; 
the upper one thick and very constant, the lower slender, 
and sometimes thinned away to a mere shade in the middle. 
Groups of tentacles often occur of a more or less opaque 
white, but barred like the others, with which they form 
alternate clusters. Those of the outer row consist each of 
a pellucid sheath investing a core of scarlet or brilliant 
orange, resembling in appearance the central gland in the 
papilla of an Eolis. This effect seems to depend on the pig- 
ment being spread over the interior surface of the wall 
of the tentacle, which is unusually thick and colourless. 
TENTACLE Mouth, Orange-red. 


S, MINIATA ‘ ones 
(front). Specimens attain a height of two inches, with an equal 
width of disk. 
LocatLity, 


The south and west coasts of England, from Deal to Arran. Rock-pools 
and deep water. i 


VARIETIES, 


a. Ornata. To the state above described, which may be considered as 
the normal colouring, I appropriate this name, which was applied by my 
friend Dr. T. Strethill Wright, to the species, which he described, 
believing it to be new. (Plate ii. fig. 4.)* 

8. Venustoides. Disk rich orange. Tentacles opaque yellowish-white or 
pure white, marked, however, with the two. characteristic black bars; the 
outer row showing traces, more or less conspicuous, of the orange lining. 
This variety, from Ilfracombe and Torquay, has much prima-facie re- 
semblance to S. venusta ; but the specific marks of the tentacles, the strong 
crenation of the mouth, and the well-defined and concentrically striate 
radii are good signs of distinction. (Plate ii. fig. 3.) 


* My friend Mr. F. H. West has received a specimen from the vicinity 
of Boulogne, with the disk more variegated than is usual with our specimens, 
and which had this peculiarity, that one-half of the disk was flushed with a 
by psa rose-pink, and the opposite half with an equally lovely shade 
of green. 


LE 


PLATE 


MBAS. 


Eines 
Pues ies 


eek 
<t 


-THE SCARLET-FRINGED ANEMONE. 43 


y. Rosecides, Column orange-brown; disk pale yellowish-grey; ten- 
sles rose-coloured, with the proper markings ; and the outer row either 
holly or partially scarlet-cored. Dartmouth, Plymouth. This is exceed- 
sly like S. rosea. (See the article on that species.) 
| 8. Niveoides.* Column drab-olive. All the tentacles opaque white, except 
ive groups sub-symmeirically arranged, each group comprising a few 
ent les of a pale orange-buff hue. A single specimen in the Jame: 
of Mr. G. H. King, of Torquay, obtained by him in the vicinity. 
«. Coccinea. Column deep pellucid crimson? tentacles crimson. This 


hes a common state of A. mesembryanthemum in its appearance and 
: its suckers, however, will in a moment distinguish it on exa- 


in iets and the usual row of orange-cored tentacles determines its true 
racter. (Plate ii. fig. 2.) 
© Brunnea. Column umber- or even bistre-brown, with-pale suckers : 
tentacles with the characteristic bars much disguised, and almost lost in a 
neral cloud of dusky black occupying the lower half of the tentacle: 
is is divided by a narrow whitish band from the terminal half, which 
pellucid umber. The tentacles are unusually long. Those of the outer 
Bs ayers mot al scarlet, some being white; all, however, have the cored 
earance. Torquay. 
Tt may suffice to particularise these varieties, but spe- 
cimens are frequently found combining the characters of 
_ several, and running into one another by imperceptible 
gradations. I obtained a very young individual at Wey- 
mouth, which I assign to this species, in which the ten- 
tacles of all the four rows were cored with the richest 
__ I first became acquainted with this very fine species 
the summer of 1853, at Weymouth, where I found 
sveral specimens adhering to the shells of oysters and 
lens, brought to market by the trawlers. Since that 
> I have met with it in some abundance in the neigh- 
ourhood of Tenby, especially on the eroded surface of 
some dangerous rocks, known as the Woolhouse Rocks, 
- lying about a mile off shore, and exposed only at low 
az In the pools and hollows of this reef, open to 
_, * In these compounds I take the liberty of using the elements “ venusta,” 


rosea,” and “ nivea,” not as Latin adjectives, but as words now having the 
force of proper names, 


44 SAGARTIADA. 


investigation only under favourable circumstances of wind 
and weather at the equinoctial spring-tides, this, with other 
lovely kindred species, as rosea, nivea, &c., expands its 
beautiful blossom, in charming abundance. 

But still more profusely does it occur in certain situations 
in the vicinity of Torquay. The line of shore between the 
Baths and Meadfoot is very bold, and a great number of 
precipitous insular and peninsular rocks fringe the sea- 
margin. When the tide is very low, and when the sea is: 
very smooth, a small boat can penetrate into the narrow 
straits and caverns formed by these fragments: and there, 
on their landward sides, where the rays of the sun never 
reach, may be seen myriads of Anemones, chiefly of this 
species, but mingled with dianthus, rosea, and nivea, and 
varied by a vast number of Alcyonium digitatum, which 
beneath the surface of the clear water are seen blossoming 
with their lovely polypes. 

The finest specimens I have seen are those witch 
Mr. W. A. Lloyd obtains from the Menai Straits. The 
species seems to be specially abundant in that locality, and 
specimens two inches in diameter are not at all rare. The 
varieties ornata and brunnea are the prominent forms. 

The habit referred to, under S. bells, of greatly lengthen- 
ing one of the tentacles, is possessed by this species also. 
Mr. E. W. H. Holdsworth has favoured me with the fol- 
lowing note. “In two specimens of the Rosy-armed 
miniata [var. roseoides} I have observed a remarkable 
elongation of one of the tentacula, apparently of the second 
row. Under the microscope the surface appeared corru- 
gated [or transversely annulated], but mostly so when the 
arm was fully distended, and the corrugations were most 
decided at the free end, which was enlarged, truncaté, and 
slightly dimpled at the centre. No use was made of this 
long arm when the animal was feeding: it hung down as 


THE SCARLET-FRINGED ANEMONE. 45 


it did not possess any particular function. It had the 
same colour as the others; but was not, like them, wholly 
“withdrawn when the animal was closed. In fact, it 
‘appeared as if rather in the way, and not easily disposed 
of by its possessor. After about a week [the phenomenon} 
disappeared, and I have seen nothing of the lengthened 
arms since, in either of the specimens that had had 
hem.” 
ae Those curious missile filaments which I have named 
“acontia,* are discharged by this species in great profusion. 
They are, as usual, white, but appear to possess the power 
| of discharging a pigment. A large specimen, which I had 
“inritated by forcibly detaching it (in the usual way) from 
a stone, diffused a copious mucus. Acontia were also 
abundantly protruded, and spread to double the diameter 
of the body on all sides, on the bottom of a saucer in 
which I had placed it. After a while the whole of this 
“mucus over the same area was of a delicate but decided 
‘ hue, as seen on the white china. The acontia are 
very densely filled with enide, of two kinds, chambered and 
| unchambered. The former are ;}oth of an inch-in length, 
| linear-ovate, of a clear pale yellow hue, highly refractile, 
with a long parallel-sided- chamber, extending through 
_ three-fourths of thecnida. It discharges a wire (ecthoreum) 
about one and a half times its own length, furnished for 
e distal two-thirds with a screw of two (or three) spiral 
bands, closely set, and forming an angle with the axis of 
80°: the bands are clothed with reverted barbs. The 
_unchambered enide are y}pth of an inch long, of a similar 
Pshape, shooting a wire to eight times its own length, which 
is attenuated to a fine point, and is furnished with a single 
_ screw-band, unbarbed. 
When out of water, miniata has the habit of protruding 
* See the General Introduction, for a full description of these organs. 


46 SAGARTIADA. 


the wall of the stomach, almost to as great an extent as 
B. crassicornis. This is specially seen when the specimens 
hang from the perpendicular face of a rock. Ae 
According to Mr. Holdsworth, S. miniata increases by 
spontaneously separated fragments of the base, like <4 
dianthus. He says,—I have had two young ones of 
miniata produced from bits of the base detached from 
large specimen, which had been fixed for a long time. 
was anchored too firmly; so it cut its cable, and started 
for fresh quarters.” According to the same careful observer 
double individuals are not uncommon—a fact which points 
to a more decidedly fissiparous habit. | 
_The following note contains all the original information 
that I possess of the generative process. Examining a 
small specimen, about the middle of August, I found that 
it had given birth to several ova or gemmules. I had just 
~ remoyed it from a stone in one of my tanks, to which it 
had been attached many months. It had protruded the 
filaments copiously, and these were now partially retracted. 
and coiled up, forming a white coat almost entirely in- 
vesting it. Under a one-inch objective, as these were 
twining and twisting, I saw among them several olive-— 
yellow bodies, which seemed to have a motion independent 
of the filamental currents; and I isolated one. It was of 
a sub-nautiloid form, irregularly convolute, much like a 
Bursaria, about y¢soths of an inch in long diameter, +s4,5ths 
in lateral, and about 4 ,5oths in transverse; of a dull clear 
olive, but granular, richly clothed everywhere with small 
cilia, by means of which it revolved freely in all directions, 
Others which I saw were much less than this one. . 
Dr. T. S. Wright, however, seems to have witnessed the 
birth of perfectly-formed young. “Four young ones,” he 
observes,* “produced by as many specimens of Actinia 
* Proce, Roy. Phys. Soc. 


THE SCARLET-FRINGED ANEMONE. 47 


ornata [= Sag. miniata] in the last six months, were born 

with a double row of tentacles, the inner long, the outer 

short, and tinged with orange-red as in the adult.” 

_ This beautiful species is easily reconciled to captivity, 

and is hardy. I have kept individuals for long periods. 

‘ ‘It expands freely. It ought to be placed on a worm-eaten 

_ piece of rock, but it does not require so deep a hole as bellis. 

The rich hue of the column, in some varieties, makes it 

desirable that this should be visible. 

_ The following list of localities marks the range of the 
species as at present known. I am not aware that it has 
been found out of Great Britain. 

Deal, Rev. H. H. Dombrain: Weymouth, P. H. G.: 
Torquay, P. H. G.: Dartmouth, Z. W. H. H.: Plymouth, 
Dr. G. Dansey: Ilfracombe, W. A. Lloyd: Tenby, P. 7. G.: 
Menai Strait, W. A. Z.: Hilbre Island, Z. LZ. W.: Arran, 

_T. 8, W.: Cumbrae, D. R. 

_ pellis. 

MINIATA. 

rosea. 

ornata. 

ichthystoma. 


ASTRAACEA. SAGARTIADA. 


THE ROSY ANEMONE. 


Sagartia rosea. 
Prats I. Figs. 4, 5, 6. 


Specific Character. Tentacles all rose-coloured ; the first row sometimes 
with a broad dusky bar above a narrow one at the foot. 


Actinia rosea. Gossz, Devonshire Coast, p. 90, pl. i. figs. 5, 6 
(var. vinosa).’ 

pulcherrima. JorDAN, Ann. N. H. Ser. 2, vol. xv. p. 86 (var. 
pulcherrima). 

_vinosa. Houtpswortn, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1856 (var. 

vinosa). 2g 
Sagartia rosea. Gossz, Tenby, p. 365. Frontisp. (var. De- 
metand). ; 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base, Adherent to rocks: scarcely exceeding the column. 

Column. Minutely corrugated, studded on the upper half with suckers, 
to which fragments of gravel or shell occasionally adhere, Substance 
fleshy. Form in expansion elongate, cylindrical. 

Disk. A shallow cup, the margins occasionally undulate. Radii strongly 
marked, and covered with transverse striz. 

Tentacles. Moderately numerous, in four or five rows, nearly equal in 
length (but this varies according to the variety); often arching regularly 
over the margin, but sometimes very small and forming a fine fringe. 

Mouth. Not raised on an obvious cone, often apparently four-lobed. 
Lip crenate. 

Acontia. Emitted copiously. 


CoLouR. 


Column. Deep brown, inclining more or less to dark red, paling to buff — 


at the base. Suckers pale buff or whitish. 

Disk. Pale silvery olive, without markings, except an ill-defined dusky 
margin, produced by the blending of the bands that cross the foot of each 
tentacle. 

Tentacles. Clear rose-red or rose-purple, very brilliant; those of the 
outer row showing a slight tendency to lilac. Those of the first and 


: 


st 


THE ROSY ANEMONE. 49 


second rows are crossed at the foot by two undefined dusky bars, some- 
oe Saeed of which the upper is the thicker. 


_ Mouth. Lip white; or light pink. 


Srze. 


It occasionally rises to a height of an inch and a half; and the diameter 
of the tentacular flower is about an inch. 


Locality. 


_. The south-west corner of Great Britain: in holes and rock-pools at low 
_ water-mark. - , 
j . VARIETIES. 
 @ Vinosa, The condition described above, which is that to which the 
_ specific name rosea was first applied, and which appears to be the most 
widely-spread variety. (Plate i. fig. 4.) 
_ . B. Pulcherrima. Column cream-white, merging towards the summit 
_ into pale olive. Disk cream-white, with dark lines between the radii. 
_ ‘Tentacles crimson-lake, with several (more or less distinct) darker bars ; 
_ those of the first row thicker, usually carried erect, or arching inwards. 
 @Plate i. fig. Si which Jn. cppied. from 9 beautiful drawing, with ‘which 
Professor Jordan has favoured me.) 
¥. Erythrops. Column dark brown, inclining to olive, with conspicuous 
a michee Disk brilliant orange-scarlet. Tentacles rather short, stout, 
bright rose-lilac, the bands across the foot well defined. A very lovely 
variety, which I have found near Torquay. 
- 8. Demetana. Small and low, rarely exceeding half an inch in height or 
diameter, Column rich red-brown, with inconspicuous suckers. Disk 
crimson, often with a tinge of orange, usually more or less puckered at the 
margin. Tentacles crimson, short, crowded, resembling a compact fringe. 
Plate i. fig. 5.) : 


_ For the first and second of these varieties, I have retained 
= names proposed respectively by Mr. Holdsworth and 
rf - Professor Jordan, who described them as species under 
_ these appellations, I am quite sure that both must be 
referred to this species, The fourth is the form so abun- 
_ dant on the Pembroke coast; a very marked variety, to 
_ which I have assigned a name alluding to the Anynrai, 
_ the ancient inhabitants of that part of Wales. All are 
beautiful; but perhaps pulcherrima, as its name pants, is 
th loveliest of all. 


E 


i a ae 


50 SAGARTIADS. - 


There is no doubt that S. minzata and S. rosea approxi- — 
mate in some of their varieties very closely; and I have 
had many doubts about the propriety of keeping them 
separate. I have seen, in the vicinity of Tenby, specimens, — 
in which some of the small tentacles of the outer row had 
a scarlet or orange core, and yet in no other respect could — 
I distinguish them from the true rosea. Normal rosee and 
normal miniate were abundant on the same frock (the 
Woolhouse-rock) within a few feet; which fact suggests 
the possibility of hybridization. Besides the scarlet-cored 
tentacles, miniata may be described, in those varieties 
which come nearest to rosea, as darker externally; as 
growing to a far larger size ; as being lower and less pillar- 
like; and as having a much more lax, flaccid habit of 
body. 

The questio vexata,—W hat constitutes a species? what 
a variety ? is one which it is much easier to answer theo- 
retically than practically. Some have proposed certain 
arbitrary canons, such as that assumed by Mr. Tugwell, 
that form distinguishes the species, colour only the variety. — 
But this is quite untenable. In many instances colour is 
not only specific, but even generic ;—as black, fhite, and 
red, in well-recognised patterns and in certain fixed regions 
of the body, in the Woodpeckers; black, yellow and red, 
again in certain patterns, in Papilio; yellow, red and 
white in the Pieride. Indeed, our entomological friends 
would be sorely puzzled to define their species, if colour 
were denied them as a distinction. In the Butterflies 
alone, hundreds of indubitable species rest exclusively on 
colouring. The fact is, anything may be a specific character, 
provided it be constant. Constancy, permanency, is what 
we require ; let us only indicate any mark that is invariably 
found,—no matter whether it be colour, form, pattern, 
surface, sculpture, or any thing else; or any combination of 


THE ROSY ANEMONE. 51 


these, and we have a‘good Specific character. I believe, 
_ with Mr. Wallace, that “the two doctrines of ‘permanent 
varieties’ and of ‘specially created unvarying species’ are 
inconsistent with each other.’* In other words, I would 
a say a species is permanent, a variety transitory. There is 


no doubt, however, that the latter may be maintained 


within certain limits by breeding in and in; though there 
_ will always be a tendency to revert to the original and 
normal character, which marks the permanent species. 


Though I believe this distinction to be a good one, it 


~ does not therefore follow that we can put it in practice 


without any difficulty. We find a specimen;—we know 
nothing of its antecedents ;—at most we can trace it only 
through a few generations; and thus we are precluded 
from applying our test of permanency to it. The only 
resource is the practical skill and judgment which expe- 
rience and observation gradually give; and these, as they 
cannot be communicated to another, nor be reduced to 
formule, differ indefinitely in individual cases. In the 
present work I must beg my readers to believe that I use 
the best light I have, to arrive at right conclusions, 

Under all its variations, which are not very numerous, 
&. rosea is a lovely little species. When left by the 


_ receding tide, it protrudes from its tiny cavity in the over- 
hanging rock, and droops, a pear-shaped button of orange- 
_ brown, with a cluster of brilliant purple tentacles just 
_ showing their tips from the half-opened centre, and a drop 
of water sparkling like a dew-drop, hanging from them. 


Then it is beautiful. But a more charming sight is seen 
when, as at the rock near Lidstep, or on the Woolhouse 
reef, you gaze down into a narrow basin worn by the 
waves of ages in the solid limestone, and, having first care- 


: éaly lifted the broad fronds of Lamtnaria and Rhodymenia 


* Zoologist, p. 5888. 
E 2 


52 _ SAGARTIADA, 


palmata that spring from the edges, you see the dark brown 
walls and bottom of the pool,—which is filled to the brim 
with quiet crystal water,—all studded over with the 
expanded disks of rosew, nivece, and venuste. Then indeed 
the sloping sides and bottom resemble a parterre, of which 
these are the lovely flowers; while the tufts of green, 
brown and purple Alge that spring up everywhere around, 
some like moss, some like fantastically cut leaves, may well 
serve for the foliage of the “ fairy paradise.” 
* In hollows of the tide-worn reef, 

Left at low water, glistening in the sun, 

Pellucid pools, and rocks in miniature, 

With their small fry of fishes, crusted shells, 

Rich mosses, tree-like sea-weeds, sparkling pebbles, 


Enchant the eye, and tempt the eager hand 
To violate the fairy paradise.” 


It is equally attractive in those imitations of such rock- 
‘pools, which we make in glass tanks and china pans for 
our drawing-rooms. But, like the other species of the 
group to which it belongs, it is a somewhat precarious 
tenant of the Aquarium. I have kept at different times a 
large number of specimens; but none of them, so far as 
I can remember, survived a twelvemonth’s captivity. A 
dark-coloured mass of rock suits it best, serving as a back- — 
-ground for its rich crimson blossom. It loves the shadow, 
too; and should therefore be placed on the side farthest 
from the light. A rough ee surface is very 
appropriate for it. 

The Rosy Anemone occasionally protrudes the walls of 
‘the stomach, like B. crassicornis, which then overlap the 
disk in large furrowed pellucid lobes. It sometimes 
-distends the tentacles till they are translucent, and then it 
“is not uncommon to see the free ends of the acontia, lying 
within these organs in coils, having penetrated through the 
open base of the tentacle from the intersepts of the body- 


oe 


ar meee 3 


THE ROSY ANEMONE. 53 


_eavity. One may sometimes also discern fragments of the 


same filaments, which have become accidentally detached, 


4 driven to and fro at the tip of the interior of the tentacle. 
_ The proper ciliary motion of these twisted atoms combining 
_ with the motion produced by the lining cilia of the tentacle- 


wall, gives them the fitful vacillating action of spontaneous 
volition ; so that they may readily be mistaken for living 
worms accidentally imprisoned. The acontia are emitted 


from the pores of the body in great profusion upon irri- 
_ tation. The form and armature of their cnide do not differ 


from those in the species last described. 

The following are the localities of the Rosy Anemone 
known to me :— 

Guernsey, E. W. H. H.: Teignmouth, RB. C. R. J: 
Torquay, P. H. G.: near Paignton, Rev. W. F. Short: 
Dartmouth, 2. W. H. H.: Tenby, Lidstep, St. Gowan’s 
Head, P. H. G: Bantry Bay, E. P. W. 

miniata. 
ROSEA. 
venusta. 
nivea. 


ASTRAACEA. . SAGARTIADA. 


THE ORNATE ANEMONE. 


Sagartia ornata. 
Prare Il. Figs. 9, 10. 


Specific Character. Basal region of the tentacles, and the outer region of 
the radii blackish: a white bar across the former, and a white cordate spot _ 
on the latter. 


Actinia ornata, HoipswortH, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1856, Pl. v. figs. 
5, 6, 7, 8. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form, 


. Base. Adherent to the roots of Laminaria: slightly exceeding the’ 
column. . 

Column. Minutely corrugated ; studded on the upper half with suckers, 
more numerous as they approach the summit. Form in expansion elon- 
gate, cylindrical. 

Tentacles. Moderately numerous, in five rows; those of the first row 
rather stoutly conical, comparatively short; the rest diminishing rapidly 
as they approach the margin. ea 

Mouth. Not raised on an obvious cone. Lip tumid. 

Acontia. Emitted freely. 


CoLour. 


Column. Dark orange-brown, paler at the base. Suckers pale. 

Disk, Central moiety pale orange, changing to a rich purplish brown on 
the outer moiety. The radii of the first and second rows of tentacles 
separated by narrow yellow bands slightly diverging “as they proceed 
outwards, and at their extremities partially surrounding the bases of the 
tentacles, according to the following arrangement. The first tentacle may 
be said to arise from the space between two pairs of bands, the second being 
situated within the pair ;* the band bifurcates near its extremity, and 
incloses the third tentacle; these branches again divide and form a similar 
inclosure for the tentacles of the fourth row :+ beyond these is a set of 


* The apparent distribution of the bands in pairs is merely a necessary 
result of the fact that the secondary radii are narrower than the primary. 

+ Hence the yellow bands are doubtless the united radii of the tertian 
and quartan series, 


“THE ORNATE ANEMONE. 


_ ¥ery short tentacles ; these, as far as I have been able to examine them, 

_ are not connected with the yellow bands.” On each primary radius is a 

large heart-shaped spot of cream-white, well defined, in the midst of the 

_ dark-brown; and on each secondary radius a similar spot, but more elon- 

) gated, and situate a little more remote from the common centre. 

_ Tentacles. Dark brown at the base, becoming paler toward the tip, en- 
circled by three white rings, of which the basal one is very 
distinctly defined. 

Mouth, Lip pink; frequently conspicuous, 


Size. 


About three-fourths of an inch in height when extended ; 
flower half an inch in diameter. 


LocaLity, 


The entrance of Dartmouth harbour, in the laminarian 
zone, 


‘VARIETIES, 


a. Fusca, The condition above described. - 
TENTACLE B. Rubida. The brown on the tentacles and certain parts 
U “n)- of the disk replaced by various shades of red. 


This attractive little Anemone appears to have been seen 
only by Mr. Holdsworth, who described it in detail, with 
accompanying drawings, in a Memoir read before the 
Zoological Society of London, Dec. 11th, 1855. From 
those details, as published in the Society’s proceedings, I 
have compiled the above description, merely throwing them 

- into that order of arrangement, which, for convenience of 
_ reference, I have adopted in this work. I have been aided, 
_ however, by the original beautiful drawings, which my 

_ friend has liberally placed in my hands. From these, the 

_ figures in Plate II. have been likewise copied; fig. 9 re- 
presenting the flower, fig. 10 the button. 

“This species,” as its discoverer observes, “is chiefly 

remarkable for the beauty of its oral disk, which, for 

colouring and elegance of marking, will bear comparison 


56 : SAGARTIADA. 


with that of any of the larger kinds. . .. Several ex- 
amples were obtained at extreme low-water mark, from a 
large mass of detached rocks known as the Mewstone, near 
the entrance to Dartmouth Harbour. They were met 
with on two or three occasions, but were always found 
nestling among the roots of Laminaria digitata,” 

The variety rubida was described in the same paper. 
Six specimens were found among the roots of a Laminaria 
sent to Mr. Holdsworth from the same locality. He could 
find no other difference of importance, than the substitu- 
tion of red for brown above-mentioned. From a private 
communication withwhich he has recently favoured me, I 
learn that he failed to discover any more specimens of 
either variety, though he subsequently searched the same 
locality. 

rosea. 
ORNATA. 
ichthystoma. 


_ ASTR&ACEA. SAGARTIADE. 


THE FISH-MOUTH ANEMONE. 


Sagartia ichthystoma. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Prate II. Fig. 7. 


Specific Character. Tentacles minute, marginal; each having two 
_ narrow black bars across the foot. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION, 


Form. 


_ Base. Adherent to rocks or shells: not exceeding the column. 

Column. Coarsely corrugated, with no (observed) suckers. Form (in 
button) low, nipple-like, with a coarsely-puckered involution ; (in flower) 
cylindrical, in height about equal to its diameter. 

- Disk. A shallow saucer; with radii strongly marked; the margin 
slightly exceeding the diameter of column. 

Tentacles. Moderately numerous, arranged in three rows, set very close 
to the margin of disk ; nearly equal in size, very small, short, and conical. 

Mouth. Set onalarge cone. Lip very tumid, coarsely furrowed. 


CoLour. 


~ Column. Brownish-scarlet, becoming pale towards the top, and tinged 

with purple at the very summit. 

Disk. Pale fawn or bay, with numerous radiating lines of black, so 
thick at the outer half of the area as to give the effect of a broad, black, 
slightly-interrupted ring. A pair of gonidial radii, opposite, white. 

« Tentacles. Pellucid white, marked at the foot with two 
_ elose-set, narrow bars of black, and a broad ill-defined ring of 
_ dusky near the middle. The radial lines of black wind sinu- 
ously among the tentacles, on the pale ground of the disk, with 
a distinct and pretty effect. 

Mouth. Lip deep rich scarlet. 


Size. 


- Button half an inch in height. Flower three-fourths of an 
inch in diameter. TENTACLE 
(front). 


58 7 «SAG ARTIAD A 


LocaLiry. 


The south coast of England : deep water; low rocks. 


VARIETIES, 


a. Stibista. The condition above described. 
8. Astimma. Disk dull olive-grey. Lips dull brick-red. 


I know this little Anemone only by two specimens. The 
first (of the variety stibista) I found on an oyster in the 
fish-market at Weymouth, in the summer of 1853. As the 
oysters with which the market was supplied were brought 
in by a trawler, whose fishing grounds were West Bay, 
and the offing of Weymouth Bay, we may safely set down 
one of these as the native locality of my little prize. 

The second specimen, which -exhibited that measure of 
diversity in colour, that I have set down as distinctive of 
the variety astimma, but exactly agreed with the former in 
all its other characters, and was manifestly, at the first 
glance, of the same species, was sent me from Torquay, in 
April, 1856, by the Rey. W. F. Short. I understand it 
was taken at the insular rock known as the Ore Stone. 

Though less showy than the former specimen, whose — 
black-lined face and pouting scarlet lips made it very attrac-_ 
tive, this latter was still very pretty; and it proved to be 
easily reconciled to captivity, for it remained in one of my 
tanks,—sometimes under rather unfavourable conditions of 
the water,—from the 10th of April, 1856, to the middle of 
August, 1857, a period of sixteen months. Nor have I any 
reason to believe that it would have died then, but for my 
own carelessness; for having taken it out of the tank to 
examine it, I incautiously left it, after my observations, 
exposed in a saucer to the midday beams of a hot August 
sun, and found it, of course, killed, when I looked at it 
again, 4 


THE FISH-MOUTH ANEMONE. R 59 


_ The acontia contained, as usual, both unchambered and 
chambered enide. The former were linear-oblong, g3gth 
of an inch in length, discharging an ecthoreum, four times 
as long as themselves, surrounded with a single spiral band. 
| The latter were of the same form, but twice as long and 
“wide, discharging an ecthoreum very little longer than 
| themselves, in which I could not discern the least trace either 
of barbs or screw. The acontium was taken, certainly, 
| om the specimen last mentioned, when it was either dying 
or dead, decomposition having commenced ; but the invest- 
ing cilia were in parts still active, and “the cnide dis- 
pebarged vigorously, just as when alive. 
_ In both varieties the small, conical, pointed tentacles 
"projecting very regularly from the margin, impart a pecu- 
iar and well-recognised character to the species. These 
| organs so strongly resembled the little sharp teeth crowded 
_ Tound the jaws of some fishes, that I was induced to borrow 
_ a nomen triviale from that resemblance. The appellations 
_ of the varieties allude, as my classical readers will have 
perceived, to the long-standing custom among the Oriental 
ladies (nor altogether unknown to the dandies of ancient 
Rome*) of staining the eyelids with stibium, a preparation 
of antimony, for the purpose of imparting a soft voluptuous 
languor to the eyes. Jezebel “put her eyes in painting” 
(2 Kings ix. 30; marg.). 
we ornata. 
a? IcHTHYsTOMA. _B.. crassicornis. 
| ? 


miniata. 


* See Pliny, Nat. Hist. xi. 37 ; Juv, Sat. ii, 93. 


ASTRGACEA. . SAGARTIA DZ. 


THE ORANGE-DISKED ANEMONE. 


Sagartia venusta. 


Prate I, Fig. 7. 
Specific Character. Disk orange; tentacles white. 


Actinia venusta. Gossx, Ann, N. H. Ser. 2, xiv. 281. 
Sagartia venusta. Iprp., Linn, Trans. xxi. 274. Tenby, 358; pl. xxiii. 
é' figs. a, b. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks ; little exceeding the column. 

Column,. Smooth, or very minutely corrugated ; studded on the upper 
half with suckers, which are not raised on conspicuous warts. Substance 
fleshy. Form cylindrical, the height rarely exceeding the diameter. 

Disk. Flat or slightly concave; the margin somewhat undulate. 
Outline often ovate. Radii inconspicuous. 

Tentacles. About two hundred or upwards, set in about four indistinct 
rows; the inner ones about as long as the diameter of the disk, the outer- 
most small and close-set ; slender, acute, somewhat flaccid. 

Mouth. A simple orifice without cone, or distinct lip; Soqusiits 
thrown into lobes. Throat ribbed. 

Acontia. Emitted copiously and freely. 


CoLour. 


Column. Warm brown, varying from deep buff, to full rich brown- 
orange, often paler towards the lower half, where traces of alternate lon- 
gitudinal bands of pale ew dark tint are sometimes visible. Suckers 
whitish. 

Disk. Wholly of a most brilliant orange, without markings. 

Tentacles. Pure white, without markings, except that the colour is 
generally pellucid at the foot and at the tip, and more or less opaque in 
the middle. 

Mouth. Paler than the disk. Ribs of throat white. 


S1zz. 


A full-sized specimen well expanded is about three-fourths of an inch in 
diameter of disk; but the extended tentacles may increase this to an 


I 


a THE ORANGE-DISKED ANEMONE. 61 


inch and a half, or rather more. The height rarely exceeds three-fourths 
Pe 


_ Various points in the south and west of Great Britain and Ireland. In 
Scotland it has not been recognised. Hollows in perpendicular and over- 
_ hanging rocks, exposed at low water: dark tide-pools. 


LocaLityY, 


VARIETIES. 


” The variation seems to be limited to the greater or less depth of tint in 
This most elegant species was first met with by myself 
in the neighbourhood of Tenby, where it is so abundant as 
to be quite characteristic. It has since been found in 
several other somewhat remote habitats, but nowhere in 
anything like the profusion in which it occurs in that its 
first recognised home. I am justified therefore in consider- 
ing South Wales the metropolis of the species. It occurs 
all along the south coast of Pembrokeshire, at least from 
Monkstone Point to St. Gowan’s Head ; but is more than 
usually numerous in the fine perforate caverns of St. 
Catherine’s Island, that form such an attraction to Tenby 
visitors, and in the hollows and erosions of that rich pre- 
serve of zoophytic game,—the Woolhouse Rocks. 
- The Orange-disk is essentially a cave-dweller; almost 
invariably choosing for its residence some crevice or cranny, 
or one of those little cavities made by boring mollusks, 
with which the limestone on those coasts is generally 
honeycombed, Occasionally, indeed, we find it in shallow 
pools, with a bottom of impalpable mud, the detritus pro- 
duced by the action of the waves on the surrounding rocks ; 
but in such cases it will be invariably found that the 
Actinia is attached to a hollow in the solid floor of the pool, 


_ protruding its body through the deposit by elongation, and 


expanding its beautiful disk on the surface. Owing to this 


62 SAGARTIAD A. 


tvoglodyte habit, it is, like many of its congeners, rather 
difficult to procure, notwithstanding its abundance, as it 
must be chiselled out,—an operation, which, from the great 
hardness of the compact limestone, is both tedious and 
precarious. ; 
Hundreds might be seen* in the largest of the caverns 
just alluded to, hanging down from the walls during the 
recess of the tide; the button elongated to an inch or more. 
And almost every dark overarched basin hollowed in the 
sides of the caves, or in similar situations, at Lidstep, at 
St. Margaret’s Island, and under Tenby Head, each filled 
to the brim with still crystalline water, had its rugged walls” 
and floor studded with the full-blown blossoms of this’ 
and cognate species. : 
As a specimen of the exceeding richness of these “ gar- 
dens of the Nereids,”” wherewith our iron-bound coasts are — 
adorned, I shall take the liberty of citing the description of 
one, as it appeared to myself in the vicinity of which I 
am speaking. It was on the face of the bluff castle- 
crowned promontory known as Tenby Head. i 
“ After scrambling over many rough ridges, we come to 
a perpendicular wall of rock some twenty-five feet high, 
jutting out from the cliff right across our way; its foot 
washed by the sea, which is evidently of considerable — 
depth, its summit tapered to a sharp edge, and the whole — 
side holed, and furrowed, and honeycombed, and covered — 
with barnacles to the very top. ; 
* Tuse the past tense; for alas! it is so no more. When I revisited — 
Tenby in 1856, I found that these caves, and almost every accessible part — 
of the neighbouring coast, were pretty well denuded of the lovely animal- — 
flowers, which, in 1854, had blossomed there, as in a parterre. I fear that 
the hammers and chisels of amateur naturalists have been the desol 
agents; and my friends tell me, not without a semi-earnest reproachful- 
ness, that I am myself not guiltless of bringing about the consummation. — 
If the visitors were gainers to the same amount as the rocks are losers, 
there would be less cause for regret ; but owing to difficulty and unskilful- 


ness combined, probably half a dozen Anemones are destroyed for one that 
goes into the aquarium, 


THE ORANGE-DISKED ANEMONE. 463 


On the south side of this wall, almost at its base, on a 
ugh mass si rock so covered with luxuriant tufts of Dulse 
(Rhodymenia palmata) as to be richly empurpled with it, 
fens | found a little basin, somewhat irregular in outline, but 
rudely oval, about a foot long, eight inches wide, and six 
inches deep; in other words, about the size of a soup- 
 tureen. It was much obscured by overhanging drapery of 
Fucus ; but, on lifting this, I was astonished and delighted 
with the profusion of animal life, whose gay and varied 
hues gave to the tiny area the appearance of an artist’s 
| newly-rubbed palette. | 
_ “Lest I should seem to exaggerate if I reported the 
- contents of this basin from memory, I took the trouble to 
~ count the specimens, noting each sort in my pocket-book 
on the spot. Their numbers were,—nineteen of the bril- 
_ liant Orange-disk (Sagartia venusta), and twelve of the 
| Snowy (S. nivea), all fully blown ; besides two large Shore- 
Crabs (Carcinus menas), a Shanny (Blennius pholis), a 
‘ Cynthia, several Sabelle, a group of Sabellaria alveolata, 
_ some very fine masses of Botrylloides, and many specimens 
of the Crown Sponge (Grantia ciliata). 
“Nor was this extraordinary pool less rich in its botany 
__ than in its zoology. Chondrus crispus, finely tipped with 
_ Steel-blue, as usual; the Common Coralline (Corallina 
f _ officinalis), purpling the sides and bottom; some small 
_ fronds of Rhodymenia palmata, and one or tab tiny ones of 
a _ Laminaria saccharina,;—which is particularly pretty while 
4 itis young,—were there ; as also two other kinds of superior 
2 - elegance, namely, Delesseria ruscifolia, with its oak-like 
: leaves of fine dark crimson, and the pretty rich-green 
_ feathers of Bryopsis plumosa. Besides all these, there 
__ were other plants and animals of less note, which I did not 
_ enumerate.” * 


* Tenby; a Seaside Holiday ; 96, ef se7. 


poe 


64 SAGARTIADA. 


I think it more than probable that the long deep 
Atlantic fiords of the sister island, will, on examination, — 
prove at least to equal, if they do not greatly surpass, in 
the luxuriance of their marine zoology and botany, any-— 
thing that we can boast in England. As a companion to 
the above, I gladly give an Irish picture of S. venusta, in 
situ, sketched by the graphic pen of my friend Dr. E. Per- 
cival Wright, the able and energetic Director of the Dublin 
University Museum. : 

“ Last August, while entomologizing with Messrs, 
Haliday and Furlong in Killarney and Glengariff, we made 
one day’s excursion down Bantry Bay—a famed spot, but, 
with all its fame, it has never been worked. Well; the — 
weather was bad,—very bad; a thick mizzling rain soon 
bespangled us with heavy dew-drops: however, pulled by 
four good oars, we did get on. The tide being right 
against us, it was hours ere we reached some remarkable 

_caves,—the chief object of our trip. 

“Thousands of the dark olive-green Actinia mesembry- 
anthemum lined these caves. It was not safe to try to 
land; but in places where the sea, owing to shelter, was 
quiet, I could see the sea-floor covered with an extra- — 
ordinary luxuriance of Actinie, Sponges, &c.;—their — 
colours, and forms, of course, distorted by every ripple of 
the waves. 

‘** We did land for a few minutes on one spot; and, even 
at Tenby, and under St. Catherine’s Rock, I never saw so 
much in the time; and this, though I did not wander 
from a single rock-pool. In it I saw about four and twenty 
specimens of Ecehinus lividus, all comfortably sitting in 
arm-chairs nicely cut out of stone, and most of them of a 
lovely purple tint. Down the centre of the pool ran a 
narrow fissure quite choked with Bunodes crassicornis, 
which, as is their. wont, had managed to gather all the 


THE ORANGE-DISKED ANEMONE. 65 


little broken débris of shells, and to stick them over their 
" bodies, in the way children stick broken china on heaps of 


eS ‘But new to me as was LE. lividus, and splendid as the 
really fine crassicornes were—they were of that pretty 
healthy white and pink variety—yet they were surpassed 
_ by your Sag. venusta, which with S. rosea sprouted out of 
every fissure. The former is, I think, the most exquisite 
of our Irish Anemones. In your figure in ‘Tenby,’ the 
F fentacles are hardly white enough, and no painting can do 
_ justice to the clear orange. Book it and S. rosea, both 
| very distinct from any other of our species. I saw other 

_ Anemones that I suspect will turn out new species; but 

what could twenty minutes and an insect-net effect in 
‘catching’ such things as Sagarts? Why, touch them 
roughly and—they’re gone! If spared, I will visit them 
| again; and you shall see them, I hope, too: for if I spend 
a month in Bantry Bay, say next June or July, I can 
easily send you my Actinia captures ;—that is, if you 
_ won't visit Ireland. It is as pleasant as Jamaica.” 

To turn from these tempting scenes of wild nature ;—our 
beautiful Orange-disk is easily made happy in captivity: 
where, indeed, fed daily by fair fingers, and admired by 

_ bright eyes, it would argue badly for its temper if it were 
not. It is soon at home, and becomes one of the most 
brilliant ornaments of the Aquarium, expanding its lovely 
disk freely, fringed with its elegant border of snow-white 
tentacles, and thus making up in beauty what it lacks in size. 
It will survive an indefinite period, if it receive a moderate 
_ degree of attention. The observations which I have made 
_ on the treatment of S. rosea will apply with equal force to 
_ this species and to the following. 
___ Mr. Holdsworth informs me that he has witnessed the — 
__ production of new individuals from fragments spontaneously 
| F 


66 SAGARTIADA. 


detached from the base, in S. venusta, as before described 
in the case of A. dianthus. Miss Loddiges has favoured 
me with information of the same phenomenon in this 
species. 

The following are the localities known to me as inhabited 
by the Orange-disk :— 

Guernsey, Dr. J. D. Hilton : (on Laminariz washed up) 
Miss Guille: Torquay, P. H. G.; Clovelly (on oysters 
from deep water), Rev. 0. Kingsley: Morte Stone, G. T.: 
Lundy, G. T7.: Tenby, P. H. G.: St. Gowan’s Head, 
P. H. G.:; Puffin Island, Z. L. W.: Bantry Bay, E. P. W.: 
Belfast (abundant), O. Bosanquet. 

This species has close relations with S. nivea. Its 
colouring, however, so far as I have seen, is constant, 
without any approach to albinism; and its tendency to an 
ovate outline also distinguishes it, though less satisfactorily. 
It may possibly be found hereafter that the two constitute 
but a single species; but in the absence of any intermediate 
eondition, I think it best to consider them distinct. 

miniata. — : 
VENUSTA. 
nivea, 


SAGARTIADA. 


THE SNOWY ANEMONE. 


Sagartia nivea. 
Puate Il. Figs. 1, 8. 


a 

e Specific Character. Disk and tentacles opaque white, without 
| markings. 

| Actinia nivea.  Gosse, Devonsh. Coast, 93; pl. i. fig. 8. 

| Sagartia nivea. sup, Trans. Linn. Soe. xxi. 274. Tenby, 368, Frontisp. 
Annals N, H. Ser. 3, vol. i. p. 415. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


_* Base. Adherent to rocks; little exceeding the column. 
Column. Smooth, or slightly corrugated: studded on the upper half 
with suckers, which form somewhat conspicuous warts. Substance 
fleshy. Form cylindrical; the height often exceeding the diameter. 
 ~Disk. Fiat or slightly concave; the margin scarcely undulate. Outline 
circular. Radii conspicuously marked. 

Tentacles. About two hundred, arranged in four distinct rows; of 
which the first and second contain each twenty-four ; the third forty-eight; 
and the fourth, which is marginal, about one hundred: Those of the first 
row, when extended, are about as long as the diameter of the disk ; the 
others diminish gradually, the outer row being small, and often papillary. 

Mouth. Sometimes raised on a cone, which at other times disappears ; 
frequently thrown into lobes. Lip slightly tumtd. Throat ribbed. 

_  Acontia. Emitted freely and copiously. 


CoLour. 


Column. A light olive drab, slightly varying in intensity; becoming 
paler towards the lower half, which is often marked with alternate longi- 
tudinal bands of white and drab tint. Suckers whitish. 

Disk. Opaque white without markings, except that, when fully ex- 
panded, a grey tinge spreads in a circle, near the bases of the tentacles. 

_ Occasionally a very faint tinge of yellow surrounds the mouth. 

Tentacles, Pure snow-white, opaque, except when much distended with 

water; without any markings either on the body or around the fcot. 

Mouth. Lip and throat pure white. 


F 2 


68 3 SAGARTIAD A 


SIzE. 


Large specimens attain the thickness of an inch, the height of an inch ' 
and a quarter, and the diameter of an inch and a half, when fully — 
expanded. 


‘LOCALITY. 


The south-west coast of England, Crevices and rock-pools. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Immaculata, The condition above described. ; 
B. Obscurata. Disk tinged with faint greyish-olive; the tentacular — 
region smoke-grey, undefined. This variety sometimes has the column of q 
that rich orange-brown hue which is characteristic of this group. ; 


It was on the north side of the limestone promontory 
known as Petit Tor, on the south coast of Devon, that 1 
first met with the Snowy Anemone, in the spring of 1852. — 
The rock here is hollowed into large cavernous pools, — 

isolated only at very low tides, and dark with the shadow of 
the slimy sponge-covered precipices that arch over them; 
where Laminarie grow abundantly, affording many a nidus 
for profuse forests of parasitic Hydroids of the genera — 
Sertularia, Plumularia, and Laomedea. The little red 
siphons of thousands of Saxicave hang down from the ~ 
holes which they have excavated in the solid limestone, 
each terminated by a diamond drop of water, awaiting the — 
moment when the returning tide shall cover their abodes, 
and restore to them activity and enjoyment. It is their _ 
season of periodical idleness and repose. Among the ~ 
roughnesses of the rock, and the conical papillary pores of — 
the sponges, which, olive, yellow, and scarlet, stud the sur- 
face,—green Nereidous worms glide along, in and out, by 
means of the curious packets of slender bristles, alternately _ 
projected from every segment and withdrawn, that serve _ 
them instead of feet. Below the water-line, that is to say, _ 


THE SNOWY ANEMONE. 69 


the level of the lowest part of the margin of the pool, which 
_ of course never varies, such animals and plants as require 
_ to be perpetually covered with water enjoy circumstances 
s suited to their wants. In the deepest shadow, fine speci- 
_ mens of the fleshy Dulse (Jridea edulis), and the lovely 
_ leaf-like Delesseria sanguinea, display their crimson fronds 
in copious tufts; plants that cannot bear the absence of 
_ water, their delicate leaves becoming orange-coloured in 
"large patches, which soon die and slough away,—if left 
| wunbathed even for a single tide. The curious white Cows’ 
paps (Alcyonium digitatum), all studded with their clear 
glassy polypes, project from the rock; and here I saw 
several white Actini#, which at once attracted my notice, 
though beyond my reach, on the opposite side of the pool. 
At length, however, by searching in another smaller pool, 
to which I could gain access, I found, beneath the drooping 
Oarweeds, one of the white Actinie within reach. It was 
__ three or four inches beneath the surface; so that to procure 
it, it was needful to bale out the water to that depth, which 
I effected by the aid of one of my collecting jars, and then 
to cut out the animal’s cell with the steel chisel. I was, 
however, sufficiently repaid for the labour by the beauty of 
this snow-white Anemone. 
' After an absence of nearly six years, I visited this inter- 
esting spot again. It had often been a subject of specula- 
_ tion with me whether the minute features of a rocky coast 
change rapidly under the action of weather and sea; and I 
had looked forward to this visit with interest, as likely to 
afford me data for determining the question. The shore 
was as tf I had left it but yesterday. Everything appeared 
as if it had been untouched : every tide-pool, every projec- 
tion, I recognised: the broad cleft that I have described 
(Devonsh. Coast, p. 34); the little basins within it; the 
slight projections on the face of the cliff by means of which 


70 SAGARTIADA, 


I scrambled across, just as of old ; the farther chasm (p. 39); 
and the large dark tide-pool in which I had seen the Prawn; — 
—all were exactly as when I first made acquaintance with — 
them six years ago. This last pool is still fringed with — 
Oarweeds crowded with Laomedea forests, and the farther — 
walls are still spotted over with daisy-like Snowy Ane- — 
mones, just where I saw them first, and in all probability — 
the very same identical individuals. 

But in the interim I had become familiar with the fair — 
nivea, in what I may call its metropolitan home. It is in 
the numerous caverns and dark rock-pools into which the — 
limestone formation on the Pembroke coast is hollowed, 
that this lovely species is seen to advantage; especially in © 
the dark holes of Monkstone, the Caves of St. Catherine’s 
and St. Gowan’s, and the overshadowed pools of Tenby | 
Head and Lidstep, Here, as we peer into the clear water 
of these obscure wells, we see the Snowy Anemone studding 
the rugged sides by hundreds, like bright stars on the mid- — 
night sky, singly and in constellations. Here, too, swarm — 
its congeners and companions, the equally lovely rosea and — 
venusta ; and this trio of graces are the very gems of the — 
Demetian rocks. 4 

When covered by water, nivea expands freely, and con- — 
tinues long unfolded; but, in situations where it is left by 
the tide, it either withdraws into its hole, or, if this be — 
placed on the side of a perpendicular or overhanging rock, 
it hangs out in the form of a lengthened wart, with a drop © 
of water depending from its drooping head, like a dewdrop, — 
in the centre of which a speck of white reveals the peeping — 
tips of the contracted tentacles. 

Mr. Holdsworth has observed in this species that curious — 
form of elongation of the tentacles described under S. — 
miniata. Here, however, no fewer than ten or twelve of — 
the tentacles of the first and second rows hung down, 


THE SNOWY ANEMONE. 71 


straight and motionless, to a distance of two inches from the 
disk. They were attenuated towards the middle, enlarging 
again on nearing the tip, which was truncate in some, 
} rounded or obtusely pointed in others. Corrugation was 
present in some, but was rather difficult of detection, owing 
| tothe absence of colour. It is probable that this peculiar 
_ condition of the tentacles may be accompanied with func- 
tions distinct from those of the mere elongation, such as 
s been described under S. bellis. (See ante, p. 35.) 
_ This species bears a far closer resemblance to a daisy, 
e ‘both in size and colour, than that which has obtained pos- 
_ session of the name. Indeed, one can scarcely see a group 
_ of niveew and venuste under water, especially among the 
small mossy growth of grass-green Algwe,— Bryopsis, Con- 
Sere, Calothrix, Enteromorpha, &c.,—without being forcibly 
reminded of a crop of daisies on a lawn. 
4 Mr. Holdsworth finds it “not uncommon at Dartmouth, 
_ but usually small; inhabiting crevices in steep rocks under 
_ sea-weeds; at Guernsey, in sheltered nooks, very fine.” 
The young do not differ from the parent, except in size 
and in the number of the tentacles. An infant specimen 
that was born in one of my aquaria, adhered by the base 
immediately, and presently expanded. It displayed twelve 
tentacles, set in six pairs ; each pair being nearly parallel, 
é and separated by a marked interval from the pair on either 
Pe - side. 
Nivea rivals miniata in the profusion with which it 
shoots forth its poison-bearing acontia, on the slightest irri- 
- tation. They are moderately crowded with cnide, mostly 
of the chambered kind, discharging an ecthoreum little 
longer than themselves, densely armed with reverted barbs, 
_ which impart the brush-like form so characteristic of this 
genus. ; 
Most of the recognised habitats of the species have been 


Py 
S 
S 


Se 


Ad] 


" 


72 _ SAGARTIADA. 


_ already mentioned incidentally : they may, however, con- 7 
veniently be tabulated. 4 
Guernsey, LE. W. H. H.: Torquay, P. H. G.: Dart-— 

mouth, E. W. H. H.: Clovelly (on oysters trawled), C.K... — 

Morte, G. 7.: Ilfracombe, P. H. G.: Lundy, G. 14 a 

Tenby, P. H. G.+ St. Gowan’s Head, P. H. G.: 


venusta. 
NIVEA. 
sphyrodeta. 


“ASTRHACEA. SAGARTIADH. 


THE SANDALLED ANEMONE. 
Sagartia sphyrodeta. 


Prate I. Figs. 8, 9. 


Specific Character. Tentacles few, thick, pure white; the foot of each 
_ inclosed within a slender ring of purple, which passes off in a line towards 


| Actinia candida. Gossz, Devonsh. Coast, 430; pl. viii. figs. 11, 12, 
i 18 (“The Purple Spotted Anemone”). 

| Sagartia candida. Isrp. Linn. Trans. xxi. 274: Man. Mar. Zool. i. 28. 
ee sphyrodeta, Iprp, Annals N. H. Ser. 3, vol. i. p. 415. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


_ Base. Adherent to rocks; expanded beyond the column. 

Column. Smooth, without conspicuous suckers. Substance pulpy. 
_ Form cylindrical; the height in general slightly exceeding the diameter. 
Disk. Fiat or slightly concave; the margin entire. Outline circular. 
Tentacles. About forty-eight, arranged in four rows; of which the first 
. and second contain each eight, the third and fourth each sixteen. Those 
of the first row are by far the largest, the size diminishing regularly to the 
___ external row: their form is stout and conical. They are usually spread 
_ horizontally, and have their tips frequently bent downwards. 

Mouth. Raised on a conspicuous cone, which, however, is not per- 
4 manent. Lip capable of great protrusion and distension. 


> 


_  Acontia, Emitted freely and copiously. . 


an s CoLoun. 

_- Colwmn. Marked longitudinally with many bands and narrow lines of 
- opaque white, separated by interspaces, always narrow, of pale semi-pellucid 
_ brown, or drab. The summit is occasionally tinged with reddish-brown. 

_ Disk. Opaque white, marked with five radiating lines of pellucid white.” 
_ The tentacular region is marked with the ring-lines to be presently 

_ described. a 

____ ‘Tentacles. Ivory white, without the least appearance of spots or bars : 
__ but at the very foot, where each tentacle springs from the horizontal disk, 
it is surrounded bya narrow ring of purplish, reddish, or dusky brown, 


74 SAGARTIADA. 


which is occasionally broken in front, but always passes off behind in a 
slender wavy line to the margin, where it slightly 
Lifureates. Frequently the ring dilates into an 
undefined spot at each side of the tentacle-foot. 
Sometimes the line passing off to the margin 
can be scarcely discerned beyond the second 
TENTACLES OF spuy- 1°W, and sometimes the whole marking seems 

RODETA obliterated. ; 

(viewed vertically). Mouth. Pure white. 


Size. 


Half-an-inch in height, and about the same (or re earianee a little more) 
in expanse. 


LOcALiry. 


The south and west coasts of England. Low-water mark. Fissures in 
rocks ; the under surface of stones. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Candida. The condition above detailed, which I originally described 
in my “ Devonshire Coast” under this specific name. 

&. Xanthopis, Disk assuming various shades of yellow, from a pale 
chrome or lemon-colour to a deep orange, or even dull vermilion. 


This pretty little species was discovered by myself at 
Ilfracombe. It was during an unusually low spring- 
tide, in October, 1852. Specimens occurred at that time 
in two localities, having this in common, that in each case 
they were adherent to the perpendicular or overhanging 
surface of the cliff, at the very verge of lowest water. The 
animals were social: in the one case I found three indi- 
viduals associated ; in the other many dozens; a numerous 
colony thronging the approximating sides of a narrow 
fissure that runs far up into the solid rock at the seaward 
base of Capstone Promenade. A frequent tendency to a 
pendent posture was noticed; for even where the general 
surface of the rock was perpendicular, many of the Ane- 


THE SANDALLED ANEMONE. 75 


nones were hanging from beneath the little pots and 
projecting ledges. 
In describing these specimens, I suggested the possibility 
that they might be referred to the Actinia alba of Mr. W. 
P. Cocks.* The absence of the bright yellow dots that 
‘were found on the mouth of the latter, and the entire want 


: of visible suckers, induced me to consider mine as unde- 


|” seri It is true, the repeated occurrence since of 
| specimens with a disk more or less yellow nullifies the 
force of the former objection, but the latter remains; and 
| until I see specimens of A. alba from Mr. Cocks’s locality, 
| Tdare not assume the identity. From original drawings 
| with which that gentleman has kindly favoured me, I per- 
| ceive, moreover, that the tentacles in alba are numerous 
| and slender, whereas in sphyrodeta they are few, thick, 
-and conical. Besides this, the marking of the ten- 
tacles in alba, which are described as “ barred, having 
opaque white patches anteriorly,’ removes the animal from 
“any species with which I am acquainted. I am not, 
however, without hope, that before this work is closed, 
the kindness of my Cornish friends may bring me into 
personal acquaintance with this, and other desiderata of 
that prolific coast. 
_ The substitution of another appellation for that which 
Thad at first assigned to this species was called for on two 
accounts. First, there was already a species named candida 
by Miiller; of which fact I was not aware. Secondly, 
_ this name proved objectionable. While no specific name 
_ May be rejected on account of its having zo significance, 
_ every one ought to be rejected which has a false sig- 
nificance. Mr. Holdsworth’s discoveries of the species at 
f Dartmouth and in the Channel Islands have proved, or at 


| ¥ 


we 
. 


_ *Jchnst. Br. Zooph.; Ed. 2; 217. Rep. Cornw. Polyt. Soc. 1851; 6. 


76 SAGARTIADA. 


least rendered it highly probable, that the normal con- 
dition is to have the disk of a yellow hue, more or less 
deep, the white variety being nothing more than the 
albinism to which organic colours so often tend. The 
term “ candida,” therefore, became inappropriate as a 
nomen triviale; and I have sought one which should 
express a more unvarying character. The word “ sphy- 
rodeta”’ signifies sandalled, from odtpa, the ankles, and 
Sé, to bind; and alludes, as I need scarcely say, to the 
line which, like a narrow ribbon, encircles the tentacle-foot. — 

That the white disk marks a degenerated condition is 
rendered more probable by some facts that have come 
under Mr. Holdsworth’s observation, and, in part, also 
under my own. A specimen obtained by that gentleman 
at Dartmouth was at first of a rich chrome-yellow over the 
whole disk; but after having been some time in captivity, © 
it gradually faded to a sort of dull cream-white ; in this — 
condition, my friend submitted it to my care for a few 
days, during which time it quickly resumed its brilliant 
face. Another individual, which I think Mr. Holdsworth 
brought from Guernsey, fell into a like condition. Writing 
of this, he observes, “‘ The animal has been out of sorts, 
and I have been obliged to administer to it several 
draughts (of pure sea-water), which have nearly set it to 
rights again. The beautiful colour of the disk, however, 
has nearly vanished, but some traces of it are still to be 
seen around the pr bi When I first had it, the colour 
was very conspicuous.” 

The Sandalled Anemone is an interesting little captive. 
It expands its flower-face with great eadiness; rarely — 
remaining long closed, provided the surrounding water 
be pure. The large conical tentacles stretch out hori- 
zontally to their utmost, like a star; and though, on being 
touched, it will partially contract, it unfolds the instant 


|) 


THE SANDALLED ANEMONE. 77 


the annoyance ceases, and is presently full-blown again. 
It is fond of floating at the surface of its prison, the base 
ated at the top of the water, like a swimming Nudi- 
branch, the body hanging downwards, with the tentacles 
idely expanded. 
_ It cannot be considered a common species ; but where it 
does occur, it is usually in some numbers. It is easily 
obtained when discovered, as it does not inhabit holes or 
Wy erevices, but adheres to the smooth rock; it does not 
appear to indue its body with gravel, or any extraneous 
|} substances. Mr. Holdsworth found it not uncommon at 
_ Guernsey, with the unexpected habit of lodging under 
stones on the beach, at ow water. At Dartmouth the 


BD Fniiaria, as well as on the rocks. ; 
__ In my original notice of the species, I have mentioned 
the readiness and profusion with which the acontia or 
| armed filaments are shot forth from the body on the 
? _ slightest provocation. Subsequent observation has abun- 
 dantly confirmed this irritable habit. The character and 
armature of the cnide@ are also there noted. 
The localities of the species are as yet but few, though 
_ they are widely scattered. 
| Jersey, Guernsey, #. W. H. H.: Dartmouth, E. W.H. H.: 


4 prrecombe, P.H. G.: Hilbre daland, E.L. W. 
_ , nivea. 
- SPHYRODETA. 
, pallida. 
he - 
> - 


ASTRZACEA. SAGARTIAD&, 


THE PALLID ANEMONE. 
Sagartia pallida. 


Puate lll. Figs. 4, 5. 


Specific Character. Tentacles numerous, slender, white, each ing 
between two bowed blue lines. a 


Actinia pallidg. Hotpsworrs, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1856, pl. v. fig. 4. 
Sagartia pallida. Gossn, Annals N. H. Ser. 3, vol. i. p. 415. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form, 


Base. Adherent to rocks; considerably wider than column; cutting 4 
undulate. is a 
Column. Smooth, without conspicuous suckers, Substance pulpy. 
Form cylindrical, pillar-like, about twice as high as wide, when extended, © 
but very flat when contracted. Margin a low parapet. z 
Disk. Fiat or slightly concave ; the margin entire. a 
Tentacles. N amerous, arranged i in four rows; on long; slender, : 


the first row outwards. They are commonly carried sub- ‘erect, the 
external rows arching outwards. 
Mouth. ? ; 4 
Acontia. Emitted from the mouth in some abundance, but not very — 
readily. : q 


CoLouR. 


Column. Pellucid whitish. White longitudinal lines are sometimes — 
visible, but they are merely the edges of the septa, seen through bs 5 
translucent skin, and not bands of surface-colour. 4 

Disk. Pellucid whitish. 

Tentacles. Pellucid whitish. The foot of each ten- 
tacle is embraced by two curved lines of dark blue, 
which approach each other without meeting; and 
pass off in front towards the centre of the disk, and 
behind towards the margin, in the form represented 
in the accompanying figure. The general effect is to TENTACLE OF 
produce a bluish shade on that region of the disk PALLIDA if 
from which the tentacles spring. (viewed vertically). ' 


- 


THE PALLID ANEMONE. 79 


SIZE. 


:y Diameter of column about one-third of an inch ; height of column two- 
_ thirds ; expanse of flower nearly an inch. 


4 Loca.iry. 
South-west coast of England ; rocks between tide-marks. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Cana. The colourless state above described. Pilate iii. fig. 5. 
‘, 8. Rufa. Column of a dull brownish-orange, paler or deeper in tint. 
; yp Pilate i iii. fig. 4. 


I am indebted for my knowledge of this little form to 
: Mr. Holdsworth, who discovered about a dozen specimens 
" scattered about the rocks near the entrance to Dartmouth 
- Harbour, “a part of our western coast, which, from its 
ie _ steep rugged character, and its luxuriant growth of sea- 
. _ weeds, presents a fruitful epopoe ground for those in 
search of marine productions.” They were obtained in 
- July, 1855, and were described by their discoverer, in a 
Memoir read before the Zoological Society of London in 
the following December, and subsequently published in 
their Proceedings. All of the individuals were of the 
_ variety cana, differing in no respect among themselves 
except in size, “ They were found on the exposed surface 
of perpendicular rocks at about half-tide mark ; and when 
out of the water and contracted, were very difficult to dis- 

~ tinguish, owing to their great transparency.” * 
* _ Some time afterwards the same gentleman obtained 
s several specimens of a little Anemone which agreed with 
_ his former captives in every respect, save that their column 
* was of a rufous hue; the tentacles, however, having the 
_ same characteristic foot-marks as before. He concluded 


® Proc. Zool. Soc. 1853. 


80 SAGARTIADA. 


that they were but varying phases of the same species : 
and, as he kindly gave me an opportunity of forming a 
judgment by presenting me with a specimen of each 
colour, I concur with him in this opinion, and have accord-_ 
ingly so represented them. 

Some of my friend’s observations on this minute species, 
—made in the course of a correspondence concerning its 
claim to be so considered,—will be read with interest. 
“ Pallida is certainly not candida [= sphyrodeta|. I have 
now seen, and know both well, and can readily point out 
the distinctions. Pallida may be easily taken for a young — 
dianthus at first sight, having a smooth skin, with a rather 
erect body, and long pellucid filiform tentacles. .... The 
basal rings on [? around] the arms of pallida are even | 
narrower than in candida, and have no direct communi- 
cation with the edge of the disk ; nor is there any appear-— 
ance of a spot; their colour is almost black, but with 
a purplish tinge. The disk is quite transparent. The 
original specimens were almost colourless, but later captures 
were of a reddish buff, like some of dianthus ; and one of 
these, not more than half an inch in expanse, produced — 
about a dozen young ones, about an eighth of an inch in | 
height,—slender little things, with tentacles almost erect. — 
They resembled theit parent in form and colour, as far as 
could be seen in such minute creatures. ‘There was no 
other Actinia besides the red pallida in the glass at the 
time, and the young ones adhered to the side of the glass 
vase, immediately surrounding the larger specimen, so that 
I had no doubt of ‘their origin..... I have more than 
once suspected that pallida was merely the young of 
dianthus : but surely the latter would not breed when only 
half an inch high.”” I may add that the characteristic 
lines of blue, though minute, are a sufficient distinction of 
the species. 


THE PALLID ANEMONE. 81 


_ In my limited opportunities of investigating this Ane- 
} mone, I found it impatient of light, and sufficiently loco- 
} motive. A specimen, adhering to the upper surface of a 
a stone, I put into a tea-saucer; it immediately crawled 
to the edge of its stone, glided round, and passed under, 
s “til it was quite out of sight: it thus traversed about thrice 
_ its own length in a quarter of an hour. I then turned up 
_the stone, and the animal presently crawled off to the 
_ bottom of the saucer: closed all the time, except that the 
“tips of its tentacles were protruding. 
Its manner of crawling was somewhat curious. It gradu- 
ally distended a portion of its body, which then was swollen, 
_ and quite pellucid, having a strange appearance, owing to 
| the white china shining through the tissues of the distended 
portion. Then this part, being raised from the bottom so 
_as to be loose, was pushed out and took a fresh hold, and 
the other half was rapidly pulled up to it, when the ante- 
rior half began again to distend instantly, and proceeded 
as before. The progress could be easily watched with a 
~ lens, over the minute specks of the bottom. It was impos- 
sible to witness the methodical regularity of the process, 
and the fitness of the mode for attaining the end, without 
being assured of the existence of both consciousness and 
will in this low animal form. At night I found it had 
marched about three inches, or twenty-four times its own 
_ diameter, in six hours: but its progress, while I watched 
it, was much more rapid than this. 
_- The only recognised habitat for Sagartia pallida is— 
Dartmouth, E. W. H. H. 


sphyrodeta. 
PALLIDA. 
dianthus. 


G 


ASTREACEA, SAGARTIADA, 


THE TRANSLUCENT ANEMONE. 
Sagartia pura. 
Puate III. Fig. 6. 


Specific Character, Wholly pellucid-white, without markings. 
Actinia pellucida, Auper, Catalogue of Zooph. of Northumb. ad 


Durh., 43. # 
-Sagartia pellucida. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 3, vol. i. p. 415, 
pura. ALDER, in litt. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base, Adherent to shells from deep water: somewhat exceeding the — 
column. : 

Column. Perfectly smooth, without visible suckers. Substance pulpy. 
Form cylindrical, a little higher than wide, when extended, but nearly 
flat when contracted. 

Disk. Slightly concave ; the margin entire. : 

Tentacles. Thirty or Res Hea arranged in about three rows ; the inner i 
ones longest (about twice the diameter of the disk in length); diminish- — 
ing regularly outwards, the outermost row being rather short. The inner — 
ones are usually carried more or less erect, the outer arching downwards. 

Mouth. Set on a small cone. 


CoLour. 


' The animal is wholly without positive colour, except that the tentacles — 
have sometimes a slight tendency to become sub-opaque at each extremity, 


when they assume a white appearance in these parts. Occasionallyafew 
white lines occur on the column ; but these appear to be merely the edges 


of the septa, seen through the transparent integuments. 


S1zE. 
About a quarter of an inch in height, and one-sixth in diameter of 
column ; expanse nearly half an inch, 
LOvALITY. . 
The coast of Northumberland, On old shells from deep-water. 


THE TRANSLUCENT ANEMONE. 83 


This species I know only by the descriptions and figures 
of Mr. Joshua Alder, who has kindly put into my hands, 
only the published “ Catalogue of the Zoophytes of 
_ Northumberland and Durham,” in which it first received 
‘a name and place among our Anemones, but additional 
‘notes in MS., and several original drawings. All these 
I have used in my diagnosis and figure. The name 
_ pellucida,” originally applied to this little animal, 
| having been proces, Mr. Alder proposes that it should 
be called “ pura.” 
_ Little is known of its history. Its discoverer observes 
_ of it,—‘ It has occurred to me two or three times at 
- Cullereoats, on old shells,—crusted shells of Fusus anti- 
_ quus from deep water,—nestling among the Serpule and 
_ Barnacles with which they were covered. It is so incon- 
_ Spicuous, when contracted, as to elude observation; and it 
_ was not till the shells had been some time in sea-water, 
and the Actinia became expanded, that its presence was 
_ detected. A specimen kept in a vase was very restless, 
shifting its place continually, and often changing form.” 
It seems to be somewhat rare. Mr. Alder has seen but 
three specimens. Mr. R. Howse has obtained it once or 
__ twice from the five-men boats, on the same coast, His 
_ Specimens were slightly larger than Mr. Alder’s. 


ak. 


ane 


es 


sphyrodeta. 
PURA. 
pellucida. 


a2 


ASTR&AOCEA. SAGARTIADH#. 


THE EYED ANEMONE. 
Sagartia coccinea. 


Prats V. fig. 4: XII. fig. 4 (magnified). 


Specific Character. Body rufous, with white lines; tentacles pellucldyl 
ringed with white, marked at the foot with a black bar, and two triangular 
black spots below it. ; 


Actinia coccinea. Miuer, Zool. Dan. Prod.; 231, No. 2792. Zool, — 
Dan. ii. 30; pl. Lxiii. figs. 1—8. JoHnston, Brit, — 
Zooph, 2d Ed. p. 215. 4 
Sagartia coccinea. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 3. vol. i. p. 416. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION, 
‘Form. 


Base. Adherent to shells, in deep water: little exceeding the column. — 
Outline irregularly cut and lobed. 3 

Column. Smooth, without visible suckers. Substance pulpy. Form 
cylindrical; the height, when extended, twice the diameter; the margin 
tentaculate. . 

Disk. Flat; the margin entire. Outline circular, scarcely exceeding — 
the diameter of column. Radii distinct, smooth, 

Tentacles. About sixty-four (in my largest specimen), arranged in three — 
indistinct rows, of which the first and second contain each sixteen—the © 
third, which is marginal, thirty-two. The inner rows are the largest, some 
of the outermost being minute points. Compared with the average of \ ) 
Anemones, they are short and mee obtusely conical, and stand nearly — 
erect. . 

Mouth. Not raised onacone. No distinct lip. 

Acontia. Protruded freely, both from column and mouth. 


CoLour. 


Column. Light brownish orange, marked with many white or whitish 
longitudinal streaks from margin to base, more numerous below. These — 
streaks are of varying width, but are in general equal or superior to the — 
intermediate red spaces; their edges are irregularly jagged. They are 


THE EYED ANEMONE. 85 


not formed by the edges of the septa, nor always correspondent with 
them. 
_ Disk. Wight red. Each radius bears two white lines,—one parallel and 
___&lose to each edge, but separated from its neighbour by a fine line of the 
_ ground colour; this gives an appearance as if every radius were divided 
5 from its fellow by a pair of white lines. Among the tentacles the colour 
_ Of the disk becomes a rich and brilliant orange, which colour extends 
in short lines between the tentacles over the edge of the margin. 
Tentacles. Pellucid, colourless, with, four 
broad rings of opaque white, and a white tip: 
_ the rings are obsolete on the hinder face. At 
_ the foot of the front, a band of dark brown 

‘diyides the two lower white rings, the lowest 

of which is succeeded by two triangular clouds 

~of dark brown. 

_ Mouth. The radial lines end suddenly at the 
edge of the mouth, which is sharp and abrupt. 
The upper part of the throat is orange, but pre- 
sently becomes a deep red-brown. 


. S1zeE. 
‘The largest I have seen is half an inch in 
height, by about one-third of an inch in diameter 
_ when expanded. 


LocaLIty. 


The north-west coasts of Europe. Laminarian and coralline zones. 


I owe my acquaintance with this attractive little species 
to the kindness of Mr. Charles W. Peach, who forwarded 
to me, in April of the present year, four or five living 

specimens attached to an old pecten-valve from deep water 
off the Caithness coast.. The same gentleman has since 
favoured me with sketches of manifestly the same species, 
which he made from the life, during his residence in 
Cornwall. It was first described by Miiller, in 1777, and 
figured in his magnificent work on the animals of Den- 
mark. Dr. Johnston included it in his second edition 
of ‘ British Zoophytes,” on the authority of Edward 
Forbes, who found it on the coast of Ireland, “on rocks 


86. SAGARTIAD A, 


and sea-weeds ;” but added no other information to the — 
description of Miiller, which he quoted in the original q 
Latin. An expression in this, which had puzzled me not — 
a little, became graphically descriptive when I saw the — 
living animal. Miiller says that the tentacles “seem com- — 
posed of an eye furnished with exceedingly slender rings — 
crowded together,’—a comparison which at first seems . 
little applicable to such organs. But, in fact, they are — 
frequently contracted into very low cones or warts; when, 
viewed from above, they present the appearance of a 
number of fine rings surrounding the central point, very — 
much like the eye-spots in a butterfly’s wing. (See left- 
hand figure above.) 

The colony in my possession consists of one of the size 
and character that I have described above, and several 
minute ones around it, none of them so large as a small 
pea. Since I have had them, two or three more have been 
produced from the largest, from the size of a grain of sand 
to that of a poppy-seed. I believe all of these are the 
result of a spontaneous separation of fragments from the 
base, and not of a generative process. The most minute 
displays its circle of tiny tentacles. 

The outline of the base is exceedingly variable: it 
projects in ragged promontories and rounded points, which 
continually, though slowly, change their form and relative 
proportions. From some of these, minute fragments sepa- 
rate, which soon become independent animals. It is 
possible that the Actinia lacerata of Sir J. Dalyell may be 
this species; but I rather incline to identify it with our 
viduata. The sinuous outline on which he relied rather 
indicates a condition than a species. 

Though the short conical form of the tentacles is charac- 
teristic, yet occasionally they assume a lengthened slender 
shape, their markings becoming evanescent. Miiller 


THE EYED ANEMONE. «87 


bes the animal as “ changing place by the aid of its 
fentacles ;” I find it rather given to wandering, but not in 
his manner, which I have never seen an Actinia use (his 

rase “uti congeneres” notwithstanding), but by the 
extension and contraction of the base. 


q Tneland, 2. F.: Caithness, C. W. P.: Cornwall, C. W. P. 


ASTRZACEA. ’ SAGARTIAD&. © 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 
Sagartia troglodytes. 


Pratz I. fig. 3: II. fig. 5: III. figs. 1,2: Vi fig. 5. 


Specific Character. Tentacles barred transversely ; ; marked at their foot 4 
with a black character resembling the Roman letter B, 


Actinia viduata, © JoHNSTON, Mag. Nat. Hist. viii. 82. fig. 13. 
E. Forsrs, Ann. Nat. Hist. iii. 48. Covcn, 

Corn. Fauna; iii. 75 (nec Miiller). 3 

mesembryanthemum, var. B. JOHNSTON, Brit. Zooph. Ed.i.211. | 

troglodytes. JounsTon (after Price), Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. 

216. fig. 47. Cooxs, Rep. Cornw. Polyt. Soc. — 

1851. 6. pl. i. fig. 16. 


? elegans. DALYELL, Anim. of Scotl. 226; pl. xlvii, fig. 9. 
2explorator. - Ipmp. Ibid. 227; pl. xlvi. fig. 11. 
Sagartia troglodytes. GossE, Linn. Trans. xxi. 274: Tenby, 365; 
Manual Mar. Zool. i. aR Annals, N. H. 
Ser, 3, i. 416. 


aurora. Iptp. Ann, N. H. Ser. 2. xiv. 280: Tenby, 
356 (Frontispiece). 
Scolanthus spheroides. Hoxipswortn, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1855. pl. vy. 
figs. 1—3. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to holes in rocks, frequently detached: somewhat 
exceeding the column. 

Column. Smooth towards the base, but beset on the upper two-thirds 
with suckers, which have a strong power of adhesion. Substance firmly 
fleshy. Form cylindrical and much lengthened, in full extension, the 
height many times exceeding the diameter. Margin tentaculate. 

Disk. Fiat or slightly concave: the margin rarely undulate. Outline 
circular. Radii strongly marked, and crossed by close-set transverse strie. 

Tentacles. Numerous (amounting to two hundred or upwards in some 
specimens), arranged in four or five rows; the first row largest, and 
decreasing gradually to the outermost; in extension about as long as the 
width of the disk, conical, bluntly pointed. The manner in which they 
are carried varies in the different varieties, 

Mouth. Generally elevated on a cone. 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 89 


Acontia. Long and very slender. Emitted reluctantly, and only on 
a . : it t ion. : 

CoLour. 
' Column. Olive, of a greenér or browner tint in different specimens, 
marked with pale longitudinal stripes, widest and most conspicuous at the 
base, where the longer alternate with shorter ones, all generally vanishing 
jowards the summit. The suckers for the most part pale. 

Disk. Varied with black, white, and grey, in a delicately pencilled 
pattern, that has justly been compared to the mottling of a snipe’s feather. 
pattern, which is pretty constant, is produced by the following 
ments :—each primary radius is greyish-white from the B-mark of the 
ntacle-foot, about half-way to the mouth; then there is a patch of black 
g a spot of white (often very bright), and then a narrow line of 
s Fale yellow or drab, edged with black, brings the radius to the lip. The 

_ secondary radii have the same pattern, but more attenuated. 
Tentacles. Pellucid grey, crossed by three (or four) broad rings of 
ucid white, of which the lowest is undefined, and is frequently tinged 
ith buff or orange. At the foot of each tentacle is a black mark con- 


TENTACLE OF 8S. TROGLODYTES 


( front). 


“sisting of a thick transverse bar, succeeded by two curves, the whole 
bearing the form of the Roman capital letter B. This mark is very con- 
5 stant and characteristic ; sometimes, though the form is preserved, the 
e is wholly filled up with black ; and sometimes, but very rarely, the 
is nearly or even quite obliterated. 

_ Mouth. Generally whitish. 


‘ie . 
+ 


SIzE. 


Large specimens attain a diameter of an inch in the column, and two 
= in expanse of flower : the height is sometimes two inches and a half, 
but more commonly it does not exceed an inch.* 


* Mr. Holdsworth, in one of his letters, has drawn a pen-and-ink sketch 
a one which was protruding to a height of two inches from the sand at 
the bottom of his tank; and states that, as the sand was full two inches 
thick, and that, to his belief, the troglodytes was attached,—it must have 
_ been four inches long. 


90 SAGARTIADA. 


Locatiry. 


The coasts of England and Scotland. Hollows in rocks between tide 
marks, 


VARIETIES, 


* With characteristic marks on disk and tentacles. 


a. Scolopacina. The condition above described. (Tenby: Torque 
Plate IL. fig. 5. : 
8. Hypoxantha. Disk and tentacles pinkish drab: the latter strongly 
& puesl partes “barred, with the B indistinct; each tentacle full orange. (F. H. West ij 
litt.) A { 
y. Badifrons. Disk ground-colour pale umber-brown : tentacles wholl} 
pellucid grey. (F. H. West in litt.) 
3. Albicornis Disk, ground-colour pinbeciigisse tentacles wholly opaq 
white. (F. H. W. in litt.) 


** With characteristic marks on tentacles only. 


e. Nigrifrons. Column greenish drab, duskier towards the summit 
Disk uniform blackish-grey; summits of mouth-angles orange-cream 
colour. Tentacles pellucid, for the most part marked with an undefined 
long patch of opaque orange-cream-colour on the lowest third of the front; 
above this three remote spots of opaque white on the front face. he 
B distinct when searched for, but nearly merged in the dark hue of the 
disk. (Morecambe Bay.) 

¢. Fulvicornis. Column drab, blackish at the summit. Disk dull 
umber; each radius with an undefined centre of black in the exterior 
half; the interior third wholly drab, separated by black lines. Lip 
narrow, orange. Tentacles short, remarkably blunt; numerous, in five 
rows; uniform opaque pale orange; the Bj strong, and distinct. Betweer 
the bases of the tentacles black radial lines are continued on a fawn ground, 
which becomes orange marginally, with a pretty effect. (Morecambe Bay.) 

n. Pallidicornis, Column dull grey, blackish above, becoming dull 
rusty immediately at the summit. Disk dull sepia-brown ; the radii sep: 
rated by slender black lines: primary radii with a central white spot 
broadly margined with black. Tentacles short, very blunt, set in five f 
rows; opaque dull cream-white, the front with a line of faint orange, and — 
a broad ill-defined stripe of blackish down each side; each tipped with — 
a round dark spot. The B separated into its constituent halves, by a 
dividing line of whitish. (Morecambe Bay.) Plate I. fig. 3. . 

@. Aurora. Agrees with a in column and disk, and in the form and — 
comparative fewness of the tentacles; but the colour of these organs — 
is brilliant orange, with the B rather ill-defined. (Tenby: Torquay) 
Plate IIL jigs. 1, 2. 


CT ee ee ee de ee 


ye se ee i A et A He | aA Vk DMR a OH 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 91 


ee Rubicunda. Agrees with a in disk and tentacles (nearly); but ground- 
colour of tentacles rose-red : column dull buff. (Torquay.) 

'«. Lilacina. Column greyish-drab with faint longitudinal bands of 
. Disk buff, the radii separated by delicate black lines. Tentacles 
an exquisite light lilac,* with a white cloud at the lower part, succeeded 

y a strongly-defined black B. (Boulogne.) 

A. Melanoleuca. Column greenish drab. Disk whitish, becoming 
orange on the central region. Tentacles divided ‘into well-defined alter- 
nate groups of semi-pellucid white and bluish black ; about five groups of 
each colour, but not quite regular in extent: those of each hue are con- 
spicuously ringed with a darker tint, and have the K thick and strongly 
marked. (Morecambe Bay; Boulogne.) Plate V. jig. 5. 

p. Prasina. Disk and tentacles transparent crown-glass-green ; primary 
radii with a white spot, secondary with a white line. Lip white. (Firth 
of Forth? Dr. T. S. Wright in litt.) 

*,* Without characteristic marks on disk or tentacles, 
(Column drab.) 


 y. Flavicoma. Disk grey-buff, more positive on the lip; tentacles warm 
orange-buff ; remarkably short, blunt, and stiffly set. (Boulogne.) 
t. Auwricoma. Disk pale orange, with an undefined dash of white on 


' some of the radii. Tentacles long, slender, pellucid rich orange, (More- 


cambe Bay.) 

‘o. Tuna. Disk warm orange, with the central fourth white. Tentacles 
elongated, opaque white, with an unbroken line of pellucid white running 
down each side. (Boulogne. F. H. W. in litt.) 

a. Nox. Disk and tentacles black : the latter much attenuated, with an 
unbroken line of grey running down each side. (Boulogne. F. H. W.in 
litt.) 

p- Eclipsis. Disk black. Tentacles opaque brilliant orange. (Morecambe 
Bay. F. H. W. in litt.) 

a. Nycthamera. As p in every respect, except that the black of the disk 
ends abruptly at half-radius, the central portion being light grey. (More- 
cambe Bay. F. H. W. in litt.) 

‘7. Hesperus. Wholly pure white ; gradually acquiring colour in a con- 
finement of some months. (Lundy. W. Brodrick in litt.) 

v. Nobilis. Disk deep violet-blue. Tentacles rich orange. (Cheshire 
Coast. Lady Cust in litt.) 


From the above list it will be readily perceived that 
there is no species of our native Anemones that approaches 
* I describe it as I see it ; but Mr. West, to whose liberality I am indebted 


for this, as for so many specimens of this species, informs me that it is 
now in a deteriorated condition. Originally it was a very rich full lake or 


92 - SAGARTIADA, 


this in Protean variability. And yet there is, in genera! 
no difficulty in determining the species; the characterist 
B is an excellent note of distinction wherever it is pres on 
and in those varieties in which it is obliterated in 
evanescence of the markings, as in vars. w, v, &, 0, 0 
merged in the abnormal spread of the dark hue of the disk 
as in vars. 7, p, o, v, the true character of the specime 
will be betrayed by the form and substance of the bo dy 
the drab colouring of the column, or the tendency of th 
tentacles to assume the orange hue.* 
It is one of our most generally distributed species, re "6 
ing apparently all round our coasts, from east to west, 
_from north to south. It is also tolerably abundant, at leas sf 
in many of its localities, though less liable than some to 
be seen by casual observers, from its habits of retirement, 
Mr. Price well characterised it, when he proposed for it the 
name of troglodytes (“ cave-dweller,” from tpéyAn, a cavern, . 
and dvve, to enter); for its favourite habit is to ensconce 
itself in holes and crevices of the solid rock, into which it 
retreats on alarm. In the shallow pools that floor the largest 
of the caves at St. Catherine’s, Tenby, the vars. scolopacin 
and aurora are abundant, especially the former, spreading 
their pretty blossom-faces at the bottom of the clear water. 
And yet it is not easy to discover them even when scores _ 
are thus exposed ; for the mottled colouring of the disk a ad 
tentacles is so like that of the sand and mud of the pools, 
that even a practised eye may overlook them without a 
closest searching. They often protrude the tentacles only, 
clustered perpendicularly, through the mud, and sometimes 
only the tips of these organs. Their concealment is sided 
by the fragments of sand, gravel, and broken shells, cat 


* “Tn addition to these characteristics, I think the stout firm texture of 
the base a fair mark, as it is not so readily injured as in most species. | 
Also the com tively slight adhesion, at least when you can get f sf re 
ges e it: I think it generally yields to careful fingering.” (F. H. 
n litt. 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 93 


sre to the suckers of the column; these foreign bodies 
are often present in considerable quantity, and are 
pertinaciously retained for a long time, even in 
aptivity. 
= Its general resort is not very low; from ebb neap-tide 
downward may be considered its range: but the var. 
aurora affects a much higher level, habitually dwelling 
near high-water mark, but then it is invariably in some 
little hollow of the rock in which the water stands. 
_ Several of the varieties have been found at Morecambe 
‘Bay, by my friend Mr. F. H. West. He describes the 
locality as “a low, flat, sandy shore, remarkably dreary 
and uninviting for the sea-coast, and without so much as 
| arzock in sight. The tide goes out a considerable distance ; 
| perhaps three-quarters of a mile, or even more, laying bare 
an almost unbroken expanse of what is rather mud than 
sand, very soft and tenacious. Towards the south side of 
the Bay is a spit of firmer ground where a few stones are 
uncovered, which can hardly be dignified with the name of 
boulders, since any of them may be turned over without 
assistance. Attached to these we find A. dianthus, both 
the pure white and orange varieties, mostly young. In the 
course of an hour we found numerous specimens of these, 
“several varieties of troglodytes, some rather pretty pied sorts 
of crassicornis,and of course the common mesembryanthemum. 
‘Several kinds of Holis, as coronata, papillosa, Drummondi, 
and pellucida, are found here :—Sabelle in abundance; 
and Sertularie, various. There are no rock-pools; but in 
the sandy hollows are Gobies, Blennies, Fifteen-spined 
Sticklebacks, and Pipefishes; not to mention young Con- 
gers, that flop and flounder about when disturbed with 
‘most unpleasant energy. . . . All the troglodytes, 
- including the orange-disked, present themselves through 
the sand, much elongated,—the point of attachment being 


94 SAGARTIAD A: 


sometimes three or four inches below the surface. They 
are all equally sensitive, shrinking on the slightest alarm.’ 

Mr. Holdsworth found the species under circumstance 
which deceived him into the belief that it was a per- 
manently free form, and he accordingly named it Scolanthus 
spheroides.* ‘‘'The specimens were found near low-water 
mark, imbedded in the fine chalky mud which fills the 
crevices of the rocks at Seaford, their expanded disks being 


instantly disappeared; and so great was their power of 
inversion and contraction, that on digging carefully, they 
were generally found about one-and-a-half inch deep, and 
having that peculiar bead-like form which has suggested — 
the specific name of spheroides. There was usually a 
depth of six or seven inches of mud below them; so that 
they could not have been fastened to the rock; and since ] 
have had them at home, now nearly five weeks, they have 
not shown the least inclination to attach themselves to 
the gravel, or glass sides of the tank in which they are 
living ; three of them have burrowed into some sand on 
which they were placed, but the others remain on the sur- 
face and are but rarely contracted. Soft mud is probably 
their natural habitat, being the most easily penetrated; 
and I could find no traces of any of these animals in a con- 

siderable tract of sand only a few yards from the locality 
whence these were obtained.” & 
My friend was subsequently convinced that he had bell 
misled by the appearance of the specimens: he examined _ 
them with me, and kindly gave me one of his original — 
specimens, and we were both convinced that they were of 
this species. The apparent perforation at the rounded pos- _ 
terior extremity could have been nothing more than the — 
* Proc. Zool. Soc. ; May, 1855. gt 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 95 


‘contraction and approximation of the column around the 
‘retracted base; and we proved its power of basal adhesion 
he specimen which came into my possession ; for it not 
only attached itself by the entire broad base to the saucer— 
| and that repeatedly after having been removed—but during 
‘the night marched several inches to seek shelter under a 
sh What had appeared to be an epidermis was nothing 
at a ring of exuviated mucus, which was readily removed, 
inging away all the dirt, and leaving a clean smooth 
ja. The tentacle-feet displayed the B-mark, and 
3 seemed little to distinguish it from the normal 
colouring, except the dingy drab hue of the column. 
= A specimen of the var. fulvicornis, in my possession, 
disturbed, assumed a globular form, with the base 
Bintencted to one-sixth of an inch in diameter, and became 
very buoyant. It thus strongly reminded me of Mr. 
" Holdsworth’s spheroides. 
_ It seems the habit of the species to be very free; and 
this tendency more especially marks the mud-loving kinds 
‘with a pale drab exterior. It is a common thing for one 
of these to lie for weeks in a tank rolling loosely about 
the bottom, alternately contracting and stretching its 
column, and folding or expanding its tentacles at pleasure, 
apparently quite healthy, and yet showing no inclination to 
choose a settled residence. I have had many examples 
with this habit, which, by and by, having sown their wild 
Be suddenly fix themselves, give up their vagrant ways, 
and become sober housekeepers. Mr. Holdsworth writes 
me of one which, after six months’ captivity, “ has not yet 
attached itself, but wanders about, like a restless spirit 
“without a home.” 
ts The suckers are in this species very adhesive ; and in 
_ this vagabond condition it is not rare for the Anemone to 
"moor itself temporarily, not by the base, but by these 


96 SAGARTIADA, 


organs; sometimes by a few of the most anterior ones, 
when the base is thrown up at an angle, in a somewhat 
undignified fashion. Occasionally I have seen a specimen 
which had attached itself thus to a stone, or the side of a 
vessel, and had, by its own weight or other cause, removed. 
a little from its attachment,—still fastened by two or three 
suckers, which were unnaturally stretched out to a length 
of the sixth of an inch, and a proportionate tenuity, resem~- 
bling the suckers of a Holothuria. 

Some observed facts indicate a considerable tenacity of 
life in this species.. On the 5th of October last Mr. West 
inclosed in a small tin canister three specimens with a 
little damp weed, but without water. The box was then 
addressed to me, and committed on the same day to the 
post-office at Leeds ; where, however, owing to the oozing 
forth of a slight wetness, it was detained. In the course of 
a few days I informed him that it had not arrived; but my 
friend residing out of the town, and my letter arriving on 
Saturday evening, he was not able to obtain from the 
over-scrupulous postmaster the suspicious missive, until 
Monday morning, the 12th—a week (within five hours) of 
the animals’ imprisonment. Of course he expected to 
find them in a pretty advanced: state of decomposition ; 
but, on removing the lid, saw at once that the case was 
not hopeless. ‘They were immediately treated to the long- 
foregone luxury of a bath of sea-water; and though one of 
them was hors de combat, the other two recovered, and lived 
to bear the journey to Devonshire under better auspices. 

To the same kind friend I owe the possession of the 
lovely var. lilacina, and the following playful note of its 
endurings :—“ It is one of the French consignment, and 
has led almost a charmed life. Soon after my letter to you 
[dated Jan. 27], written after their arrival, I fancied the 
water in one of the vases was becoming foul, and therefore 


en a en Yee 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 97 


removed all the animals save one—the most valuable,— 
which could not be found, and which I concluded was the 
source of the mischief. The vase stood, however, in an 
empty room till last Tuesday [April 20],—so you may guess 
the strength of the pickle,—when I emptied out the whole 
kettle of fish, and found Monsieur at the bottom. He is only 
the shadow of himself, and looks uncommonly seedy ; but 
is a character, nevertheless.” 

While writing this article, I have had an opportunity, for 
the first time, of seeing the discharge of true ova from an 
Anemone. In a saucer, containing a Corynactis and some 
varieties of troglodytes, that was standing on my library 
table, I found, on the morning of the 28th of Apmil, that 
there had been deposited during the night an even layer of 
pale brown substance on the bottom, so placed as to make 
it uncertain whether it had proceeded from the Corynactis 
or from one of the troglodytes. The mass was about as 
large as a fourpenny-piece. A little taken up with a 
pipette, and examined under a power of 500 diam., proved 
to be composed of ova, opaque, perfectly globular, varying 


from .0043 to .0051 inch (but the former was an unusually 


small one): they were mostly very uniform in size, viz. 
-0050 inch. They had a clear well-defined edge, and not 
the slightest appearance of cilia. 

I removed the froglodytes to a clean part of the saucer (it 
was the beautiful orange var. auricoma), and after a few 
hours perceived that it was discharging more ova, which 
were streaming over its lower tentacles, as it lay on its side, 
but fully expanded. I therefore immediately transferred it 
to a straight-sided glass box for closer examination. 

As soon as it had expanded again after the shock of 
removal, which it did in a few minutes, I began to watch 


it. It was lying on its side, with its disk and expanded 


tentacles near the glass side, and facing my eye. Many of 
H 


98 SAGARTIADA. 


the tentacles, especially those which were on the in- 
ferior side, were occupied with more or fewer ova, some 
having fifty or more, others half-a-dozen, others one or two. 
In each case they were rolling up the interior of the ten- 
tacle from the general cavity, and coursing to and fro under 
the influence of the lining cilia, sometimes accumulating 
temporarily at the tip, but never, so far as I saw, discharged 
there. 
On looking at the mouth, I perceived that the gonidial 
tubercles of one angle were brought into contact with those 
of the opposite angle, dividing the mouth into three tem- 
porary orifices, two lateral and one central. The lateral 
orifices, however, were at right angles to the ordinary line 
of extension. Through each of these lateral orifices ova 
were issuing, somewhat slowly, with an even motion evi- 
dently ciliary, for the most part not in contact with the 
sides of the tube, but coming up through its dark centre. 
As each came into view, and deliberately rolled over the 
edge of the orifice, it streamed across the disk, and over the 
face of the expanded tentacles, carried clear of all by means 
of the ciliary currents of these parts. The ova closely fol- 
lowed each other, generally in single file; but occasionally 
two, or even three, were slightly agglutinated together. 
Perhaps on an average about three or four in a minute 
issued, but with many lengthened interruptions of the 
continuity. 
The process of egg-discharge did not continue long after 
I began to watch it; though the accumulations remained 
in the tentacles. The next morning, those that had been 
deposited were for the most part disintegrated, resolving 
into an undefined mass of minute cells. A few only here 
and there retained their outline. During the next day or 
two, especially in the night, a few more were discharged, 
which were a little larger than the former, averaging .0060 


Re Or. a 


OT lenge 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 99 


inch. No result, however, followed the discharge, and 
they soon decomposed. 

Dr. Byerly, however, has succeeded in rearing the young 
of this species; but from ciliated germs, not from ova. 
Some specimens which he found numerous on the Leasowe 
shore of the Mersey, threw off many germs, which could be 
plainly seen through the skin at the base. These made 
their exit through “ breaches of continuity in the outer 
envelope near its junction with the basal disk, and some- 
times through ragged apertures in the base itself.” The 
germs were about as large as a pin’s head, perfectly 
globular, and had a very sluggish motion. Three or four 
were put into a wide-mouthed bottle and stopped: after 
two months, one had developed a perfect Actinia, the ten- 
tacles being fully expanded. At the time of the record it 
had lived six months; but having never been fed, it had 
not visibly grown.* 

Since the former observations were made, I have proved 
this species (contrary to what has been asserted of the 
Actinoids) to be hermaphrodite. ‘The variety in this case 
was the exquisite one I have named melanoleuca (see PI. 
V. fig. 5), a large specimen received about a week before 
from Morecambe. 

On the 26th of May, this individual, on being put into 
fresh sea-water, instantly made it turbid. I took it out in 
the course of the day, and isolated it in a small glass tank 
of clear water. Presently this also became quite turbid, as 
if milk had been mixed with it, while clouds of the white 
fluid were seen floating about the animal. On the vessel 
being shaken, and again on my touching the Anemone, it 
contracted; and, on each occasion, a stream of white fluid, 
almost as opaque as milk, shot up from the mouth, and 
slowly diffused itself in the surrounding water. 

* Edin. New Phil. Journ.; Jan. 1855. 
H 2 


100 SAGARTIADA, 


With a pipette I took up a drop from one of the diffusing 
clouds, and submitted it to the microscope, It was filled 
with millions of excessively minute, but vigorously motile 
atoms, clear and colourless, having an ovate body, and a 
slender tail, which wriggled their little tails, and rapidly 
oscillated from side to side, from the tail-tip as a point 
d'appui. This was the first time I had ever seen the sper- 
matozoa (for such they assuredly were) of the Anemones. 

The next morning, the water still continuing turbid, I 
was about to pour it away, when I saw beneath the spot 
where the Anemone had lain, a thick layer of cream- 
coloured soft substance, well-defined in its outline. I took 
up a little of this and examined it. It proved to be a mass 
of ova. They agreed with those above described, being 
mostly quite globular (though a few were distorted); the 
majority closely alike in size, viz. 0058 inch; but a few 
were manifestly smaller, and measured from .0046 to .0048 
inch. They were perfectly defined, with a distinct clear 
wall, and olive granular contents. 

When crushed with a graduated pressure to rupture, the 
whole contents of each ovum were seen to consist of a vitelline 
mass of minute oil-particles in an albuminous fluid, inclosed 
in a very thin vitelline membrane. In a few instances I 
detected the germinal vesicle with its germinal spot, some- 
times by its clearness when the ovum was flattened, some- 
times by its escape as a clear bladder from the ruptured 
membrane: but in many examples I could not find it at all, 

I removed the Anemone from the vase, leaving the ova 
alone, in hope that they would develop, but any all 
decomposed. 

I may add, that since then I have seen the like discharge 
of spermatozoa from a specimen of viduata. 

I refer with hesitation the Actinia elegans and A. ea- 
plorator of Sir John Dalyell to this species. The former 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 101 


he describes as of a reddish-brown or orange hue, with 
white (suctorial) spots, and well-barred tentacles; the disk 
generally crossed with a white line. The latter has more 
f the ordinary aspect of a troglodytes. 

. Sir John Dalyell observed in the latter (which he rn 
dient from the circumstance) the occasional elonga- 
tion of one or two tentacles, which we have seen to be a 
not uncommon phenomenon in this family. A specimen, 
not half an inch in diameter, exhibited two tentacles 
together, each of the length of an inch and three quarters. 
In general, the elongation took place at night. From its 
ordinary length of half an inch, each tentacle gradually 
became two inches long, thickened and distended to 
transparency. “It is then seen rising from among the 
rest, curving over to the opposite side of the disk, and as if 
searching around.” After a while, it shrank back to its 
former state. 

Both of these (supposed) species were prolific. The 
latter produced sixty young in one night ; which were pure 
white, and large in proportion. Of the former, three indi- 
viduals, in October, produced infusorium-like germs, which 
were ovoid, and yellow-green in hue: some showed a long 
transparent horn in front, visible as the animalcule pur- 
sued a steady course; behind it was open like a cap. They 
presented much disparity both in form and size. They 
swam actively by means of cilia. These germs continued 
visible throughout October, but, though carefully preserved, 
they led to no ultimate results.* 

Since the earlier pages of this article were issued, I have 
been favoured with an interesting letter from Miss Gloag, 
of Queensferry, Fifeshire, who has long been a successful 
cultivator of Anemones. I regret that limited space forbids 
my giving her communication in extenso: I am compelled 
* Rem. Anim. of Scotl. ; 226, 297. 


102 SAGARTIADA. 


to select and abridge. This lady finds troglodytes abund- 
ant on the Fife coast, in several varieties. Of these she 
specially enumerates Jilacina, of which eight specimens 
have from time to time occurred ; Hesperus, two specimens, 
and a third well-marked variety. One of the var. Hesperus 
has been in Miss Gloag’s possession fifteen months: ‘ the 
disk and tentacles are, if possible, whiter than snow; only 
at the extreme tip of each tentacle is it quite black. It is 
a little gem of beauty.” This variety frequently elongates 
two of its tentacles to the length of an inch; when they 
lose their opaque white colour, and become transparent, the 
tip, however, retaining its black hue. 

The new variety is very showy: it has a bright orange 
disk, and perfectly black tentacles: thus reversing the 
colours of Eclipsis. It may be added to the catalogue, as 
var. b. Pyromela. 

Some of my lady-readers may be glad to avail themselves 
of Miss Gloag’s experience in collecting. ‘I find no diffi- 
culty in digging the troglodytes out of the rocks or mud. 
The instruments I use are long, thick hair-pins [of iron- 
wire, 7;th of an inch thick]. I am obliged to have them 
made for the purpose; but they are splendid, and seldom 
fail to bring out the treasure unhurt. After getting my 
fingers nearly skinned, I bethought me of hair-pins. When 
I see a troglodytes that I wish to possess, I take one of these 
strong pins in each hand, and as quickly as I can I put 
the bent ends down the fissure as-close as I dare to the 
creature: when I think I have reached its base, 1 work 
them gently but firmly towards each other, till I feel I have 
detached the Anemone, when it is easily lifted out either 
with the fingers or with the pins.” 

More recently still, Mr. D. Robertson has sent me from 
Cumbrae an exquisite variety, of which I was at first 
inclined to make a distinct species. It has the charac- 


THE CAVE-DWELLING ANEMONE. 103 


teristic marks of troglodytes, however, on disk and tentacles. 
Column marked with longitudinal green bands on a pellucid 
olive ground. ‘Tentacles very short and conical, pellucid, 
with three transverse white bars, and three longitudinal 
streaks of fine grass-green, reaching from the middle to the 
’ tip; one frontal, broad, the others lateral, narrower. Disk 
pellucid olive, with a white lip. This variety I enumerate 
as x. Prasinopicta. 

All the varieties of this species are hardy in confinement, 
and accommodate themselves readily to almost any kind 
of bottom. Many observations (some of which have been 
already mentioned) concur in showing its tenacity of life 
under circumstances, such as long imprisonment in a box, 
foul water, &c., that would prove fatal to other species. It 
requires attention, however, in the aquarium, to preserve 
it in condition. The more beautiful varieties, at least, 
speedily degenerate both in size and colour, if they be not 
frequently and regularly fed. They possess a healthy 
appetite, and will greedily devour fragments of raw fish or 
flesh, or of univalve or bivalve mollusca. Perhaps the best 
food for all Anemones, and one that can generally be com- 
manded, is the uncooked flesh of the oyster or the mussel. 
It should be cut into small pieces, and guided gently to the 
disk or tentacles of the Anemone, when fully expanded. If 
the animal shrink from the food, and contract; or if it be 
allowed to lie on the disk ungrasped, it will be of little use 
to allow it to remain: remove the fragment, and wait a 
hungrier moment. 

If the food be gradually sucked in, its remains will be 
disgorged in the course of a period varying from a few 
hours to several days. Often it will appear little changed ; 
but it has performed its part, and must be carefully removed, 
or its decomposition will be likely to spoil the water, and 
kill, or at least render sickly, the living tenants. The frag- 


104 SAGARTIADA. 


ments may be removed by means of a bent spoon at the 
end of a stick, by boxwood pliers sold for the purpose, or 
by a glass tube closed at one end by the finger. 

The following somewhat extensive list includes all the 
British localities of this species that have come to my 
knowledge :— 

Wick, C. W. P.: Moray Frith, A. Robertson: Coast of 
Fife, Miss (J. C.) Gloag: Frith of Forth, 7. S. W.: 
Berwick Bay, G. J.: Cullercoats, &. Howse: Guern- 
sey, LE. W. H. H.: Dover, J. R. Mummery: Hastings, 
CO. K.; E. C. Holwell: Seaford, E. W. H. H.: Selsey, 
G. G.: Weymouth, W. Thompson: Teignmouth, R. 
C. J.: Torquay, P. H. G.: Falmouth, W. P. C.+: Ilfra- 
combe, G. 7.: Tenby, P. H. G.: St. Bride’s Bay, H. 
Owen: Menai Strait, W. A. L.: Mersey Estuary, Hilbre 
Island, LE. L. W.: Birkenhead, J. Price: Morecambe Bay, 


F. H. W.: Man, E. Forbes ; F. H, W.: Frith of Clyde, ~ 


A. B. C.: Cumbrae, D. &.; Belfast, #. P. W. 


coccinea. 
TROGLODYTES. 
viduata; 


ASTR&ACEA. SAGARTIADA. 


THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE. 
: Prate III. fig.3; VI. fig. 11. 


Specific Character. Tentacles very extensile, very flexuous, indistinctly 
barred ; marked with an uninterrupted dark line down each side. 


Actinia viduata, Mitxer, Zool. Dan. Prod. 231. No. 2799. Zool. 
Dan. ii. 31; pl. lsiii. figs. 6—8. : 
? undata. Ini. Zool. Dan. ii. 30 ; pl. lxiii figs. 4, 5. 


anguicoma, Prick in Johnst. Brit. Zooph. 2nd Ed. p. 218; fig. 
48. Gossz, Devon. Coast, 96; pl. i. figs. 9, 10. 
? lacerata. DatyEwt, Rem. Anim. Scot]. 228; pl. xlvii. figs. 
12—17. 
Tsacmea viduata. EHRENBERG, Corall. 34. 
Sagartia viduata. Gossz, Linn. Trans. xxi. 274; Tenby 363; Man. 
ae Mar. Zool. i. 28; Ann. N. H. Ser. 3. i. 416, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


. 


Form, 


Base. Adherent to rocks, but readily detached. Considerably exceeding 
the column. 

Column. Smooth, slightly corrugated in contraction; with distinct 
suckers on the upper half. Substance fleshy. Form cylindrical; capable 
of great elongation, in the shape of a tall and slender pillar. Margin 
tentaculate. 

Disk. Flat; the margin plane. Outline circular. Radii distinct; crossed 
by fine striz. 

Tentacles, About two hundred, arranged in five rows ; of which the first 
and second contain each twelve, the third twenty-four, the fourth forty- 
eight, the fifth ninety-six. Those of the first row are longest; but there is 
not so much difference between the rows in this respect as is the case with 
the preceding species: those of the first row, when fully extended, are 
longer than the width of the disk; all are slender, tapered to a fine point, 
and very flexuous. They are usually carried either arching downwards 
on every side or sub-erect, and thrown into many irregular snaky curves. 

Mouth. Set onalowcone. Lip thin; slightly furrowed. _ 

Acontia. Emitted from various parts of the body, from the base to the 
summit, occasionally ; but very reluctantly, and in small quantity : short 
and slender. 


106 SAGARTIADA. 


CoLouR. 


Column. Ground tint a light buff, sometimes merging into a warm fawn, 
or wood-brown, at others into a flesh-hue, or even pale scarlet. This is 
marked with longitudinal bands of paler hue, sometimes almost white ; the 
bands being equal to the interspaces. As these bands approach the base 
they become more defined, and the contrast between the alternate dark 
and light hues is beautifully distinct, especially as they are separated by 
slender jagged lines of very dark brown. The whole upper parts are 
freckled with numerous brown dots; and the suckers are generally inclosed 
each in a little olive blotch. 

Disk. Ground tint a dull whitish-grey, covered with a regular speckled 
pattern, formed of the following elements. At the point where each 
tentacle springs from the disk, the radius is marked by a long dash of deep 
brown, or blackish, at each edge; the intervening space between the dashes 
is occupied by a transverse band of pellucid greyish-brown; two other 
similar bands cross the radius at equal distances, but without the bounding 
dashes. As the markings of the secondary radii do not coincide in posi- 
tion with those of the primary, the result is the minutely chequered or 
dotted pattern above spoken of. Go- 
nidial radii often opaque white. 

Tentacles. Translucent grey, marked 
on each side with a line of dark brown 
running through the whole length. 
Occasionally a very faint ring of pel- 
lucid white surrounds the tentacle near 
its middle, and a second just above its 
foot: the lateral lines are lightened at 
these places, but their continuity is not 
interrupted. They end abruptly just 
above the junction with the disk. _ 

Mouth. Greyish white ; with darker 


TENTACLE 
(right side). furrows. 


SizE. 


Average specimens in the button state are about five-eighths of an inch 
in height, and the same in width of column; the base covering an area of 
nearly an inch in diameter. Such a specimen in ordinary expansion would 
spread an inch and a half from tip to tip of the tentacles. But specimens 
an inch and a quarter in height and width in the button are not rarely 
met with. 


LocaLirty. 


It is widely scattered over the European coasts. Where found it is 
generally common, adhering to rocks and loose stones, between tide-marks; 


SAGARTIA TROGLODYTES. 4 
S.VIDUATA 5 


ADAMSIA PALLIATA 


Sarria oe! * Fae tea a Pim raving 


THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE. 107 


and is especially abundant on a sandy bottom in the laminarian zone, where 
it appears to be nearly or quite free, since it is washed ashore by hundreds 
after a gale. 

VARIETY. 


The only distinctly marked variety that I have noticed besides those 

diversities of the general tint that I include in : 

a. Alewrops,*—the mealy-faced condition above described,—is 

8. Melanops ;+ which has a broad well-defined band of deep black, 
crossing the disk and tentacles ; just as if a dash of ink had been struck 
across the whole flower ; including in its breadth three or four tentacles 
of each row on each side. The band crosses at right-angles to the line of 
the mouth ; the gonidial radii of which are white. 


Sagartia viduata is somewhat liable to be confounded 
with troglodytes ; and some varieties of the latter approach 
it very nearly, especially when closed. But an experienced 
eye will seldom be deceived ; the tint of viduata is a warmer 
brown, generally mealy, or speckled; that of troglodytes 
tends to drab, smoky brown, or olive, and is not speckled: 
the stripes of troglodytes, when present, are closer, generally 
narrower, and rarely extend far from the base; the suckers, 
too, which are so obvious and so constantly used in troglo- 
dytes, are inconspicuous in viduata, and rarely used for 
attachment. Then, when expanded, the peculiar pattern 
of each disk respectively does not merge into the other, 
though in troglodytes it is apt to become evanescent: the 
tentacles in this latter very rarely show obscure lateral 
lines; in viduata these marks are constant and conspicuous: 
the more slender form of these organs, and their tendency 
to assume irregular curves, in viduata, are also a very good 
distinction. 

I have no hesitation in identifying the species which we 


get so abundantly in Torbay, and which I have described 


above, with Mr. Price’s anguicoma ; though that gentleman 
has not noticed the characteristic tentacle-lines. Its re- 


* “Adevpov, meal; dy, the face. + MéAas, black; dy, the face. 


108 . SAGARTIADA, 


markable power of elongation in the dark, alluded to by him, 
T have often noticed. The finest specimen I have ever seen 
used to stretch up at night in the form of a perpendicular 
column, five inches in height, with a thickness of about 
two-thirds of an inch; from the summit of which the 
numerous slender tentacles, arching outward on all sides, 
and extended to extreme tenuity and translucency, gave to 
the whole animal somewhat of the appearance of an elegant 
palm-tree. This form I have endeavoured to imitate in 
Plate ITI. fig. 3; though the engraver has not succeeded in 
conveying an adequate idea of the shadowy character of the 
tentacles, which look like a thin light blue cloud when seen 
against a dark background. The more ordinary appearance 
I have given in Plate VI. fig. 11. 

But.as little doubt exists in my mind that the species is 
the viduata of the “ Zoologia Danica.” I have before me 
at this moment specimens, which answer almost precisely 
to Miiller’s description, even in such minute characters as 
the number of the white bands (twenty-six in mine, 
‘‘viginti-quatuor” in his); the dark brown speck, with a 
white dot in its centre—“ puncto pertuso’’—at the summit 
of each main band; the slender evanescent line between 
the bands—‘“ inter has strigas alia tenuior et pallidior ;” 
the longitudinal dark lines of the tentacles—* lineola 
duplici. longitudinali obscura ;” and even the minute 
depression in the middle of each tentacle at its foot— 
“foveola versus basin ;” all these points I trace readily ; 
and while they do honour to the precision of the great 
Danish zoologist, they abundantly prove. the identity of 
our species with his, Whether his wndata is not a variety, 
of the same, I am not sure. 

_ The Actinia lacerata of Dalyell I also incline to identify 
with the present,—from what he says of the colour, the 
length, form, and contour of the tentacles, the card-like, 


THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE. 109 


‘abject flatness of the body in contraction, and the elonga- 
tion at night.* 
_ The name viduata (“ widowed’) probably alluded to the 
white and black lines, which seem to have been remarkably 
contrasted in Miiller’s specimen. Mr. Price’s name— 
anguicoma (“snake-locked”)—is far more suggestive and 
significant ; and I regret that the law of priority forbids 
me to adopt it. 
- Mr. Holdsworth has found some curious anomalies in 
the tentacles of a specimen in his possession. He first 
observed that all these organs assumed a nodulous appear- 
ce, being abruptly thickened into knobs at regular inter- 
ull in their length. The phenomenon disappeared and 
recurred several times, sometimes lasting two or three days. 
About a fortnight after my friend had favoured me with a 
record of this fact, he wrote me again as follows :—‘ The 
viduata that had the knobbed arms has taken a new freak, 
and not being content with a normal number of tentacles, 
must needs throw out branches from some of them. I 
inclose a sketch of the most conspicuous.” From the 
drawing it appeared, that while some of these organs were 
but slightly notched at the tip, others were divided nearly 
half-way down, the branches diverging in various degrees ; 
while one bifurcate tentacle had one of its branches cleft: 
A similar phenomenon has occurred to my own observation 
in Aiptasia, and in Anthea. 

It is by no means common for either viduata or troglodytes 
to emit the filaments, which I call acontia, from the loop- 
holes of the column; but I have witnessed the fact on 
several occasions. From the mouth they are protruded 
much more readily. In both species they are crowded 
with long oval cnide about .002 inch in length, and 


* Rem. Anim. of Scotland, p. 228. 


110 SAGARTIADA. 


under ; which discharge an ecthoreum about one and a half 
times the length of the endda, and densely bearded. 

Of the increase of this species I have no information, 
unless the lacerata of Sir J. Dalyell be truly identical with 
it. He observed that this increases by spontaneous sepa- 
rations of portions of its base. The outline becomes irregu- 
larly sinuous, and the prominences gradually (in the course 
of a week or two) become pinched off, maintaining their 
connexion only by a very slender lengthened filament, not 
in contact with the glass, but free above it. Rupture of the 
connecting thread at length takes place, and the independent 
fragment develops itself into a young Anemone. The 
laceration of the outline of the parent was always very 
irregular and ragged. Above seventy were thus produced 
in a year from a single adult.* 

Sir John Dalyell could never detect any embryo or germ 
inclosed in the portion of margin about to be separated : 
and the careful experiments of Dr. T. 8. Wright appear 
conclusively to negative that hypothesis which would thus 
explain the mode of increase by fission of the base. From 
an attached individual of Actinoloba dianthus, Dr. Wright 
cut a minute piece of the base, having first ascertained, by 
careful examination of the part, which was perfectly trans- 
parent, that no ovum or germ existed there. The part 
immediately receded from the parent, and in three weeks 
had become a perfect Anemone, with long tentacles. From 
this small one he cut two other minute slips, which also 
assumed the perfect condition; and from the base of the 
original adult fourteen other slips yielded the same results. 
From these experiments it appears that all that is essential 
to the process is the existence of a portion of each of the 
three elementary tissues of the animal—the tegumentary, 


* Op. cit. p. 228. 


THE SNAKE-LOCKED ANEMONE. Cs 


the muscular, and the epithelial or ciliated ling-membrane 
of the cavity.* 

S. viduata is hardy in an aquarium, and needs no special 
care or peculiar treatment. It expands principally during 
the hours of darkness; a shaded angle suits it best. 

The following are the British localities in which it has 
been recognised :— 

Felixstowe, Miss M. E. Guille: Dover (rare), E. L. W.: 
Guernsey, E. W. H. H.: Bournemouth, Rev. J. Guille- 
mard: Torquay (abundant), P. H. G.: Dartmouth, Z. W. 
H. H.: Falmouth, W. P. C.: Ilfracombe, P. H. G.: Tenby, 
P. H. G@.: Menai Strait, J. P.; (abundant) W. A. L.: 
Puffin Island, #. LZ. W.: Mouth of the Dee, F. H. W.: 
Dublin Bay, J. R. Greene; E. P. W.: Belfast Lough, 
W. T.: Lahinch (Co. Clare), £. F. 


troglodytes. 
bellis. VIDUATA. [impatiens. ] 
coccinea. 
parasitica. 
A. amacha. 
A. cereus. 


* Edin. Phil. Journal, for 1856. 


ASTRAACEA. SAGARTIAD 4. 


THE PARASITIC ANEMONE. 
Sagartia parasitica. 
Pratz II. jig. 6. 


Specific Character. Large, pillar-like; skin coriaceous; tentacles in 
seyen rows, marked with a many-broken line down each side. 


Actinia effeta. Rapp, Polyp. 54; pl. ii. fig. 2 (An Linnei?). 

‘ parasitica. Coucu, Zooph. Cornw. 34; Corn. Fauna, iii. 80; 
pl. xv. figs.1,2. Jounst. Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. 228, 
pl. xli. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Pol. Sec. 1851, 8, 
pl. ii. fig. 11. Gosss, Aquarium, 144, pl. iv. 
TUGWELL, Manual, pl. vi. 

Sagartia parasitica.- Goss, Tr. Linn. Soc. xxi, 274 ;* Ann. N. H. Ser. 3. 
i, 416. , ‘ 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form, 


Base. Adherent, generally to shells. Little exceeding the column. 

Column. Minutely corrugated on the upper parts, but studded on the 
lower half with numerous warts, mostly small, but a few among the rest 
large and prominent. No apparent suckers. Substance firm, somewhat 
coriaceous. Form, that of a thick pillar; the height twice or thrice as great 
as the diameter; plump and rounded. Margin forming a slightly thickened 
rim, minutely notched, scarcely rising above the level of the disk, and 
obliterated when the disk is fully expanded. 

Disk. Nearly flat, or slightly concave; the margin somewhat mem- 
branous, wider than the column, which it overarches; occasionally it is 
thrown into puckered undulations, but only to a small extent. Radii not 
prominent, 

Tentacles. Five hundred or upwards; arranged in about seven rows, of 
which the first contains about twenty, the second twenty-four, the third 
forty-eight, the fourth ninety-six ; those of the other rows are too numerous 
and too closely set to be enumerated. The first row springs from the disk 
at about half-radius,—that is, midway between the lips and the margin 
they occasionally stand erect, but more frequently arch outwards in 
elegant overhanging curves. When distended, those of the first row are 
often an inch in length, and one-eighth of an inch in thickness : the others 
diminish in regular gradation, until those of the margin do not exceed a 
line in length, Their form varies in different individuals, and perhaps at 


= ate as Y 


THE PARASITIC ANEMONE. 113 


different times, sometimes being blunt and nearly cylindrical, at others 
tapering to a fine point. ’ , 
-Mouth.. The centre of the disk gradually swells into a stout low cone, 
in the centre of which is the mouth, edged with a thick furrowed lip. 
Acontia. White, long, and as thick as sewing-cotton ; projected on the 
slightest irritation, and in the most copious profusion, both from the 
mouth and from the loop-holes of the column. 


CoLour. 


Column. Ground-colour, a dirty white or drab; often slightly tinged 
with pale yellow: longitudinal bands of dark wood-brown, reddish- or 
purplish-brown, run down the body, sometimes very regularly, and set so 
closely as to leave the intermediate bands of ground-colour much narrower 
than themselves: at other times these bands are narrower, more separated, 


_ or broken into chains of dark spots. Immediately around the base the 


bands usually sub-divide, and are varied by a single series of upright oblong 
spots of rich yellow, which are commonly margined with a deeper brown 
than that of the bands. The whole column is surrounded by 
close-set faint transverse lines of pale hue, sometimes scarcely 
distinguishable, except near the summit, where they cut the 
bands in such a manner as to form, with other similar lines- 
which there run lengthwise, a reticulated pattern. 

Disk. Pellucid yellowish-white, often tinged with faint 
purple about the half-radial region, and marked with a circle 
of six squarish patches of opaque white. 

Tentacles. Pellucid, faintly tinged with flesh-colour, cream- 
yellow, or purplish; each marked with a dark purplish or 
brown line down each side, which is broken into about five — 
dashes. The sub-marginal rows, which from their minuteness 
may be compared to a fringe, are frequently divided into alter- 
nate patches of colour ;—a patch of pale tentacles, then one 
of purplish,—six groups of each colour completing the circle. 
These alternations do not conceal the lateral lines of the ten- 
tacles ; and though sometimes beautifully distinct, they are at ppyractE 
others scarcely perceptible. The pale patches correspond to (front’. 
the square spots of white on the disk. 

Mouth. Opaque white, or cream-white. 


Size. 


It frequently attains a height of four inches, with a diameter of two and 
a half in column, and three and a half in flower. 


Locatity. 
The shores of the British Channel, the Mediterranean and Red Seas; 


in the coralline zone. For the most part adhering to such shells as are 
inhabited by the Soldier-crab, 


114 SAGARTIAD A. 


VARIETIES. 


Though subject to considerable diversity in colouring, I am scarcely 
able to select any pattern sufficiently distinct, or sufficiently stable to 
warrant its registration as a named variety. I have above defined the 
limits within which, so far as my experience goes, the divergence extends ; 
it seems mainly to consist in the relative proportions and arrangements of 
the dark and light bands of the columns. One mentioned to me by Dr. | 
Hilton, of Guernsey, as having been found by him at Herm, seems more 
worthy than any other of being considered as a distinct variety. It “had a 
very light coloured body, and was beautifully marked with lilac spots.” 
Perhaps I may venture to call it Amethystina. I have seen a specimen at 
Torquay, in which the stripes of the column were dark crimson. 


The keen eye and scientific zeal of old Ellis failed to 
discover this species, notwithstanding its large size and 
commanding appearance. Common as it is in some locali- 
ties, it seems, however, to be quite unknown along the 
eastern coasts of great Britain and Ireland, whence Ellis’s 
zoophytic treasures were principally gathered. It was left 
for Mr. R. Q. Couch, of Penzance, to indicate it as a British 
species, though it had long been known in the Adriatic 
and Mediterranean seas.* : 

I have found it exceedingly abundant in Weymouth 
Bay,—extending from the deep water of the offing even 
into the narrow harbour,—but have never heard of its 
being found within tide-marks, except in the instance of 
the var. amethystina, above mentioned, which was found 
attached to a stone at low-water mark. It is, as its name 
imports, normally parasitic in its habits; though not so 
strictly but that we frequently dredge specimens adhering 
to stones; and in captivity it is by no means uncommon 
for an individual to detach itself from its native site and 
adhere to the bottom of the vessel, or even to crawl up the 
perpendicular side. Generally, however, it is found seated 


* With Dr. Johnston I utterly and indignantly reject Linnaus’s specific 
names in the Actinoida, and with reluctance eyen cite them. 


i la a 


a. ° am 
Pres | nal 


Ew ea 


THE PARASITIC ANEMONE. 115 


on some univalve shell, which is tenanted by a Soldier-crab: 
young specimens on Turritella terebra, Trochus magus, T. 


_ ziziphinus, &c. ; but adults, which are much more frequently 


met with than the young, almost invariably on the great 
Whelk (Buecinum undatum). The dredge, indeed, often 
brings up shells invested by this Anemone, which are 
empty; but I believe that in every such case the shell 


_has recently been vacated by the Soldier, and that the 


Sagartia never voluntarily selects either an empty shell, 
or one tenanted by the living Mollusk, for his residence. 
My friend, Dr. E. Percival Wright of Dublin, has 
fayoured me with a humorous sketch of the ways of this* 
loving pair,—Crab and Zoophyte, Arcades ambo,—which 
bears on the matter before us. “The following scene,” 
he observes, “‘ was witnessed by my much lamented friend 


_ Dr. R. Ball. One of the specimens referred to, attached 


to the shell of a Buccinum undatum, which had from its 
é been, in all probability, just deserted by a 
Pagina whe placed. in a glass aquarium: in a short time 
the Anemone left the Buccinum, and attached itself to the 
side of the tank; it next deserted this position and fixed 
itself on the side of a large stone that filled the centre 
part of the aquarium. After the lapse of some weeks, a 
Hermit Crab was dropped into the tank (I think Pag. 
bernhardus). Well, if these Hermits can’t live without 
hiding themselves in the deserted shell of some poor Mol- 
lusk, I think it is equally true that they can’t live happy 
until they hide both themselves and their shells in some 
quiet little hole in the rock-work of our aquaria, from 
whence they can look out; and, thinking that the super- 
imposed stone-work adds vastly to the strength of their 
fortifications, experience sundry intense feelings of safety. 
Be this as it may, the Hermit in question,was not long ere 
he walked up to a little grotto that was in the rock-work 
12 


116 SAGARTIADA. 


of the aquarium (quite close to the Sag. parasitica); and 
after a slight survey to see that all was right, he turned his 
left shoulder forward and ‘backed in:’ then he began to 
whisk his antenne and foot-jaws in a dreadful manner, and 
looked evidently quite content. I suppose this was a state 
of things the parasite perched on the rock above had long 
been waiting for; for it was not long in moving its disk 
over the top of the small whelk ; and before the Crab knew 
where he was, the big Sagartia had pitched his tent on the 
roof of the Hermit’s house. Where the Hermit Crab goes, 
there goes the Sagartia: a quiet life it led before; a restless 
one it has to lead now. But doubtless it knows what’s 
best for it.” 

The crab who sustains the honourable office of porter to 
this species is invariably the brawny-limbed Pagurus bern- 
hardus, as P. Prideauxii is favoured with the support of 
Adamsia palliata. In the rude and blundering manner in 
which the bearer performs his office, it cannot be but that 
the poor Anemone sustains many a hard knock and many 
a rough squeeze among the rocks ‘and stones over which 
his servant travels; ‘but he appears to bear these mis-— 
chances with great philosophy : I know of no species which 
lives so constantly exposed. A rude shock will, indeed, 
cause it to withdraw its tentacles, and contract its disk into’ 
that button-like shape which is common to the tribe; but 
this is only for a moment; it instantly expands again, and 
remains full blown in spite of all its draggings hither and 
thither. Its skin is peculiarly tough and leathery; a 
provision, doubtless, against the accidents to which its 

vagrant life exposes it. 

Mr. R. Q. Couch says that the favourite site for this 
Anemone (in the neighbourhood of Penzance?) is on the 
claw of the Corwich Crab (Maia squinado). Mr. Cocks, 
however, says that in the neighbourhood of Falmouth it is 


en, FF 


THE PARASITIC ANEMONE. 117 


never found on this Crab, nor on Pinna ingens, but fre- 
quently on Pecten maximus, as well as on Buccinum un- 
datum, and on stones.* I do not remember myself to have 
ever seen it on a bivalve. 

We have no species of Sea-Anemone which, to such an 
extent as this, shoots forth those filaments which I have 
called acontia, and which are undoubted weapons of offence. 
On being rudely handled, or otherwise alarmed, from vari- 
ous points of the body, particularly from the larger warts, 
the loop-holes (cinclides) give issue to these threads, which 
exactly resemble in appearance white sewing-cotton. They 
are often shot forth with force to the length of four or even 
six inches; and under circumstances of great irritation an 
immense bundle of such threads is projected from the mouth. 
Their interior end remains, however, attached to the cavity 
whence they issued, and they are soon withdrawn again. 

Most species of Anemones give out a rank penetrating 
odour, but it is more than usually offensive in S. parasitica. 
It is communicated to the fingers on handling the animal ; 
and repeated washings with soap, and even scrubbings with 


-a brush, scarcely avail to remove it. It is insufferably 


nauseous. 
S. parasitica, like its congeners, is by turns oviparous 


-and viviparous. To the former mode of increase Mr. G. 


H. Lewes bears witness. ‘In the water of a pan con- 
taining, among other animals, specimens of Actinia para- 
sitica, I twice noticed abundance of light-purple ova floating 
at the surface. Some of these were placed in a vase by 
themselves, and others left in the pan; but no further 
development took place. One day, dissecting a parasitica, 
I found in its ovaries these very purple ova which had 
attracted my attention.” + 

Mr. Lewes doubts, however, that it is viviparous. This 
point has been settled by my friend, Mr. F. H. West. “A 

* Johnston, Br. Zooph. 228. + Sea-side Studies, 141. 


118 SAGARTIADA. 


specimen,”’ he writes, “‘ which I received in December from 
Weymouth, produced a young one on the 1st of March 
following; it was most beautifully and distinctly marked, 
and as dark-coloured as the parent, which was of the dark 
reddish-brown variety. It was a pretty little creature, and 
lived for five or six weeks, when I lost sight of it.” Mr. 
Holdsworth also has met with the young of this species, 
not more than a line in height, yet distinctly marked like 
the adult. 

‘As a proof of the tenacity of life of Anemones under the 
privation of sea-water, provided the skin be preserved 
from becoming dry by evaporation, I may mention the 
following fact, which is valuable as bearing on the trans- 
mission of these animals from distant localities. I inclosed 
two large specimens of S. parasitica, two of T. crassicornis, 
and one of A. dianthus, in a large jar, containing one or 
two tufts of Chondrus crispus, but no water. The jar was 
closed with a bung, but was not air-tight. ‘The Anemones 
remained thus imprisoned for ten days, wallowing in their 
mucus and discharged water, which from time to time I 
poured off. At the end of that time they were quite well, 
and I restored them to the aquarium. Might not the 
species from North America, or those from the Mediter- 
ranean, be transmitted to us thus inclosed? I should add 
that the experiment was performed in December. 

The following are the known British habitats of this 
species. Guernsey, Herm, J. D. H: Jersey, G. H. Lewes: 
Weymouth, P. H. G.: Teignmouth, R, C. J.- Torquay, 
P. H. G.: Falmouth, W. P. C.:-Penzance, RB. Q. Couch: 
Bantry Bay, £. P. W. 

viduata. 
? 
bellis. PARASITICA. A. palliata. 
B. coronata. 


Meg -, 


teal 


ASTRGACEA. SAGARTIADZ. 


THE GOLD-SPANGLED ANEMONE. 
Sagartia (?) chrysosplenium. 
Prate VI. fig. 8. 


Specific Character. Column green, with lines of golden-yellow dots: 
tentacles pellucid, with green bars. 


Actinia chrysosplenium. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Polyt. Soe. 1851, 5; 
pl. i. fig. 17. Jounston, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 
2, 214; pl. xxxvii. figs. 1—3. 

Sagartia (2) chrysosplenium. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 3. i. 416. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to'stones: slightly exceeding the column. 

Column. Smooth, studded with numerous scattered suckers (or loop- 
holes), resembling punctures. Form shortly cylindrical, becoming conoid 
in contraction. 

Disk. Smooth. 

Tentacles. Few, nearly equal in size, rather short, stout, and obtusely 
pointed. : 

Mouth. Set onaroundish cone. Lips slightly puckered or imperfectly 
furrowed. 

Acontia. None have been observed. 


CoLour. 


Column. Green, varying in tmt from a bright pea-green, to that of a 
dark holly-leaf; marked with longitudinal bands of spots of a rich golden 
yellow ; a line of the same golden hue margins the base. 

Disk. Yellowish-brown ; gonidial tubercles bright golden yellow. 

Tentacles. Pellucid, sometimes nearly white, crossed by trausparent 
green bars. 

SIzE. 

About an inch in height; the diameter of the base and of the flower 

three-quarters of an inch ; that of the column five-eighths of an inch. 


LocaLity. 


The coast of Cornwall. Under-surfaces of stones at extreme low water, 
and rock-pools. 


120 SAGARTIADA. 


To Mr. W. P. Cocks, of Falmouth, to whose scientific 
research our zoology is largely indebted, Dr. Johnston 
owed the admission of this species into his “ History of 
British Zoophytes.” I am under obligations to the kind- 
ness of the same gentleman, who has favoured me with 
some additional notes on the species, and a beautiful 
coloured sketch, which I have copied in Plate VI. 

The generic position of this beautiful form I indicate not 
without doubt. The short conical tentacles, crossed with 
bars, suggest a relationship with Tealia ; and this affinity 
had occurred to its discoverer, who in one of his MS. notes 
has added the words,—“ allied to crassicornis.” On the 
other hand, the marginal line around the base, and the 
gonidial tubercles being distinguished by a different colour 
{rom the rest of the animal, while agreeing inter se, suggest 
Actinia, of which these peculiarities are characteristic. 
There is, too, a well-known variety of A. mesembryan- 
themum, which is green, marked with lines of yellow dots, 
and of this circumstance I ventured to remind Mr, Cocks. 
His reply was as follows: “In the A. mesembr. var. the 
stripes and spots are as in chrysosplenium, but several 
shades lighter, and the labial tubercles, as well as the 
edging of the base, are bright blue; the tentacles are 
uniformly of one colour, and are much more numerous, 
slender, and tapering.’ 

The character of the surface, however, decidedly separates 
it from both the Actiniade and Bunodide. My friend had at 
first written,—“ Suctoreals numerous, scattered, embedded ;”’ 
but he afterwards added the following particulars :—“* When 
I examined the body of the chrysosplenium with a lens of 
two inches’ focus, the surface appeared to be pierced or 
punctured, and in appearance resembled a piece of smooth 
India-rubber when pierced with a pin; not the slightest 
trace of tubercles apparent. The body when contracted 


THE GOLD-SPANGLED ANEMONE. 121 


was as smooth as before ; not papillated ; and the apertures 
were nearly obliterated.” 

Until I have an opportunity of personal examination, I 
_ therefore assign to the species a place in the genus Sagartia ; 
but I consider that it is one of the links which connect this 
_ with the neighbouring families. 
_ On the history of this lovely little Anemone I can niaie 
_ quote what has already been published. “The old ones 
are solitary, not more than one on-a stone: but there are 
_ two or sometimes four growing on the samestone. . . . 
_ Ihave had some in my possession for weeks, well supplied 
_ with water and air daily ; yet the tubercles and edging 
were obdurate, determined to keep to their original colour.” 
_ I must hope that the zeal of our Cornish zoophytologists 

will before long make me personally acquainted with the 
_ pretty Gold-spangle. ‘ 
_. The following localities are enumerated for it by Mr. 
_ W.P. Cocks:—Gwyllyn-Vase, Pennance, Helford, St. Ives. 


: ? 
_ mesembryanthemum. CHRYSOSPLENIUM.  crassicornis, 
3 


ON THE SUBDIVISION OF THE GENUS SAGARTIA. 


Fifteen species of the genus Sagartia have been described 
in the preceding pages; and I possess information more or 
less definite concerning some five or six others, which I 
have not seen ; whose history therefore, in hope of a fuller 
acquaintance with them, I defer writing for the present, 
but expect to be able to give some account of them in an 
_ Appendix to this Volume. 


122 SAGARTIADA, 


The species already described appear to me to be divi- 
sible into four or five groups, which cannot, however, be 
properly considered as higher than sub-genera, the charac- 
ters by which they are distinguished being too vague to 
afford a basis for generic rank. 

The most typical group, and that for which, should the 
genus be broken up, I would retain the name Sagartia, 
includes the following species :—miniata, rosea, ornata, 
ichthystoma, coccinea, venusta, nivea. These have conspi- 
cuous suckers, discharge acontia freely, attain only a mode- 
rate elevation, expand the disk only a little beyond the 
column, are for the most part painted with gay colours, 
often in striking patterns, and in particular have the 
column usually of a rich warm brown hue. 

A group rather less typical than this, I consider to be 
formed by the following species :—sphyrodeta, pallida, 
pura ; to which will probably be added most of the species 
which I defer to the Appendix. ‘These have no con- 
spicuous suckers; discharge acontia less and less abun- 
dantly ; are in general destitute of positive colour, and 
have a tendency to a colourless transparency. Nivea and 
sphyrodeta are the links which unite these two groups. 
Should a generic name ever be required for this group, I 
propose for it that of Thoe, one of the ss 520 (Hes. 
Th, 245.) 

Troglodytes, viduata, and parasitica may be associated 
as a group departing still more widely from the typical 
form. Their suckers are distinet, but minute ; their power 
of emitting acontia varying (feeble in trog. and vid., strong 
in paras.); their tentacles are generally streaked (only 
occasionally in trog.) with lateral longitudinal lines ; their 
column is marked with longitudinal bands of lighter and 
darker colour; they have the power and habit of greatly 
elongating the column ; and manifest a proneness to become 


SAGARTIAD. 123 


and to continue detached. In these last two particulars 
_ they approach the Ilyanthide. Coccinea and parasitica 
_ are the links of connexion between the first group and this, 
though not inter se. In the event of re-distribution, this 
_ group might receive the name of Cylista, from xudia, to 
_ wallow about. 

__ Bellis will probably be considered by many as worthy 
of generic separation. The slenderness and elongation of 
its column when fully expanded, the salver-like expanse of 
its disk, the small size, great number, and crowded arrange- 
ment of its tentacles, the undulation of its margin, as well 
as the peculiarities of its colouring, isolate it strongly from 
its fellows. Miniata, from the undulation of its margin, 
and parasitica, from the craterine form of its disk, and the 
multitude of its tentacles, are connecting links with it in 
their respective groups; while dellis looks, as has been 
already intimated, towards other genera, as <Actinoloba, 
Aiptasia, &e. It might be called Scyphia, from oxvdos, a 
drinking-bowl. 

Finally, chrysosplenium is the most aberrant form that I 
have included in the genus, so far as I am able to judge of 
its peculiarities without personal inspection, Its affinities 
I have just enumerated. If I had isolated it generically, I 
would have named it Chrysoela, “that which is studded 
with golden nails,” from ypveds, gold, and 7Aos, a nail. 


124 


GENUS III. ADAMSIA (Forsgs). 


Medusa, (BoHADSCH). 
Actinia (ADAMS). 
Cribrina (EHRENB.). 

Base adhering to the inner lip of univalve shells ; 
greatly expanded laterally in two wing-like lobes, 
which, gradually advancing on each side, at length 
surround the mouth of the shell, and meet on the 
outer side of the body-whorl. 

Column greatly depressed; margin forming a low 
sharp parapet, with a distinct fosse. Surface smooth 
towards the summit, striated or irregularly furrowed 
on the outer (= lower) part ; pierced with loopholes, 
which, on the outer (= lower) part, form permanent 
warts. Substance fleshy. 

Disk, \ong-oval, almost linear, smooth. 

Tentacles numerous, sub-marginal, short, crowded, 
imperfectly retractile. 

Mouth protrusile, large, thrown into loose folds, but 
not furrowed. 

Acontia emitted freely and copiously. 


The genus contains but one known species, A. pal- 
liata. 


ASTRZACEA. SAGARTIADZ. 


THE CLOAK ANEMONE. 
Adamsia palliata. 
Prats III. figs. 7, 8. 


Specific Character. Body studded with purple spots. 


Medusa palliata. Bonapscu, Anim. Marin. 135; pl. xi. fig. 1. 
Actinia maculata. Apams, Linn. Trans. v. 8. CoLDSTREAM, Edin. 
New Phil. Journ. ix. 236; pl. iv. figs. 6, 7. 
carciniopados. Orto, Nov: Act. Acad. Nat. Cur. xi. 288 ; pl. 40. 


picta.” Risso, L’Europ. merid. y. 286. 
Cribrina palliata. EHRENBERG, Corall. 41. 
Adamsia maculata. E. Forses, Ann. Nat. Hist. v. 183. 
palliata. Jounston, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 207; fig. 44; 


pl. xlii. figs. 1,2. Gossz, Aquarium, Ed. i. 139: 
Man. Mar. Zool. i. 27; fig. 38; Ann. N. H. 
Ser. 3. i. 416. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION, 
For. 


Base. Circular in youth; dilating laterally with age, until the two sides, 
curving round, meet and unite with a suture, forming a ring; adherent to 
the mouth of turbinate shells of Gastropoda, which it sometimes invests 
with a horny membrane. 

Column. Exceedingly thin, low, and flat: the margin forming a low 
sharp-edged parapet, with a distinct, but narrow fosse. Substance fleshy, 
soft. Surface quite smooth for about one-third of the distance from the 
margin to the edge of the base; then it begins to be marked with fine 
radiating depressed lines. These lines meet those from the opposite side, 
where the two divisions of the body unite on the upper lip of the shell, 
and alternating with them make a zigzag suture. The outer half of the 
column is moreover generally thrown into irregular folds and puckers. 


_ Loopholes numerous, large, pierced in the centre of slight elevations of the 


é 


U 


skin, which are most conspicuous on the outer ore 

Disk. Very long and narrow, smooth. - 

Tentacles. Numerous, arranged in four eobchaninias rows ; nearly equal, 
short, cylindrical, obtusely pointed, crowded, not eeadédaky retractile. 

Mouth. Protrusile, long, oval: the lips thrown into coarse folds, but 
“not furrowed ; throat and stomach marked with close-set white furrows. 


126 SAGARTIADA 


In the only specimen in which I have had an opportunity of examining 
the mouth with exactitude, there was only one gonidial groove, with dts 
pair of tubercles. And this was so placed, as to make the bisecting line of 
which it formed the termination, one at right angles to the lateral develop- 
ment of the animal into lobes. 

Acontia. Long and thick ; emitted in great profusion, on the slightest 
irritation. 

CoLour. 

Column. Sienna-brown, or reddish-brown on the outer portions, marked 
with bluish longitudinal lines, and gradually melting into the purest white 
on the upper third ; the whole studded with large round spots of the most 
brilliant purplish-rose, which are most distinct in the middle third. 
Margin surmounted by a line of delicate pale scarlet, crowning the parapet. 

Disk. Pure white. 

Tentacles. White, with a faintly-dark core. 

Mouth. White. 

Acontia. Rose-lilac, with the suture, formed by the edges of the 
infolded ribbon, white. 

Sizz. 


Large specimens attain two inches and a half in diameter, measured from 
edge to edge along the curve, as they adhere to the shell; but the long 


diameter of such individuals, if measured from the suture round the ring, ~ 


along the line of the disk, to the suture again, would be not less than five 
or six inches. The height from the parapet to the surface of the shell is 
about one-third of an inch. Tentacles one-third of an inch in length. 


LOOALITY. 


The coasts of Europe generally. Deep water. “They seem to love a 
muddy bottom, mixed with gravel and dead shells.” (D, R, in litt.) 


VARIETIES. 


a. Rhodopis. The condition described above. (Plate III. fig. 7.) 
B. Crinopis. Whole body pure white; unspotted (Forbes); or marked 
with a few scattered, mostly minute, pink dots.'(P. H. G.) (Plate III. fig. 8.) 


The name of this genus was assigned to it by the late 
Edward Forbes in honour of John Adams, who first 
described the animal as British. It had, however, been 
described and figured by Bohadsch before him, and by 
many since, “ both at home and abroad,” and by no one 
more accurately than Dr. Coldstream, the principal parts of 
whose account are cited in Johnston’s “ British Zoophytes,”” 


(Ed. 2, p. 207.) The true character of the animal has been 


eee 


THE CLOAK ANEMONE. 127 


pointed out by myself in “ The Aquarium,” in which I have 
thus explained its manner of growth.— ‘The Adamsia 
is evidently an Actinia of a long-oval form, capable of 
_ development in its long diameter into two lengthened 
wings. Its instinct invariably leads it to select as its 
support the inner lip of some univalve shell; having ad- 
hered to which, the lateral expansions creep along the shell, 
following its surface until they have surrounded the aper- 
ture, and meet each other on the outer lip. Here the 
meeting edges unite by mutual adhesion, and seem to grow 
together ; yet the suture is always distinctly visible, both 
_ by a slight depression, and by a pale line which assumes a 
zigzag form, owing to the terminations of the body-strie 
fitting into the interspaces of the opposite ones.”* 

In Plate ITI. fig. 8, I have depicted an individual, adherent 
to the shell of Buccinum undatum, in which the lateral lobes, 
though projected around the edges of the mouth of the 
shell, have not yet met each other on the outer lip, but are 
separated by a space of a quarter of an inch. And I have 
seen a very young specimen, less than half an inch in 
diameter, the outline of which was exactly like that of a 
normal Anemone; the lateral lobes not having yet com- 
menced their extension. This little individual was adherent 
to the inner lip of the shell of a Garden Snail (Helix aspersa), 
which had been accidentally washed into the sea. A 
Pagurus Prideauxii had selected the same shell as his 
_ abode, and to his wanderings it was probably owing that 
the shell had found its way into eight fathoms’ water, a 
mile or two from land. 

_ This manner of growth is further illustrated by what 
takes place at the disease and death of the animal. The 
adhering base begins to peel off, and shrink away from the 


* Aquarium; Ed. i. p. 139; et seg. 


128 SAGARTIADA. 


shell. This process invariably begins at the suture, and as 
it goes on the suture divides, the lateral portions separating 
more and more from each other by shrinking ; thus reversing 
the steps by which the annular habit was assumed. 

So far as my own experience goes, the Adamsia always 
selects for its support the inner lip of a turbinate shell. 
Buccinum undatum I have generally seen chosen at Wey- 
mouth, but not rarely the various species of T’rochus ; and 
a Helix I have already mentioned : Adams found it at 
Milford Haven, on Murex despectus (= Fusus antiquus) : 
Thompson, at Belfast, on Bulla lignaria, as well as on the 
larger Trochi: E. Forbes, at the Isle of Man, on old Fust 
and Zrochi: Landsborough, at Arran, on Twrritella and 
Buccinum. Mr. D. Robertson sends me specimens from 
Cumbrae, on Trochus umbilicatus. 

I believe that the shell chosen is always tenanted by a 
Hermit Crab, and that the species is invariably Pagurus 
Prideauxii. In this my observation coincides with those 
of Dr. Coldstream, Thompson of Belfast, and Mr. D. Ro- 
bertson. Forbes seems to throw doubt on the constancy of 
this association ; having taken many specimens on the Manx 
coast, the shells of which were not tenanted by any crab. 
Similar examples have occurred to myself at Weymouth ; 
but when we remember how readily the Pagurus leaves its 
shell on alarm, and how terrifying the rough action of the 
dredge-iron must be, it seems the most obvious mode of 
accounting for the occasional vacancy of the shell, that it 
has been just deserted by its frightened tenant. 

The Adamsia itself in early life has the power of shifting 
its quarters. Forbes observes that it “ seems to change its 
habitation according to its size:’? and I have had two 
young specimens in. my aquarium, which crawled sponta- 
neously from their shells, and attached themselves the one 
to a stone, the other to the frond of.a sea-weed. While 


THE CLOAK ANEMONE. 129 


_ writing this article, Mr. D. Robertson sends me accounts of 
_ two in his possession, which manifested the same propensity. 
_ Each first detached the two lobes from the shell, which then 
were thickened, and apparently hollow, being much dis- 
tended with water. The same evening, both began to 
adhere to the side of the jar in which they were kept, by 
their lateral lobes. Three days afterwards, the lobes were 
“ still firmly and broadly adhering to the bottom and sides 
of the jar.” Mr. Thompson, of Weymouth, has dredged 
a specimen, which was adherent to a frond of Fucus 
serratus. It was round, about as large as a shilling, and 
flat, but “ with the appearance of a suture down one side, 
as though it had joined.” 

Very frequently, there is found intervening between the 
Adamsia and the shell to which it is affixed, a film of 
membrane, of a horny texture, somewhat brittle, of a 
translucent dark greenish-brown colour. After death this 
film is found adherent to the surface of the shell, from 
which, however, it easily peels when dry. It invariably 
extends beyond the margin of the lip, making, as it were, 
an adventitious continuation of the shell, and following the 
same general spiral direction. From several specimens 
from the Frith of Clyde, for which I am indebted to the 
kindness of Mr. D. Robertson, I have been able to learn 
the nature and object of this membrane. In one of these 
the shell of Trochus umbilicatus, full-grown and perfect, 
had a great continuation of the membrane into a fictitious 
body-whorl, as voluminous as the whole shell. In another, 
the shell was that of Buccinum undatum, an inch and a 
half in height. Here the membrane was confined to a 
small film, sub-triangular in outline, continuing the front 
margin of the outer lip, and a similar one continuing the 
hind margin of the same; each the production of a lateral 
lobe of the animal, the two not having as yet attained the 

K 


130 SAGARTIADA. 


point of union. In a third beautiful specimen, sent me 
alive, I found, after death, the membrane showing dis- 
tinct concentric lines of growth. And these took exactly 
the form of the outer edges of the two lobes, meeting 
in the centre, where there was a representative suture. 
The growth-line being curved, there was a delta at 
the end of the suture; and this was filled with a much 
thinner film of membrane, showing that it was the last 
made. 

Mr. Walter Gregor, of Macduff, has sent me a large 
specimen which had in youth chosen a shell of Natica 
sordida for its support. The shell is in no direction more 
than one-third of an inch in diameter, but the adventitious 
body-whorl of membrane measures (along its curve) two 
inches and three quarters ! 

From these and other observations of my own, as well 
as from information supplied by Mr. Robertson, it appears 
to me manifest that the membrane is a provision for the 
support of the growing Adamsia, when it has selected 
small or broken shells. 

Experiments, which I have detailed at length else- 
where,* have satisfied me that the membrane is produced 
by the Adamsia ; that it is an epidermie slough ; and that 
it is composed mainly of chitine, having no calcareous 
element. It cannot, therefore, in any respect, be regarded 
as a corallum. 

The membrane is not invariably present. In specimens 
dredged in the Frith of Clyde, small or broken shells 
appear to be usually chosen; and these are enlarged, as I 
have stated above. In Weymouth Bay, however, where 
the species was common when I was there in 1853, the 
shell most commonly selected being the Great Whelk, the 


Yi. * Annals and Mag. of Nat. Hist. for Aug. 1858. 


THE CLOAK ANEMONE. 131 


_ membrane is so unusual that I do not remember to have 
ever seen it. 

Pagurus Prideauxii séems to be as dependent on the 
Adamsia, as the latter is on it. The only instance in 
which I have heard of its having been ever found disso- 
ciated from its friend, is the following, communicated to 
me by Mr. Robertson :—. 

“ Lately I dredged a small Pagurus Prid. unassociated 
with Adamsia palliata. After a few days I put it into a 
jar with an Adamsia which I have had for some time. 
I saw them six hours after; Pagurus had left his 
shell, and was perched on the top of Adamsia, with his 
fore claws among the tentacles. Next morning Pagurus 
was dead, and Adamsia had quitted the hold of his 
shell.” : 

‘This association, however, like so many other things 
that the naturalist is constantly meeting with, is unac- 
countable. Why one species of Soldier-crab must needs 
seek the companionship of this Anemone, while other 
Soldier-crabs are able to live alone; and why this species 
of Anemone must needs associate with the Soldier-crab, 
while other kinds of Anemone are solitary, I can by no 
means answer. Nor is the difficulty in any wise solved 
by supposing—what we may easily grant—that each may 
find advantage from the other’s presence. Dr. Lands- 
borough pleasantly says,—‘ In all likelihood, they in 
various ways aid each other. The Hermit has strong 
claws; and while he is feasting on the prey he has caught, 
many spare crumbs may fall to the share of his gentle- 
looking companion. But, soft and gentle-looking though 
the Anemone be, she has a hundred hands; and woe to 
the wandering wight who comes within the reach of one 
of them, for all the other hands are instantly brought to 
its aid, and the Hermit may soon find that he is more 

K 2 


132 SAGARTIADA, 


than ep lgpamees for the crumbs that fall from his 
own booty.” 

It is probable that Adamsia would be a dates eed 
for the table. I have not essayed it, but the smell of the 
fresh animal is very agreeable, resembling that of the 
cooked flesh of the crab. 

Beautiful as it is, it appears unlikely ever to become an 
habitual tenant of our aquariums, as it cannot long endure 
captivity. Its crab, too, seems peculiarly unable to survive 
confinement; and I do not think the Cloaklet will ever 
live long dissociated from its companion. 

Yet Sir John Dalyell seems to have been more suc- 
cessful than I have been, if I may judge from the expres- 
sion “a long time” in the following statement. One 
which had detached itself from its shell “ diffused the 
base on the bottom of a glass vessel, not unlike the 
wings of a butterfly. But until it adheres, the base 
remains a long time with its whole under surface merely 
folded together.” He describes it as feeding readily, and 
as greedy of worms. 

According to the same observer, thousands of minute, 
opaque, bright yellow globular germs are produced by the 
species in July, August, September, and October; several 
hundreds being discharged at once ; but no results followed 
these developments in his experience.* 

Rapp assigns Adamsia palliata to the Mediterranean 
and North Seas:+ MM. Koren and Danielssen mention it 
as common in fifteen to twenty fathoms off the coast of 
Norway.{ The following list includes its known British 
habitats :— 

Wick, Peterhead, C. W. P.: Moray Frith, W. Gregor : 
Guernsey, J.D. H.: Weymouth Bay, P. H. G.: Torbay, 


* Rare and Rem. Anim. of Scotl.; 233. + Polyp. 58. 
t Faun. Litt. Norv, ii. 87. 


THE CLOAK ANEMONE. 133 


_ P.H. G.: Falmouth, W.P. C.: Milford Haven, Adams : 
Isle of Man, Z. F.; F. H. W.: Arran, D.L.: Cumbrae, 
_ D.R.: Bute, Dr. J. Coldstream: Oban, Mrs. A. Murray 
_ Menzies: Strangford Lough, Belfast Bay,*W. T.: Bantry 
Bay, £. P. W. 


134 


GENUS IV. PHELLIA (Gosssz). 


Base adhering to rocks; little exceeding the 
column. 

Column pillar-like m expansion; the margin ten- 
taculate, without parapet or fosse. Surface smooth, 
pierced with loop-holes; partly clothed with a tough 
epidermis, which is rough externally, firmly adherent 
to the skin. 

Disk concave ; the edge not undulate. 

Tentacles few, in more than one row ; barred. 

Mouth not raised on a cone ; lip thickened. 

Acontia discharged, but reluctantly. - 


ANALYSIS OF THE SPECIES. 


Epidermis dense; free and tube-like at the upper part; its 

BUTTACS NO’ WATtOd . Ave he a eee eo he Bee oe mvurocincta. 
Epidermis dense; firmly adherent throughout; warted . gausapata. 
Epidermis thin ; firmly adherent throughout; not warted picta. 


a 
i 
- 


—— 


ASTR#ACEA. : SAGARTIADZ. 


THE WALLED CORKLET. 
Phellia murocineta. 


Prare VII. fig. 2; XII. fg. 8 (magn). 


Specific Character. Epidermis dense; free and tube-like at the summit; 
its surface not warted. 


Phellia murocincta. GossE, Annals N. H. Ser. 3. ii. 193. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks; slightly exceeding column. 

Column. Cylindrical, pillar-like when expanded, slightly grooved longi- 
tudinally, smooth, but partly clothed with a dense, rough, membranons 
skin, which is firmly adherent from the base about half-way up, but there 
becomes free, forming a loose firm sheath or tube, from which the animal 
protrudes its fore parts in extension, and into which it retires at will, more 
or less completely. Surface of epidermis rough, but not warted. Height, 
in full extension, double the diameter. 

Disk, A deep cup, bounded by the thick feet of the inner tentacles. 

Tentacles, Twenty-four, in two rows, twelve in each ; those of the first 
row twice as large as the others, with which they alternate ; variable in 
form, sometimes strongly conical, stout at the foot, and pointed; at other 
times nearly cylindrical and obtuse: they have a tendency to assume a 
knotted appearance: they are generally carried hanging over the margin 
with a double curve, like the branches of a chandelier; but sometimes 
those of the inner row stand erect. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone, so far as could be ascertained. 

Acontia. Emitted sparingly and reluctanily. 


CoLovr. 


Column. Exposed portion having a mealy appearance, produced by a 
number of whitish longitudinal lines and dashes, more or less speckled 
and interrupted by the ground-colour, which is pellucid yellowish grey. 
Of these lines, twelve are] broader, and between these are about four 
slender lines in each interspace. The margin becomes deep buff, pro- 


' ducing a depression of that hue when in the button-state. 


136 SAGARTIADA. 


Epidermis. Pale buff, studded with dirty foreign matters, 

Disk. Dull buff, marked witha white star, which is formed by a forked 
line proceeding from the front of each primary tentacle towards the 
mouth. Two broad white gonidial radii. 

Tentacles. Dark brown, pellucid, crossed by three narrow remote rings 
of white. Where the foot of the tentacle unites with the disk, its radius 


has a white patch, succeeded by two parallel, longitudinal, black dashes. 
Mouth. Rich buff. 


S1zz. 


Diameter of column one-eighth of an inch; height one-sixth ; expanse 
of flower one-sixth. 


LocaALity. 


Overhanging rocks and sides of caverns near low-water mark, around 
Torquay. 


The large dark overhung pool at Petit Tor, which I have 
more than once described, is a fertile nursery of marine life. 
Though situated not much lower than half-tide level, yet, 
from the volume of water which it contains, the constancy 
of its fulness, the aspect, excluding the sun’s rays, and the 
inclination of the rocks preventing evaporation, the rough 
worm-eaten surface, both below and above the brim, is 
always wet, always dark, and always crowded with Alge, 
Sponges, Zoophytes, Worms, and Mollusks. This pro- 
fusion of riches is not always, however, easily available ; 
for though it stands in tantalising proximity to the eye of 
the naturalist, it is quite beyond the reach of his hands, 
unless he choose to wade into the pool and work in the 
water breast-high. 

On the 29th of June of the present year I essayed in 
this manner to rifle the promising treasury ; and the result 
by no means disappointed my expectations, though, from 
several circumstances, it was difficult to work with hammer 
and chisel. Among other things I obtained there this 
new form. 


THE WALLED CORKLET. 137 


It has been my custom,—and I recommend the plan to 
brother and sister naturalists,—not to satisfy myself with 
such creatures as I see on the spot, but to take specimens 
of the rock at random for examination at home. I look 
out for the dirtiest, roughest, most corroded parts of the 
rock, at the lowest level that I can reach, and with the 
chisel cut off small fragments. These I bring home, 
and spread out, face upward, in shallow pans of clean sea- 
water. After a few hours, say perhaps the following 
morning, I carefully search with my eye, aided at intervals 
by a lens, but without disturbing the water, the surfaces of 
the bits of rock, as well as the sides of the vessel; and 
thus I have obtained more than one new species, which 
I might never have known otherwise. 

For the actual discovery of the present species, I am 
indebted to my little son, whose keen and well-practised 
eye detected the tiny atom, as a form with which he was 
unacquainted, on one of the fragments I had brought home. 
Presently afterwards I discerned another specimen; and 
these two are the only examples that have as yet come 
under my notice. 

The rough corky appearance of the epidermis in this 
and the following species, suggested the generic name, 
which is formed from ¢eAXds, the cork-tree, and also its 
bark. The specific appellation indicates the chief distinc- 
tion between this and the following species, the edge of the 
epidermis encircling the summit of the animal when con- 
tracted, as if with a wall. The force of the English 
appellation is obvious.* 


* I feel that I am arrived ata point where I need the kind consideration 
of my readers. Popular as the cultivation of Zoophytes has become, there 
are still many who prefer to call them by English names, the ladies in 
particular. It is a natural and proper desire, and I wish to respond to it. 
But no vernacular terms exist, by which the hitherto recondite subjects of 
this work are known. What shall I do in this case? Shall I use the term 


138 SAGARTIADA. 


In both this and the preceding genus we find a remark- 
able development of the epidermic layer; in Adamsia from 
the base, to enlarge its support,—in Phellia from the 
column, to thicken its investing coat. 

The investment is, as I have intimated, a tigtlyead boston 
epidermic layer, but free at the upper part, which stands 
up as a thin, clear, firm tube, when the animal retreats. Its 
substance is strong and tenacious, yet portions of it can 
be torn away in shreds with a needle. These, under 
a power of 600 diameters, show, in the clear parts, a 
structureless membrane, which has a slightly fibrous 
appearance, apparently only because of its foldings and 
wrinkles. The greater part is rendered opaque by the 
foreign matters entangled in it, consisting largely of irre- 


“ Anemone” throughout, employing an epithet to discriminate the families 
from each other, a second epithet to discriminate the genera of each 
family, and a third epithet for each species? “The Anemone:” “the 
Warty Anemone :” “the Lined Warty Anemone:” “the Glaucous Lined 
Warty Anemone.” This would be an available mode, but would it not be 
repulsive and lumbering? Again, I might make new words—arbitrary 
aggregations of vowels and consonants,—‘“ Farson,” “ Toler,”—words, if 
words they might be called, without an etymology, and without a meaning. 
I do not think this would be generally acceptable, though I might plead 
precedent in scientific technology, — “ Rocinela,” “Conilera,” &c. for 
example. 

A selebeakad Greek orator is said to have coined only three words in the 
whole course of his professional eloquence ; and, for the comfort of those 
who should attempt the same again, it is added that. the Athenian public 
refused to swallow these. Yet it is much easier to make a Greek word 
than an English one. I manufacture “ Aiptasia” and “Bolocera” boldly; 
yet it is not without mistrust that I see “ Trumplet” and “ Opelet” on my 


pages. 

In this dilemma, since the words must be made, I have thought that 

they ought to be formed according to certain conditions. First, they 
.should be Saxon: “ Ilyanth,” “Lucernary,” “Cyathine,’ are no more 
English than if they retained their classical terminations, Secondly, they 
should be significant : the new word should aid the memory, not tax it. 
Thirdly, they should be consimilar in structure, since they are intended to 
designate consimilar objects, Fourthly, they should not, if possible, 
exceed a dissyllabic length. 

According to these rules, I have ventured to construct a series of verna- 
cular names for the genera, Allowing “ Anemone” to stand for Sagartia, 
I have formed for each of the others a dissyllable, Saxon in origin, sug: 
gestive of some prominent character, and having a common termination, 
--viz. the English diminutive “-let,” from liz, little. In accordance with 
this plan, Plumelet may stand as the English representative of ene 
and Gloaklet of Adamsia, 


THE WALLED CORKLET. 139 


gular, clear granules, with some Alga-spores, Diatoms, and 
here and there a cnida. 

I removed, with a fine needle’s point and pliers, the 
epidermis piecemeal. It was tough, allowing the Anemone 
and its bit of rock (as large as a filbert) to be lifted out of 
the water by it, without giving way. Its adhesion to the 
lower part of the column was very firm. As I removed the 
loose free tubular portion, (the animal having retreated far 
in at the earliest assaults,) I discovered free within its 
cavity about half-a-dozen egg-like germs, of a rich deep 
orange colour; these, under the microscope, proved to be 
covered with vibratile cilia, by means of which the germ 
slowly swam. They were soft, ovate, ‘04 inch long, by 
‘025 wide. One, on being crushed, was resolved into a 
mass of minute round clear granules,—fat-corpuscles ? 

‘When the whole epiderm was removed, I detached the 
animal from its adhesion in a small hollow of the lime- 
stone ; not without the discharge of a thick mucus from the 
base, and the emission of a single acontium from the lower 
part of the column. The animal was now reduced to an 
abject flatness, and looked like a miniature S. viduata in 
its greatest contraction. 

In a day or two it attached itself to the rock again, and 
even crawled a little way. It now expanded freely, and 
looked just like an ordinary Sagartia ; but did not renew 
the epidermis. 

The only locality as yet known for the species has been 
already indicated :—Torquay, P. H. G. 

2? 
A. palliata. MUROCINCTA. E. carnea. 


gausapata. 
picta. 


ASTRAACEA. SAGARTIAD. 


THE WARTED CORKLET. 


Phellia gausapata. 
Pirate VII. fig. 1. 


Specific Character. Epidermis dense; firmly adherent throughout; warted. 
Phellia gausapata. GossE, Annals N. H. Ser. 3. ii, 194, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks: scarcely exceeding column. 

Column. Cylindrical, pillar-like when expanded ; smooth in extension, 
but in contraction becoming coarsely corrugated, so as to present large 
irregularly rounded knobs or warts. To this a dense epidermis is firmly 
adherent throughout, having no free margin; and, being modelled on it, 
it is covered with coarse warts or knobs; “resembling, when contracted, a 
straw bee-hive.” (C. W. P.) 

Disk. A deep cup or funnel. 

Tentacles. Sixteen, arranged in two rows, eight in each: those of the 
first row twice as thick and long as those of the second, with which they 
alternate; variable in form, sometimes being conical and pointed, at others 
short, rounded, and even slightly inflated at the tips. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone: lip thickened “as in dianthus,” 

Acontia.. Freely discharged from the base; long and very slender. 


CoLour. 


Column. Exposed portion pellucid white, with sub-opaque whitish longi- 
tudinal streaks. 

Epidermis. Pale yellowish, with darker warts; the separation of which 
in extension causes the general tint to appear lighter, and vice versd. 

Disk. (No note has been taken of its colours.) 

Tentacles. Pellucid drab, with the lower part and a broad ring near the 
tip dark brown, undefined: probably there is also an intermediate ring of 
paler brown. 

SIZE. 


Diameter of column half an inch; height three-fourths of an inch. 


LOcALIty. 
Rocks at low-water: extreme north-east of Scotland. 


THE WARTED CORKLET. 141 


By a curious coincidence, on the very day that I disco- 
vered the preceding species, the post brought me a living 
specimen of the present, from Mr. C. W. Peach, of Wick; 
and so the extreme north-east of Scotland and the south- 
west of England conspired, at the same moment, to 
augment our native Actinologia, each with a species of 
a genus entirely new to science. 

The kindness of Mr. Peach had, it is true, sent me 
a specimen of the same animal before this, viz. in the 
preceding May; but it had arrived dead, and in so 
advanced a stage of decomposition, that I had not been able 
even to form a conjecture of its characters. Observation of 
the species is even now very defective; for though the last 
specimen sent arrived in health, and continued for upwards 
of a month to live in my possession, yet, during the whole 
of that period, I never saw it expand sufficiently to enable 
me to describe either its tentacles or disk. For the above 
description I am largely indebted to the notes and sketches 
of Mr. Peach. 

The distinction between Phellia gausapata and P. muro- 
cincta‘is slight; and future observation may resolve the 
two species into one. The distance of their respective 
localities, however, renders their identity less probable. 

The specimens were obtained from very narrow fissures 
in a rock called Proudfoot, at the entrance of Wick Bay, in 
Caithness. This rock is accessible only at the low water 
of spring-tides. The first specimen obtained, which was 
much larger than the second, remained unattached for 
several days, while in Mr. Peach’s possession, but appeared 
healthy. The smaller one sent to me remained adherent to 
its original fragment of rock for more than a month; at the 
end of which time I lifted the base from its attachment. 
It was in doing this that I saw the acontia copiously 
discharged from the offended base. 


142 SAGARTIADA. 


When received, several young alge,—one apparently 
a minute Laminaria, another a Rhodymenia palmata,— 
were growing from the upper margin of the epidermis ; 
a fact which is of value as showing the persistency of this 
investment, which, moreover, was not separated during the 
subsequent period of the animal's captivity. | 

The trivial name of this species I have formed from the 
gausape, Oo rough frieze coat which the Roman soldiers 
wore in cold weather. 

The only known locality for this Phellia is, as sien 
stated,— Wick, C. W. P. 

9 
GAUSAPATA. 
murocincta. 
picta. 


ASTREACEA. ! SAGARTIADZ. 


THE PAINTED CORKLET. 
Phellia’ sricta. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Puate XII. jig. 1 (magn.). 


| Specifie Character, Epidermis thin; firmly adherent throughout ; not 
warted, © 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent; scarcely exceeding column. 

Column. Cylindrical, pillar-like when expanded, capable of great elonga- 
tion; permanently smooth; clothed with a very thin membranous epidermis, 
which is not waried, but carries minute extraneous matters entangled in 
it. It.is wholly adherent, and extends about half-way up the column. 

Disk. Nearly flat or slightly concave. 

Tentacles. Thirty-two, arranged in three rows, 8, 8, 16, = 32; thick. 
long, and bluntly pointed ; one or two of the first row often much enlarged 
temporarily, and_standing erect, the rest sub-horizontal. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone; but the lip very protrusile; thin. 

Acontia. Not observed. 


CoLovuR. 


Column. Pellucid white, with opaque white streaks. 

Epidermiz. Transparent and colourless. 

Disk. Delicate yellow; bounded by an irregular circle of dark brown, 
formed by a broad band crossing the foot of each tentacle; the whole 
erossed by radial lines of pure orange which spread between the tentacles : 
—a beautiful pattern. 

Tentacles. Pellucid white, the front face crossed by three bands of 
opaque white. 


Size. 


Diameter and height, in ordinary expansion, one-eighth of an inch: 
expanse of flower one-sixth. 


Locatiry. 
North-east coast of Scotland: old shells in deep water. 


144 SAGARTIADA. 


Since the preceding article was in type, I have received 
the little Corklet above described; which differs so greatly 
from the others, that I must either regard it as specifically 
distinct, or else consider all three as constituting a single 
species, subject to an unusual amount of variation. I have 
no right to assume the latter conclusion, and therefore 
prefer the former. 

The only specimen that I have seen was sent me by the 
kindness of Mr. Walter Gregor, of Macduff, near Banff, 
who obtained it, in October, from deep water, adhering to 
an old shell of Cyprina Islandica. ‘“ When put into a 
basin of water,” observes its discoverer, “it lengthened 
itself to a great extent without throwing out its tentacles. 
Before doing so, it assumed a globose form, and expanded 
very slowly, withdrawing its tentacles on the least agitation 
of the water.” When it came into my own possession, it 
adhered very readily, and expanded with great freedom; 
feeding eagerly on raw meat. ‘The epidermis, which is 
very delicate, can be detached in shreads without difficulty : 
it holds minute atoms of sand in its substance. 

It is a brilliant little species, and I have named it from 
its beauty of coloration. 

The only recognised locality is—Banff, W. G, 


PICTA, 
gausapata. 
murocincta. 


145 


GENUS V. GREGORIA (Gosse). 


Base not broader than the column. 

Column a low pillar, strongly invected, very in- 
flatable in irregular lobes; the margin forming an 
irregularly undulate parapet, separated from the ten- 
tacles by a deep but narrow fosse, which is never 
obliterated. Surface smooth, but becoming trans- 
versely wrinkled in contraction; without suckers; 
perforated with few, but very conspicuous loop-holes ; 
these are arranged in longitudinal lines, on the swell- 
ings, which correspond to the intersepts. Substance 
pulpy. 

Disk plane; not exceeding the column ; ; smooth, 
without conspicuous radii. 

Tentacles moderately short, blunt, unicolorous ; not 
perfectly retractile. 

Mouth set on a cone ; lip thin ; two gonidial grooves, 
each with a pair of small tubercles. 

Acontia emitted sparsely. 


ASTRHACEA. SAGARTIAD&. 


THE EYELRET. 


Gregoria fenestrata. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Prats VII. fig. 3; XII. fig. 7 (magn.). 


Specific Character. Column green, with purple lines ; tentacles red. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


In addition to the characters given on the preceding page, I may add, 
that in my specimen, (which may be immature,) the perforations are very 
visible, with a lens: there are about six in an intersept, of which five 
are placed in quick succession near the summit, and one remote near 
the base: they are not found in all the intersepts, from two to four im- 
perforate ones intervening between those which are pierced. Under mag- 
nification the perforations are rounder, and less eyelid-shaped than in the 
Sagartie ; they have a distinct granular layer exterior to them, though 
their outline is in some cases very clearly defined, and even thickened, _ 

The tentacles are about forty-eight, arranged in three rows; all sub- 
marginal: their form is nearly cylindrical, with very obtuse tips, 


CoLour. 


Column. Translucent glaucous green, very pale; each longitudinal 
furrow marked by a line of deep reddish-purple, decided but not well- 
defined; the loop-holes are each surrounded by a ring of the same colour. 

Disk and tentacles. Dull red, pellucid; exactly as in the common 
varieties of A. mesembryanthemum. 

Mouth. More decidedly lake-red. Throat glaucous, 


S1zE. 


Column about one-sixth of an inch in height, and one-fifth in diameter : 
expanse of tentacles one-third, 


LOCALITY. 
The Scottish coast near Banff; half-tide level. 


Mr. Walter Gregor, of Banff, (after whom I have named 
the genus,) has just favoured me with this little Anemone, 


THE EYELET. 147 ~ 


which is highly interesting, as presenting a link which 
connects Sagartia with Actinia. The disk and tentacles 
are exactly those of mesembryanthemum ; and the texture 
of the column, and its style of colouring, are such as to 
give the impression that the most familiar of our Actinioids 
is before us. Yet, on examination, the perforation of the 
integument, the presence of acontia, and the absence of 
spherules, indicate its place among the Sagartiade. At 
the same time, its indifference to contact, and its permanent 
expansion,—for it seems not to have the power of retracting 
the tentacles,—are peculiarities which ally it to the mem- 
bers of the following family. 

I have seen but a single specimen, which may be im- 
mature. The specific and English appellations allude to 
the perforations of the column-wall, which are very striking. 
It attaches itself readily by the base; is constantly swell- 
ing out part of its body in lobes; and generally remains ~ 
widely expanded, with the tentacles arching outwards and 
downwards. It feeds eagerly, and appears quite hardy in 
captivity. 

Only locality known—Banff, W.G. 

A. dianthus. 
FENESTRATA. A. cereus. 
A. mesembryanthemum. 


148 


FAMILY II.—ANTHEAD &. 


In my “Synopsis of the British Actinie,” (see Annals 


of Nat. Hist. for June 1858,) I had associated Anthea with 
Actinia, in one family, distinguished by the negative 
character of lacking suckers, warts, and loop-holes. But 
groups founded on negative characters are always unsatis- 
factory ; and maturer consideration has convinced me that 
the positive diversities of these genera are of sufficient im- 
portance to warrant their separation into distinct families. 

The members of the family Antheadew are marked by 
a great development of the tentacular system. The tenta- 
cles extend to a remarkable length,—in the typical genus 
often reaching to twice or thrice the diameter of the disk,— 
and are very flexuous. These organs have thinner walls 
than usual, but are lined with a thick coat of comparatively 
large pigment-grains of a deep brown hue. They show 
a greater tendency to discharge the water which ordinarily 
distends them, by contracting in diameter than in length, 
the effect of which is, that these organs under irritation 
collapse into a shrivelled or withered condition. 

Another remarkable peculiarity is the almost total in- 
ability to retract the disk and tentacles, and to close over 
them the margin of the column,—the common mode in 
which Actinioids seek protection from annoyance. It is 
true that, on rare occasions, and when perfectly undisturbed, 
I have seen both Anthea and Aiptasia in this retracted 
condition; but still, even then, there is a tenseness and 
globularity in the covering column which is at once seen 


— 


ANTHEADZA 149 


to be peculiar, and which suggests the notion that the 
effect is produced more by the distension of the column 
than by the contraction of the disk. In these cases, too, 
the slightest touch (which, in a Sagartia or Actinia, under 
similar circumstances, would only cause a closer contrac- 
tion) is followed by the imstant recession of the column, 
and the protrusion of the tentacles. 

The whole body manifests comparatively little contrac- 
tility. The shrinking of the parts from every touch, which 
in the Bunodide and the Sagartiade is so excessive, going 
on even after decomposition has set in, and which is so 
annoying and so bafiling to the anatomist, prevails to a 
far less degree in the Antheade ; and hence the family 
presents favourable conditions for dissection. The power 
of discharging mucus is also comparatively small. 

Though ordinarily adherent by the base, the power of 
adhesion is unwontedly feeble in the family; the animals 
ean be detached with the slightest force, and often spon- 
taneously free themselves. Both of our British genera 
have the habit of frequently crawling to the brim of the 
water, and then expanding their base upon the surface 
and allowing it to dry, floating by means of it with the 
body inverted, and the tentacles expanded in mid-water. 

An attentive observer sees in the habits of the Antheade, 
and particularly in the lively and flexuous movements of 
the tentacles, an indication of superior muscular power in 
these organs, and also a higher degree of intelligence, or 
at least of perceptive faculty, than the Sagartiade possess. 

Besides our own two genera, Aiptasia and Anthea, 
one or two exotic genera must belong to the family. 
If Mr. Dana has correctly described the Act. flagellifera of 
Madeira, it must be generically distinct, notwithstanding its 
very close resemblance in figure and colour to the green 
variety of Anthea cereus. He speaks of the inner row of 


150 ANTHEADA. 


tentacles as furnished with a retractile pencil of hair at the 
tip.* Nothing corresponding to this peculiarity belongs 
to either of our species; but it is so utterly abnormal, that 
I cannot help suspecting some source of illusion: and the 


more, because I learn from Mr. Holdsworth, that Anthea 


cereus is abundant at Madeira. 

However, the A. pustulata of the same author ¢ must 
certainly constitute a distinct genus of this family. It 
appears to be essentially an Anthea, but with the column 
covered with warts.. It would form, therefore, an osculant 
form, connecting Antheade with Bunodide ; as our Aiptasia, 
in its acontia and cinclides, links the funily with the i ae 
ate: 

' The New Norwegian genus, Actinopsts,t must, I suppose, 
be referred hither. 


* Dana’s Zoophytes, 126 5 pl. i. fig. 1. + Ibid. 128 ; pl. i. fig. 2. 
“3 Faun. Litt. Norv. ii, 89. 


ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA. 


Mouth normal. 
Skin smooth, 
Column long, trumpet-shaped : furnished with 
acontia and cinclides. . . . Aiptasia. 
Column short, broad: destitute of sends es 
cinclides. . . SRR Rae hy Be Ghee 
Skin warted (Not British) + je Ve) oiittonileves- tom “Sh paelilate? 


Gonidial tubercles elongated. . . . . . . . . . Actinopsis. 


151 


GENUS IL. AIPTASIA (Gosse). 
Anthea, (Cocxs). 


Base adhering to rocks, readily detached ; often not 
equalling the medium diameter of column. 

Column trumpet-shaped, many times higher than 
wide, very changeable in shape from irregular disten- 
sion ; margin tentaculate; surface minutely corrugated, 
adhesive, but without distinct suckers; pierced with 
loop-holes. Substance pulpy. 

Disk greatly expanded, membranous, concave. 

Tentacles in several rows, long, lax, irregularly 
flexuous, perforate at the tip, the first row longest, 
scarcely retractile. 

Mouth not set on a cone; lip thin; stomach pro- 
trusile. 

Acontia abundant, but not often spontaneously 
extruded. 


The genus contains but one known species, 
A. Couchii. 


ASTR&ACEA. me ANTHEAD&. 


-THE TRUMPLET. 
Aiptasia Couchit. 


Pirate V. fig. 3. 


Specific Character, Body smoke-brown; disk marked with pale blue 
lines, 


? Actinia biserialis. Forses, Ann. N. H. Ser. 1. v. 182; pl. iii. Jonnston, 
Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. i, 221; pl, xxxviii. fig. 1. 
Cooks, Rep. Cornw. Pol, Soc, 1851, 6; pl. i. 
fig. 18, 

Anthea Couchii. Inrp. Rep. Cornw. Pol. Soc. 1851, 11; pl. ii. fig. 30. 

Aiptasia amacha. Gossz, Annals Nat. Hist. Ser. 3. i, 416, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION, 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks, readily detached; dilated, but smaller than 
the middle of the column. 

Column. Slender just above the base, enlarging upwards, dilating at the 
summit into a wide hemispheric cup or trumpet-shaped disk ; four or five 
times higher than wide; the form susceptible of great and rapid changes 
from irregular distension. Margin formed by the outer row of tentacles. 
Substance pulpy. Surface minutely corrugated in the ordinary condition, 
but smooth when fully distended, pierced with loop-hoies ; bins 5735 visible 
suckers, yet capable of adhesion. 

Disk, Thin and membranous, greatly expanded as a broad concave cup. 

Outline circular, but lax, and often undulate, or even revolute, Radii 
strongly marked. 
Tentacles, Arranged in four rows: the first row containing six, set 
at half radius, remote from each other, and from the second row; when 
fully extended, an inch and a-half long ; the other rows diminish gradually, 
the outermost being about half an inch in length. All, especially those of 
the first row, very lax, flexuous, frequently thrown into sinuous curves, 
perforate with a large terminal aperture. 

Mouth. Lip thin, Throat irregularly furrowed. Stomach-wall occa- 
sionally protruded, Two gonidia, scarcely rising into tubercles, 


Se a ee Se 


Se 


THE TRUMPLET. 153 


' Acontia, Abundant; copiously protruded from the mouth or from 
wounds ; occasionally also, but sparingly and reluctantly, from loop-holes. 


CoLour. 


- Column. Warm orange-buff, richer at base, blending into a bluish-black 
hue where it expands into the cup-like disk: the entire length marked 
with longitudinal faint lines, indicating the insertions of the septa. 

Disk. Dark iron-grey, becoming ashy towards the centre: each radius 
bounded by lines of pale greyish blue. 

Tentacles. Sepia brown; but seen under a low magnifying power to be 
of a warm umber, more or less decided, minutely mottled with darker: 
the colour usually softens into white at the extreme tip of the tentacle. 

- Mouth. Lip and throat ash-grey. 


S1zz, 


When fully extended the column is sometimes four inches in height, and 
from an eighth to three-fourths of an inch in diameter. Expanse of flower 
about three inches, 


Locatiry. 


The Channel Islands and Cornwall. Under surface of stones at low- 
water mark ; deep water. 


Tn the latter part of March of the present year (1858), 
Dr. Hilton of Guernsey found on the shores of that island, 
and kindly sent to me, several specimens of an Anemone 
new to him, and equally so to me. The locality, the colour 
of the disk, and much in the form and contour of the animal, 
at once suggested the Actinia biserialis of Edward Forbes, 
for which species I was on the look-out. 

Not long after this, I was indebted to the courtesy of 
Mr. Sydney Hodges, the Secretary of the Royal Cornwall 
Polytechnic Society, for other specimens of the same species 
from Falmouth, which were sent under the persuasion that 
they were A. bdiserialis. Still so much diversity existed 
between the specimens (those from Guernsey and Falmouth 
perfectly agreeing inter se) and Forbes’s description, that I 
could not but consider the point very doubtful. At the 


154 ANTHEADA. 


same time, if I were quite sure that the specimens in my 
possession were identical with that described by Forbes, I 
should be compelled to reject his specific name as involving 
important error. The tentacles can in no sense be called 
biserial: there are four distinct rows, which are regularly 
eraduated in length, and which show no other distinction ; 
the appearance indicated by his figure (supposing it to 
represent the present species) being quite illusory. _ 

But on examination I found peculiarities in the animal, 
which required its generic separation. The most promi- 
nent of these were its form, the length and flexuosity of its 
tentacles, and its permanent expansion. In two of these 
characters, as well as in several other points which I shall 
presently notice, it manifested so close an affinity with 
Anthea cereus, that I should not have hesitated to include 
it as a second species in that genus, had not the presence of 
acontia, and their extrusion through cinclides, indicated a 
nearer approach than is made by that species to the family 
Sagartiade. I therefore ventured to describe it under the 
name of Aiptasia amacha ; the generic appellation referring 
to its permanent expansion, from ae, always, and vera, 
to expand; and the specific to the patience with which it 
bore pushings and pokings without unsheathing its weapons, 
from a, priv., and pdyouat, to fight. The English name 
refers to its trumpet-like form. 

Subsequently, however, I have found that the species has 
been well described and figured by Mr. W. P. Cocks, in 
his valuable List of the Actinie of Falmouth, published in 
the Report of the Cornwall Society for 1851, under the 
title of Anthea Couchii, which specific name takes prece- 
dence of mine. It is true, in his description, mention is 
made of three white lines extending longitudinally up 
the column, of which no trace exists in my specimens; 
but by a‘ coloured drawing with which Mr. Cocks has 


WOM ET Oe Ce eas By 


THE TRUMPLET. 155 


favoured me, I perceive that these lines were not equidistant 
and symmetrical, but all close together on one side; a cir- 
cumstance which at once shows their presence to have been 
accidental, and of no value as a character, while in every 
other respect, even in the most minute points, his drawing 
and description agree with my specimens. © 

- At the same time it is interesting to observe that 
Mr. Cocks did not consider his specimens as the A. bése- 
rialis ; for he any this a te i in the same list, as 
* not uncommon.’ 

Mr. 8. Whitchurch, of eruaoiiey) informs me also that 
there exist at Herm Actinie, which are commonly spoken 
of as “the yellow and blue varieties of A. disertalis,”’ so 
that a species may yet turn up which will justify the 
description of that form; and at all events it would be 
rash at present to accuse so excellent a zoologist as 
E. Forbes of incorrectness, on the known premises. 

The present species seems to be found in considerable 
abundance in its recognised localities, especially Guernsey 
and the contiguous little isle of Herm ; appearing chiefly to 
affect the under sides of loose stones at the level of lowest 
tide, to which it adheres with’a very slight attachment. 

When the animal has been some time deprived of water, 
—as in transmission by post,—it has a very abject appear- 
ance, shrivelled almost to shreds of blackish membrane, 
which, when immersed in sea-water, lie helplessly on the 
bottom, ragged and hideous, discharging brown pigment. 
Presently the tentacles begin to fill, and one by one to 
assume plumpness, and to move slowly; and gradually, after 
some hours, the animal presents a more life-like appearance. 
The extremities of the tentacles remain collapsed, and 
apparently withered, long after the greater part of their 
length has become plump, the division between the one and 
the other condition being abrupt. The distension begins 


156 ANTHEADZ. 


from the bottom of the tentacle, and passes up very slowly, 
occupying many hours. 

_ When once it has adhered, and recovered its health, its 
elegant postures and forms, and its remarkable versatility, 
make the A7ptasia an interesting occupant of the aquarium. 
It marches from stone to stone, and around the walls of its 
tank, frequently creeping to the top of the water, and ex- 
panding its base upon the surface, almost or even quite 
floating, while the disk and tentacles, widely expanded, are 
suspended below in mid-water. In these habits we see a 
close resemblance to Anthea cereus, as also in the texture 
of the body, and in the tentacles, which in both genera 
are lined with a profusion of dark-brown pigment-granules, 
which are readily separated. 

Occasionally I have noticed that it has the power of 
adhesion to foreign bodies by the general surface of the 
column; a habit common to several of the Jlyanthide, (as 
the Halcampe, for example,) but which, I think, is not 
possessed by Anthea. 

When in full vigour it towers up to the heinhes repre- 
sented in the figure, when, with its ever-twisting tentacles 
and semi-pellucid tapering column, it is a very elegant 
object. When thus greatly elongated, the loop-holes are 
plainly seen with a lens. I have been able to thrust the 
point of a fine needle into one and another of these orifices, 
without meeting any resistance; and, by using great care, 
without the animal’s being conscious of it; when it did feel 
the touch, however, it suddenly saotiencieds 

Under these and similar irritations, it contracts in length 
by successive spasmodic jerks, but makes no attempt to 
roll in the margin of the disk, or to hide the tentacles in 
any way. Yet it has the power of involving the disk. It 
feeds greedily, throwing the margin in folds over the mouth. 
After a full meal, I have seen it take the shape of a ripe 


THE TRUMPLET. 157 


fig, the lower half of the column greatly attenuated, while 
the upper half was as greatly distended, but with a con- 
striction between the swollen part and the trumpet-like 
expanded disk. 

The appearance of the animal varies exceedingly. Some- 
times it lies utterly flaccid and withered, appearing as if 
quite dead; not contracted, but emptied of its water, and 
the lax membranes collapsed. Then, especially at night, 
it swells up, erects its broad disk, and stands up like a 
flower after a shower, with a noble appearance. At such 
times the tentacles are sometimes much distended, pre- 
serving their regular conical form, and are of a much lighter 
hue. They are then occasionally constricted with numerous 
close rings, and take snaky curves. At times the long inner 
tentacles are curled in ram’s-horn coils over the mouth. 

One of the individuals in my possession has forked 
tentacles: one of these organs bifurcated at about half its 
length; another divided near the tip into three, of which 
one ramification extended on each side horizontally, and 
the third, which was much smaller, followed the original 
direction of the tentacle. This tendency is common to 
Anthea cereus, and to Sagartia viduata. 

That our A7ptasia is tenacious of life will appear from 
the following curious rencontre, to which a specimen in the 
possession of Mr. Holdsworth was subjected. “Two days 
ago, writes my friend, “on making my customary morn- 
ing’s inspection of my family, I missed the Azptasia. A 
diligent search in all the crevices of the rock-work having 
failed to discover it, I began to suspect foul play ; and after 
administering the stomach-pump, in the shape of a stick, 
down the throats of some fine specimens of bellis, I suc- 
ceeded in dislodging the poor lost sheep, in a shapeless 
mass of membrane and acontia, which were largely ex- 
posed ; but the animal was too much injured to enable me 


158 ANTHEAD&. 


to say whether these were emitted in the usual manner, 
or exposed by a rupture of the integuments. The invalid 
was removed to a separate jar of sea-water, (the best hos- 
pital for sick Actinie,) and it is now attached to the glass, 
which is, as you know, a good symptom, but I can hardly 
pronounce it to be as yet quite convalescent.” Some weeks 
after I received tidings that the invalid had “ perfectly 
recovered from its involuntary visit to the interior of dellis.” 

_As in Anthea, the non-retractile character is not absolute 
in our Adptasia ; Mr. Holdsworth has repeatedly seen it 
with the tentacles quite concealed, the body globose and 
very pellucid, and the orifice long and linear. 

The only localities I am as yet acquainted with for 
Aiptasia Couchit are the following :— 

Bordeaux Harbour, Guernsey, J. D. Hi: Herm, S. 
Whitchurch : Gwyllyn Vase, aris River, W. P. C.: 
Falmouth, S. Hodges. 

The species before us forms a beautiful link of con- 
nexion between the Sagartiade and the Antheade, pre- 
senting very marked resemblances to S. bellis and S. viduata 
in the former, while the preponderance of its characters 
allies it with Anthea cereus. 


S. bellis. 
S. viduata. 
H. chrysanthellum. A. Coucuit. 
[A. rhodora.] 
A. cereus. 


SS 


Es eS eee 


ee 


RO CT aie 


GENUS II. ANTHEA (Jonnston). 


Actinia  (EL1is). 
Anemonia (RIsso). 


Entacmea (ERRENB.). 


Base slightly adherent ; broader than the column : 
its outline irregularly undulate. 

Column forming a low thick pillar; the summit 
expanding ; the margin notched, and bearing budding 
tentacles, with no distinct parapet, or fosse. Surface 
cancellated by the intersection of longitudinal furrows, 
and transverse wrinkles. No suckers, warts, nor 
loop-holes. Substance pulpy. 

Disk membranous, very expansile, undulate at the 
margin. 

Tentacles numerous in several rows, sub-marginal, 
very long, lax, irregularly flexuous ; scarcely retractile. 

Mouth elevated on a low cylindrical wart. 

Acontia wanting. 


The genus contains but one British species, 4. cereus: 


ASTRGACEA., ANTHEAD&, 


THE OPELET. 


Anthea cereus. 
PuatEe V. fig. 2; VI. jig. 9. 
Specific Character. Tentacles smooth, consimilar. 


Actinia cereus. Exuis and SoLanDER, Zooph. 2. Rapp, Polyp. 56; 

pl. ii. fig. 3. Grusx, Actin. 11. 
sulcata. PENNANT, Brit. Zool. iv. 102. 

Anemonia edulis, Risso, L’Eur. Mérid. v. 289. 

Anthea cereus. JOHNSTON, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 1, 221. Isr, Ed. 2, 240; 
pl. xliv. Cocxs, Rep. Cornw.. Pol. Soc. 1851, 10; 
pl. ii. figs. 23,27. Gossz, Man. Mar. Zool. i. fig. 
37. TuGwELL, Man. Sea-Anem. pl. vii. 

Anemonia sulcata. Mitnz-Epwarvs, Hist. Nat. Corall. i. 233; pl. C. i. 
fig. 1. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks, but with a very slight tenacity; dilated 


considerably beyond the medium diameter of the column; the outline: 


generally undulate, often forming irregular lobes. 

Column. Shaped like a dice-box, or a pillar, which is much dilated 
above and below; when expanded, the diameter usually exceeding the 
height ; the margin greatly overlapping, crenate, with numerous rounded 
teeth, some of which are usually seen to be rising into incipient tentacles. 
Surface marked with numerous longitudinal furrows, which are correspond- 
ent with the insertions of the septa, and whose upper extremities alter- 
nate with the marginal crenations. In the ordinary state of extension, 
there are also very numerous and minute transverse wrinkles, which cross 
the furrows at right angles. Skin imperforate, and destitute of any 
adherent power. Substance pulpy, or bladdery. 

Disk, Thin and membranous, greatly expanded in the form of a broad, 
shallow saucer, with the margin lax and undulate, often revolute. Radii 
strongly marked; two gonidial radii often more conspicuous than the 
others, 


eee 


e 


eee 


PA ee ae ne ee 


yaw 


2S a Se 


THE OPELET. 161 


Tentacles. About one hundred and eighty, arranged in four rows; of 
which the first, second, and third contain thirty-six each, the fourth 
seventy-two. These numbers are, however, only approximative; for the 
crowded condition of the tentacles, the irregularity of their serial arrange- 
ment, and the ever-varying distension of the disk, make it almost impos- 
sible to count, much less accurately to distribute them into rows. They 
are sub-equal in length; but what difference there is, is a diminution out- 
wards. All are very long; those of the first row sometimes upwards of 
four inches in length, and more than doubling the diameter of the disk : 
they are slender, and taper uniformly to the tip, which is obtuse and: as if 
truncate, or sometimes slightly enlarged ; very lax and flexuous, they are 
almost always thrown about in irregular, snaky curves, intertwisting in all 
directions. Their entire surface is very adhesive. 

Mouth, Seated on an elevation, which more commonly takes a cylin- 
drical than a conical form; sometimes large and tumid, at others small : 
lip rounded. 


CoLourR. 


Column. Pale wood-brown, umber-brown, purplish-brown, or flesh- 
colour, marked with numerous narrow bands alternately paler and deeper, 
which correspond to the furrows ; sometimes the lighter bands are dull 
light lilac, with darker edges. 

Disk. Dark bistre-brown, or umber-brown; the gonidial radii often a 
lighter shade of the same colour. 

Tentacles. Light pea-green or emerald-green, opaque, with a rich, 
satiny lustre; the extreme tips, for about one-fourth of an inch, rich 
lilac-crimson ; the green gradually blending into the lilac, and the latter 
hue increasing in brilliancy to the extremity. A faint whitish line usually 
runs along the back of each tentacle throughout its length. 

Mouth. Lip agreeing with the disk ; throat ash-brown. 


Size. 

Large specimens are sometimes seen covering an area of six inches in 
diameter, with their tentacles four inches long; the disk two inches, and 
the column the same, in diameter. 

f Locality. 

The western and southern coasts of Europe generally. Shallow pools 
between tide-marks, and littoral rocks. 

VARIETIES. 

a. Smaragdina. The state described above, with rosy-tipped green 


= 


162 ANTHEAD, 


6. Sulphurec. As the preceding, except that the tentacles are pale 
delicate lemon-yellow, with the slightest shade of green ; lilac-tipped. 
(Herm: S.W. Ventnor.) In the Herm specimen, the tentacles were 


scarlet at the foot. 
y. Alabastrina. Column and disk light translucent olive; tentacles 


wholly clear waxy white. (Ventnor. Torquay.) 

8. Rustica. Column and disk dull brown; tentacles ash-grey, generally 
with a paler line down the back. 

e. Punicea. Tentacles mahogany-red. ((@uertner.) 

Anthea cereus is one of our most abundant species, at 
least on the south and west coasts of England and Scot- 
land, and probably all round Ireland. Rapp and Grube 
mdicate it as common in the Mediterranean and Adriatic 
seas; but the omission of any allusion to it by Miiller or 
by Sars implies that it is unknown in the North Sea. Its 
abundance where it occurs, its habit of congregating in 
numbers, and its favourite resort,—shallow pools within 
tide-marks, protected only by a few inches of water from 
the full glare of the sun, as well as its size and conspicuous 
eolours,—all conspire to make it familiar to the most cur- 
sory observer. It would, probably, be one of the first 
species of the whole race to become popularly known ; and 
hence it is not surprising that old Rondeletius should take 
notice of it in the middle of the sixteenth century, includ- 
mg it in his “Libri de Piscibus Marinis,” by the deserip- 
tive epithet of Urtica cinerea. 

The late Dr. Johnston separated the genus from Actinia 
in his “ Brit. Zooph.” Ed. 1; giving it the name of Anthea, 
from dv@os, a flower. The specific name of cereus seems to 
have been appropriated to it in accordance with a fancy 
which Ellis had of naming the Actinioids after many- 
petaled flowers,—cereus being the name of one of the Cacti, 
now a genus. ‘The waxy appearance of the tentacles in 
some of the varieties may have influenced him in the 
selection. The English name I have formed for it alludes 
to the habitually open condition of the disk. 


aa ee ere 


arr ny ae re Lee ey ee e 


THE OPELET. 163 


This is the species, doubtless, which attracted the notice 
of the poet Southey, when, in the retirement of our wild 
western shores, he was meditating his oriental poems, and 
which he has interwoven into their beautiful imagery. 


“ Meantime, with fuller reach and stronger swell, 
Wave after wave advanced; 
Each following billow lifted the last foam 
That trembled on the sand with rainbow-hues: 
The living flower, that, rooted to the rock, 
Late from the thinner element 
Shrank down within its purple stem to sleep, 
Now feels the water, and, again 
Awakening, blossoms out 
All its green anther-necks.” * 


Whether in its native freedom, fringing the edges of 
some shallow basin in the red sandstone of the Devon 
coast, or waving its silky tentacles “like streamers wide 
outflowing,” now exposed, now concealed among the black 
fronds of some undulating Fucus to which it is clinging; 
or throwing them into fitful snake-like contortions as it 
hangs from the rock-work of a well-kept aquarium,—the 
Anthea, especially the emerald variety, is an exquisitely 
beautiful object. Its unwonted liveliness also makes it 
more than usually interesting in the last-named condition ; 
for not only are its tentacles continually in motion, but the 
animal itself is very restless, frequently changing its place, 
and that with so much activity that the process can be 
readily watched by the eye. 

For the following graphic note I am indebted to Mr. 
Robert Patterson, of Belfast. I also have often marked the 
beauty of Anthea under similar conditions, but never in 
such numbers as he describes :— 

*T had on one occasion the pleasure of seeing the Anthea 
under circumstances that I shall not readily forget. Out- 
* Thalaba, xii. 3. 

M 2 


164 ANTHEADA. 


side the belt of sand and rocks that is left uncovered at 
every tide [on the south side of Belfast Lough], is another, 
where the large sea-weeds, such as the tangle and sea- 
furbelows. (Laminaria sp.), flourish. ... As our boat drew 
nigh to the shore, the large spreading fronds of the sea- 
weed became more and more distinct, until each was per- 
fectly revealed to us, below the unruffled surface of the sea. 
We had come at the time of low water; and, as we floated 
onward, could mark the glorious submarine forest which 
was beneath our boat. It rose and fell, it heaved and 
sank, as gracefully as the meadow yields to the breeze, or 
as the willows bow to the breath of April. As we came 
into shallower water, the broad outspread fronds of the sea- 
weed seemed studded with blossoms. What could they 
be? A few moments more disclosed the mystery: each 
blossom was endued with life and motion—it was a living 
Anthea !”’ 

The power exercised by this species, pre-eminently, of 
inflating portions of its body, swelling them out in large 
tumid lobes separated by deep sulci from the rest of the 
circumference, assists it in crawling. We will suppose the 
Anthea resting on the bottom of the vessel, when it feels 
a desire to mount the sides of the glass. Pushing out 
a great inflated lobe towards that side, the sole of which is 
free from the surface, it takes hold of the glass with the 
edge of the lobe; and when the contact is firm, relaxing 
its former hold, it slowly drags forward the body, until the 
lobe is again lost in the general circumference, or even till 
the body projects in two smaller lobes, one on each side 
of the principal one. The base being now made firmly to 
adhere, again the lobe ‘is freed, and again protruded, and 
the same process is repeated until the animal is satisfied 
with the position it has gained. Sometimes this is at mid- 
height, the intertwined tentacles streaming loosely down 


pain i et i 


”* ee ee ee eT 


RE a EW 


THE OPELET. 165 


by their own weight. At other times it rises to the very 
water’s edge, and even thrusts out its base in an inverted 
position upon the surface of the water, as if it would float 
by the mere contact of the dry base with the air, just-as the 
Limnee and many other Mollusca do. And not seldom 
does it boldly break the tie that connects it-with the side 
of the vessel, and actually swim, or at least passively float, 
with its base in contact with the inferior surface of the 
superincumbent stratum of air. A little shaking of the 
vessel, however, causes the water to overflow the frail boat, 
which had been hitherto dry, when the animal instantly 
falls prone to the bottom. 

No very special care is required to maintain the health 
and vigour of the Opelet in captivity: as to situation, it 
will select for itself the position its wayward will may most 
fancy ; and if the water be kept in purity, the lovely crea- 
ture will survive an indefinite period. It needs to be fed 
at frequent intervals, or it will droop and die; for it is one 
of the most voracious of its class. Nothing in the way of 
flesh or fish comes amiss to it: a day or two ago I had an 
instructive example of its gluttony. I had just dropped 
two large ones of the variety Smaragdina into my col- 
lecting-jar, when I succeeded in capturing a young Conger 
Eel, about six inches in length and half an inch in thick- 
ness. I wish that the sciolists who deny a poisoning 
power to the organs of the Actinioids had seen the result 
of the introduction of the lithe and vigorous fish to the 
expectant Anthee. Before it could reach the bottom of the 
jar, the green tentacles of one of the Opelets had entwined 
themselves around its head, and, wrapping the wretch 
around as if with a cloth, almost in an instant had dragged 
it to the cavernous mouth, in which it was partially 
engulphed. My little son, who was with me, begged for 
the life of the fish; and I drew it by force from the green 


ANTHEAD A, 


embrace, in less than five minutes after its capture. But— 
de eo actum est/ it was all up with the poor Eel; its eyes 
were already dimmed in death, and it lay in my hand 
flaccid and helpless, with only a momentary convulsion or 
two ;—the fatal cnide of the tentacles had done their 
work: and when I restored it to the offended gourmand, it 
was speedily lost to view, coiled up in the capacious maw. 

Numerous witnesses vouch for the fact,—though others, 
myself included, are insensible to it,—that the contact of 
Anthea’s tentacles has a perceptible morbific power on the 
human skin. One of the most distinct statements of the 
fact that I have met with is contained in the followimg 
communication, for which I am indebted to Miss Pinchard, 
an accomplished naturalist of Torquay :— 

“T have myself been repeatedly so affected by their 
clinging to the back of my hand as to have the skin 
mottled, and so tender as to induce me to refrain from 
willingly coming in contact with them. On one occasion 
the whole of the back of the hand and fingers was covered 
with white blisters, as if I had thrust it into a bed of 
nettles, and nearly as painful. The affection did not last 
above an hour or two, and only occurred when the Antheas 
had become flaccid and feeble, as they often do after a 
short captivity. I have never found any effect arise from 
handling them when they were in an active and healthy 
state.” 

Mr. Dana attributes to the kindred species, A. flagelli- 
era, a power of making its terrors known even at a 
distance. “Having a number of Monodontas [a genus of 
univalve Mollusca allied to our Trochi] too much crowded 
in a large jar of water, I took out half-a-dozen and placed 
them in a jar with the Actinia. On looking at them about 
three hours after, I found that, instead of climbing like the 
others to the top of the water, they remained just where 


Se ee 


RT ke eae Pee «aye he 


THE OPBLET. 167 


they had fallen, closely withdrawn into their shells. Sup- 
posing them dead, they were taken out, when they directly 
began to emerge; and when returned to the jar with the 


other Monodontas, they were all in less than five minutes 


clustered round its mouth. On placing them again in the 
jar with the Actinia, though kept there for two hours, they 
did not once show themselves out of the shell. Once more 
placing them along with the other shells, they exhibited. 
their former signs of life and activity. The experiment 
was repeated several times with a large Littorina, with the 
same result, evincing fear of the Actenéa on the part of the 
Mollusks.” * 

T can only say that Trochus umbilicatus, Littorina littorea, 
and Chiton fasciculatus have no such fear of Anthea cereus > 
for I have just seen these crawl without hesitation by the 
side of a full-grown and vigorous specimen. 

Though sensible pain or irritation does not invariably 
follow the contact of the human skin with the tentacles of 
Anthea, yet their strong power of adhesion is never lacking. 
Dissection reveals the cause of both, in the unwonted pro- 
fusion with which these organs are furnished with cnide. 
In the outer of the two layers of which the tentacle- 
wall is composed reside the enide, excessively numerous 
and thickly crowded ; of two kinds, chambered and spiral. 
But it is in the crimson tips that the cnide exist in the 
most prodigious profusion. They completely fill the field 
of the microscope, when a portion of the wall, flattened by 
the compressorium, is under view, without the least space 
free of them, not even a line or a point; but overlying each 
other like herrings in a barrel, yet maintaining a general 
uniformity of direction. 

Within the cnidiferous layer, there is another of pig- 
ment cells, visible to the naked eye as a dark brown or 

* Zoophytes, p. 126, 


168 ANTHEADZ. 


nearly black lining, which can be readily pressed out from 
a wound in the tentacle. These granules are very regu- 
larly globular, of a translucent golden-brown hue by trans- 
mitted light, varying in diameter from -0003 to -0004 inch, 
and are arranged in bead-like rows running transversely. 
This pigment-layer does not give the green hue to the 
tentacle; for it may be entirely scraped away, leaving the 
interior surface of the tentacle-wall of the same opane 
emerald-green hue as the exterior. 

This green tint does not appear to be dependent on 
pigment, but on the arrangement of the primary molecules 
of the sarcode ; for when pressed to flatness, it yields no 
transmitted colour, except a very slight yellowish tinge which 
has no distinct location. It presses to a viscid glaire, full 
of amorphous refracting granules, and cnide. The tip 
exhibits similar phenomena, but the diffused tinge is faintly 
purple. 

The larger Holides tear away and devour the tentacles of 
Anthea: but I know not of any other animal that can 
venture on attacking it with impunity. I one day saw an 
amusing example of its power of passive resistance, A 
beautiful little specimen of the variety Alabastrina, which 
had been sent me by Mr. Gatehouse, I had occasion to 
remove from one tank to another. There was a half-grown 
Bullhead (Cottus bubalis) at the bottom, which had been 
in captivity rather more than a fortnight. As he had not 
been fed during that time, I presume he was somewhat 
sharp-set. He marked the Anthea falling, and before it 
could reach the bottom, opened his cavern of a mouth and 
sucked in the bonne bouche. It was not to his taste, how- 
ever; for as instantly he shot it out again. Not discou- 
raged, he returned to the attack, and once more sucked it 
in, but with no better success ; for, after a moment’s rolling 
of the morsel around his mouth, out it shot once more; 


THE OPELET. 169 


and now the Bullhead, acknowledging his master, turned 


tail, and darted into a hole on the opposite side of the tank 
in manifest discomfiture. But if you, my gentle reader, be 
disposed for exploits in gastronomy, do not be alarmed at 
the Bullhead’s failure: only take the precaution to “ cook 
your hare.” Risso calls this species “edulis,” and says of 
it,—“ On le mange en friture,” and I can say “ probatum 
est.” No squeamishness of stomach prevents our volatile 
friends, the French, from appreciating its excellence; for 
the dish called Rastegna, which is a great favourite in 
Provence, is mainly prepared from Anthea cereus. I 
would not dare to say that an Opelet is as good as an 
Omelet ; but chacun & son gott ; try for yourselves. The 
dish is readily achieved. ; 

The species not unfrequently increases by spontaneous 
division. I have elsewhere* given the details of a case of 
this sort; since the publication of which I have received 
from various correspondents accounts of the same pheno- 
menon. The fission begins at the margin of the disk, and 
gradually extends across and downward, until the separa- 
tion is complete, when each moiety soon closes and forms 
a perfect animal. It is, perhaps, only another phase of the 
same tendency, that the tentacles are frequently forked. 

Anthea cereus has been observed in the following British 
localities :— 

Jersey, G. G.: Guernsey, #. W.H. H.: Herm, S. W.: 
Ventnor, G.G.: Weymouth, PH. G.: Lyme Regis, J. 4: 
Dawlish, &. C.J.: Teignmouth, &. C.J.: Torquay, 
P. HH. G.: Falmouth, W.P. C.: Fowey, C. W.P.: Pen- 
zance, R. Q.C.: Scilly, G. H.L.: Ilfracombe, P. H. G.: 
Tenby, P. H. G.: Holyhead, £. Z. W.: Man, F. H. W.: 
Cumbrae, D. R. : Oban, J.C. G.: Ballyholme Bay, W. T. : 
Newcastle (Co. Down), W. T. : Portrush, #. P.W.: Dublin 

* Tenby, a Seaside Holiday, p. 373. 


170 ANTHEADS. 


Bay, £.P. W.: Carnsore Point, E.P. W.: Clew Bay, 
W. T. 


A. Couchii. 
A, dianthus. CEREUS. A. mesembryanthemum. 
[flagellifera. | 
[A. flava. ] 
B. Tuedie. 
[ —? pustulata. | 


The curious little Actinopsis flava of MM. Danielssen 
and Koren,* which appears to be a near ally of this genus, 
is remarkable for having the two gonidial tubercles greatly 
prolonged into semicylinders, and terminating in two points. 
It closely resembles in other respects a small Anthea, and 
is of a yellow hue. As it has occurred in deep water (250 
fathoms) off the southern end of Norway, it may reason- 
ably be looked for on the opposite coast of Scotland, and 
in the Shetland Seas. 


* Fauna Litt, Norveg. ii. 89. 


171 


FAMILY IV.—ACTINIAD &. 


The species of this family, though very few in number, 
are well marked by the single character of being furnished. 
with those peculiar organs which M. Milne-Edwards calls 
(not very felicitously) bowrses chromatophores, or tubercules 
calicinaux, and which I have named marginal spherules. 
These are hollow spherical vesicles, with thin walls, situ- 
ated near the edge of the disk, on the inner side of a sharp 
margin, and outside the exterior row of tentacles. For the 
most part, if not always, these organs are of bright or 
vivid colours, generally differing from those of the other 
parts; and hence they are conspicuous, and impart a 
peculiar aspect to the physiognomy. 

What function in the economy of the animal is per- 
formed by these bead-like spherules is as yet unknown, 
though that they play some important part can scarcely be 
doubted. In our Actinia mesembryanthemum, I have ascer- 
tained that the walls are almost wholly composed of enide, 
of nearly linear form, and about 0025 inch in length. The 
inclosed thread is with difficulty seen, both before and after 
extrusion ; it is, however, of considerable length. From this 
structure I have conjectured that the marginal spherules 
in this family may represent—functionally, not homo- 
logically—the acontia of the Sagartiade, which are here 
wanting. 

Sir John Dalyell has an extraordinary observation to 
the effect that each of these spherules “is pierced by 


172 ACTINIADA, 


an orifice, which opens and dilates occasionally, some 
time after the animal has fed.” * This fact, however, if 
fact it be, is confirmed by no other observer that I am 
aware of. 

The integuments of the column seem to be imperforate : 
this is certainly the case in the genus Actinia; and in 
Phymactis, though the evidence is of a negative character, 
there is no reason to believe that it is otherwise. The 
character of the surface varies according to two very dis- 
tinct types. In Actinia it is remarkably smooth, soft, and 
fine; in Phymactis it is roughened with strong and coarse 
warts. These diversities manifest the osculant position 
of the group; for while the former genus.shows a close 
affinity with the Antheade, the latter takes no less firm 
a hold upon the Bunodide. It is interesting to find an 
exotic species (the A. primula of Draytont) with marginal 
spherules and a smooth skin, which emits long filaments 
from the mouth. Here, then, we have the representative 
of the Sagartiade. 

As regards Geographical Distribution, the Family is 
extensively spread; the two principal genera representing 
it respectively in the northern and southern hemispheres. 
Actinia ranges from the Red Sea, through the Mediter- 
ranean, over the western coasts of Europe, and the isles of 
the North Atlantic. Phymactis is widely distributed over 
the shores of both sides of the South Pacific, and of the 
South Atlantic, reaching a little way north of the Equator, 
being represented by no less than three species at the Cape 
de Verd Isles, where, it is curious to observe, it meets 


* Rare Anim. of Scotl.; 203. 

+ Dana, Zooph. 134: pl. ii. figs. 12—15. At least it is thus represented 
in one of Mr. Dana’s beautiful figures, though no allusion is made to the 
peculiarity in the text. M. Milne-Edwards has made of it his genus 
Nemactis, but with a wholly gratuitous assumption of characters. 


ACTINIADE. 173 


with the beautiful representatives of the northern form,— 
Actinia tabella, and A. graminea of Dana. 


_ ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA. 


Skin smooth. 
Possessing acontia (Not British) .... - Nemactis. 
ieskituie of G0ntAR ox fees ja ho. seu eae Actinia. 
Skin warted (Not British) . 2. 2... ee - Phymactis. 


174. 


GENUS I. ACTINIA (Liyy.). 


Entacmea (EHRENBERG). 


Base adhering to rocks; considerably exceeding 
diameter of column. 

Column pillar-shaped, usually much wider than 
high; margin greatly developed, smooth, separated by 
a broad, but shallow fosse from the outer tentacles; a 
circle of vividly coloured spherules projecting from 
the inner surface of the wall of the fosse; surface 
delicately smooth, imperforate, non-adhesive ; sub- 
stance fleshy. 

Disk greatly expanded and overarching ; concave. 

Tentacles in several rows ; moderately long; nearly 
equal; unicolorous; wholly retractile. 

Mouth set on a protrusile cone ; two pairs of goni- 
dial tubercles, brightly coloured. 


We possess but a single British species, 4. mesem- 
bryanthemum. 


ASTRA&ACEA, ACTINIADA. 


THE BEADLET. 


Actinia mesembryanthemum. 


Prate VL. figs. 1—7. 
Specific Character. Colours of column not arranged in transverse zones. 


Actinia equina. Lisn., Syst. Nat. 1088. Mitzer, Zool. Dan. 
Prod. 231. Muitye-Epw., Corall. i. 238. 

mesembryanthemum. Exiis and Sou., Zooph. 4. Rapp, Polyp. 52 ; 

pl. ii. fig. 1. Groupe, Actin. 10. Coucn, 

Corn. Faun. iii. 74 ; pl. xiv. fig. 1. Jouystoy, 

Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 210; pl. xxxvi. figs. 

1—3. Datrett, Rare Anim. of Scotl. ii. 

203 ; pl. xliii: and xlvii. fig. 1. Cocks, Rep. 

Cornw. Pol. Soe. 1851. 5. pl. i. figs. 7—11, 15. 

GossE, Aquarium, pl. ii. : Tenby, 370: Linn. 

Trans. xxi. 274: Manual Mar. Zool. i. 30; 
fig. 43. TuGwett, Man. Sea-Anem. 52. 


hemispherica. Pennant, Brit. Zool. ivy. 104. 

rufa. Ism. Ibid. iv. 105. Mixer, Zool. Dan. i. 23 ; 
pl. xxiii. figs. 1—3. Lamarck, Anim. s. vert. 
iii. 67. Rocet, Bridgew. Tr. i. 198; figs. 
86, 87. 

purpurea. Cuvier, Tabl. élém. 653. 

corallina. Risso, L’Eur. Mér. v. 285. 

margaritifera. TEMPLETON, Mag. Nat. Hist. ix. 304; fig. 50. 


Jounst. Br. Zooph. i. 213; fig. 46. Cocks, 
Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851. 5. 


Porskalli. M-Epwarps, Corall. 241. 
cerasum. DatyYewL, Rare Anim. Scotl. ii. 219; pl. xlvi. 
: fig. 1. “au 
chiocoeca. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851. 5. pl. i. fig. 14. 
Jounst. Br. Zooph. i. 214; pl. xxxvi. figs. 
: 4—6. 
? tabella. Dana, Zoophytes, 132 ; pl. ii. fig. 9. 
fragacea. TuGWELL, Man. Sea-Anem. 53; pl. 5. 
? graminea. Dana, Zooph. 132; pl. ii. fig. 10. 


Entacmea mesembryan- 


176 ACTINIADZ. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks; considerably exceeding the column, outline 
often long-oval. 

Column. Delicately smooth, without much excretion of mucus, wholly 
imperforate, and non-adhesive. Substance fleshy, approaching to pulpy. 
Form hemispheric in button, a low column in flower, much expanded at 
the summit. Margin strongly developed, with a smooth, sharp edge, 
bounding a wide but shallow fosse, within which are seated a single series 
of numerous spherules. 

Disk. Slightly concave, smooth ; the radii faintly marked. 

Tentacles. About two hundred in full-grown individuals, arranged in six 
rows thus :—6, 6, 12, 24, 48, 96 =192; moderately slender, shorter than 
the diameter of the disk, sub-equal ; flexuous, usually carried arching over 
the margin. 

Mouth. Elevated on a blunt cone. 


CoLourR. 


Base. Edged with a narrow line of bright blue. 
Column. Liver-brown. 

Marginal Spherules. Brilliant azure. 

Disk and Tentacles. Dull pellucid crimson. 
Mouth. Rich crimson. 

Gonidial Tubercles. Blue. 


S1zE. 


Large specimens sometimes cover with their base an area four inches 
long by two wide, attain a height of about an inch, and expand to a 
flower of three inches in diameter. 


LocaLity. 


The Mediterranean and Atlantic shores of Europe, universally distri- 
buted, on exposed rocks, from half-tide, or even a higher level, to low- 
water mark. 


VARIETIES. 


The characteristic colours of the species are crimson and green. The 
extreme of variation on either hand is produced by either of these two 
colours prevailing so as to exclude the other. But many intermediate 
grades are found, either by the blending of the two hues into some inter- 
mediate tint of olive, brown, or liver-colour, or else by the separation of 
the two into a pattern of spots on a different ground, or, where the green 


. 


ee TPR eee art 


he ee 


a 


i Bay i La Sy oe 


Sa ae ee ee 


THE BEADLET. 177 


hue exists alone, by a separation of its constituent elements, blue and 
yellow. We may distinguish the following varieties :-— 

a. Hepatica. The liver-brown condition above described, which is the 
most common (fig. 2). 

* Approaching the red. 

8. Rubra. Column dark crimson ; disk and tentacles as before. In 
youth this and the following variety are of a pellucid light crimson 
(fig. 5). 

y. Chiococca. Column rich scarlet; basal line flesh-colour or non- 
apparent; disk and tentacles full crimson; spherules pure white (fig. 7, 
labelled A. chiococca). The A. Forskdlli of the Red Sea, the A. cerasum 
of the Scottish Coast, the A. chiococea of St. Ives and other parts of Corn- 
wall, must be considered as belonging to this variety ; nor can I separate 
from it the A. tabella of the Cape Verd Isles, except that this approaches 
the var. B. 

** Approaching the green. 

3. Umbrina. Column, disk, and tentacles, a yellowish umber-brown ; 
spherules (as in all the following) azure; basal line (as in all of this 
section) blue (fig. 3). 

e. Ochracea. Column, disk, and tentacles orange-buff. 

¢. Olivacea. Dark olive. 

n. Glauca. Pellucid bluish green ; tentacles pale greenish blue (fig. 1). 

6. Prasina. Fine leek-green; tentacles the same, pellucid. 

*** Colours interrupted. 

t. Opora. Leek-green, with longitudinal broken lines of light green or 
pure yellow ; spherules and basal line blue (fig. 4). 

x. Tigrina. Red, streaked with yellow (TUGWELL). 

A. Fragacea. Liver-coloured, or dark red, studded with numerous spots 
of light green; no basal line. Attains a very large size (fig. 6). 


The most marked of the above varieties is undoubtedly 
the last,—the Strawberry, as it is familiarly named. Its 
constancy of colour and pattern, its tendency to an ovate 
form, and its great size, distinguish it from its fellows; 
and yet I cannot, after much consideration of the subject, 
in the presence of the animals themselves, convince myself 
that it is entitled to specific distinction. I have found 
specimens in which the spots were small and crowded, 
others in which they were large and scattered, others in 
which they were small and scattered; sometimes the 
spots are portions of lines irregularly interrupted, and not 
seldom considerable regions of the surface are quite des- 

N 


178 ACTINIADA. 


titute of spots. The marginal spherules are sometimes 
large, sometimes minute; now azure, then pearly white. 
A more marked character is the absence of the coloured 
line bounding the base; but I am not sure that this is 
constant. 

I am glad to fortify my own opinion by that of so 
acute an observer as Mr. Holdsworth. He writes me as 
follows :—“I have now seen so many connecting links 
between the typical mesembryanthemum and the fragacea, 
so called, that I am convinced they are one and the same 
species; although I have not arrived at this conclusion 
without devoting considerable time and attention to the 
subject.” , 

Of the supposed species, chdococca, cerasum, and Fors- 
hall, for these are assuredly all the same thing, I would 
speak with some deference, owing to my having never 
seen the form in its perfect type, though I have no doubt 
of its identity with the present subject. Sir John Dalyell, 
though he gave it a specific name, summed up his obser- 
vations with the following words :—“ On the whole, I am 
disposed to view it as a variety of mesembryanthemum.” 
Nor do I see how he could do otherwise; for he tells us 
that, of his cerasum, which was very prolific, all the young 
were red but one, which, red at first, became at five months 
old pale green. This bred, and all its progeny were green ; 
though it had upwards of a hundred descendants before it - 
was two years old, and continued to breed for five years 
more. 

It is but fair, however, to add, that Mr. W. P. Cocks, 
who constituted chiococca a species, and to whom I am 
indebted for the beautiful drawing which I have copied 
in my Plate VI. fig. 7, retains his opinion. From one of 
his letters to me, I cite the following interesting notes :— 
“The A. chiococca is certainly a good species. I have 


tare ree. eee ares ry 


: 
so 
¥ 
' 


THE BEADLET. 179 


never found it associated with the A. me anthemum, 
and rarely more than one or two in the same locality 
(though explored ‘by me in Cornwall), with one exception. 
On the under surface of some very large stones used for 
making a pier near the north-western extremity of the 
town of St. Ives, I found several colonies of the in- 
teresting creatures in full health, enjoying the blessings of 
freedom in a nook not often disturbed by anything but 
the rough and boisterous waves from the North Channel. 
About twenty feet from this spot, and nearer high-water 
mark, the under surfaces of the stones forming a portion 
of this abortive construction were covered with old and 
young members of the beautiful varieties of the A. mesem- 
bryanthemum, dark bottle-green with yellow dots, dark 
green with yellow stripes, claret with yellow spots, yel- 
lowish green, light ‘ochre, amber, scarlet, &e. The blue 
beaded rim and blue fillet at base were displayed by each 
member of this group. A specimen of the A. chiococeca, 
which I had in confinement for more than twelve months 
in my experimental jar, furnished me with a batch of young 
ones,—all were true to colour and markings.” This, how- 
ever, can by no means outweigh the positive evidence on 
the other side furnished by Sir J. Dalyell. 

Nor can the A. margaritifera of Templeton be allowed 
any higher rank. The flattened, rigid, corrugated con- 


* dition on which he relied for a specific character, I have 


not unfrequently seen in individuals, which, in the course 
of an hour or two, were swollen out to the softness and 
plumpness normal to the species. Mr. Cocks comes to 
my aid here with an interesting narrative of two specimens 
which he found in a condition exactly comesponding to 
Mr. Templeton’s description of margaritifera. He was at 
once convinced that sickness was the cause of their pecu- 


| iar fatness sii eticanatiig: aad: the alicivelled tegaclaied 


n2 


180 ACTINIADZ. 


character of their skin. He treated them accordingly, and 
in a few days they assumed the usual plump condition. 
Facts seem to show that even the same individual is 
liable to considerable change of colour. Mr. Cocks tells 
me that from some hundreds of experiments he has ascer- 
tained that “the colour is materially changed by diet, 
good or bad; by water, pure or impure; by attention or 
neglect; by over-feeding or starvation.” And Mr. E. L. 
Williams, jun. has favoured me with still more precise 
statements on this very species. He observes :—‘ A. me- 
sembryanthemum does change. Bright green in two 
months has got to dark olive in my tank; bright amber 
to dark brown; brown with vertical yellow spots or dots 
has lost these markings.” 

Characteristic as are the marginal spherules, they are 
subject to some irregularities. I found a large specimen 
of the deep olive variety, which had on the exterior of the 
margin two azure tubercles;—one of them round, well 
defined, and in no respect distinguishable from the intra- 
marginal spherules,—the other somewhat less so. Below 
these, scattered down the side of the column, were four 
or five more blue warts; more irregular in form and 
shape, but still well defined, and perfectly similar in their 
azure hue to the spherules. I subsequently obtained a 
second specimen with exactly the same peculiarities. On 
the other hand, a specimen of the same variety—which 
was sent me from Cumbrae by Mr. D. Robertson about 
six months ago, and is still in my possession—has never 
showed the slightest trace of spherules, though in every 
other respect perfectly normal; the basal line and the 
gonidial tubercles being of the usual azure hue.* It is 


* “MM. Haime has remarked that these bowrses chromatophores, or: 
ealycine tubercles, are to the number of 18 in those individuals which 
have not yet developed the tentacles of the 5th cycle; of 24 in those 
which have 5 or 5} cycles, and of 48 in those which have 6 cycles com- 


CIE Pe OAT, er aa eR e 


Fr ae RR rn ah Ne: SPS ee eT 
; 


THE BEADLET. 181 


by no means unusual to see examples of the red varieties, 
in which the spherules are pale red,—the blue pigment 
being defective. 

The name Actinia, originally applied to the whole race 
of Sea-Anemones, is derived from axrtiv, a ray; the specific 
appellation, mesembryanthemum, is the name of the fig- 
marigold, so called from its opening at noon, (weonpPpia, 
= pécos, nuépa, mid-day): the term Jeadlet alludes to the 
marginal beads. 

As no species is more abundant, nor more easily pro- 
eured than this, since it affects the most exposed rocks, 
and does not seek the protection of hollows, so none is 
more easily reconciled to captivity, and few are more 
beautiful. It requires no special treatment; a surface for. 
the support of its base, and water sufficient to cover it, 


are enough; nor is it essential to its existence that the 


latter should be very pure, for it will continue to drag on 
life when its fellows have died out. Yet few species more 
immediately resent negligence of this kind, or more grate- 
fully express their appreciation of a pure and limpid 
element. Widely as the species is distributed in a state 
of freedom, we scarcely ever see it except where the water 
is habitually clear. It is a curious fact, for which I am 
indebted to Mr. E. L. Williams, jun., that “the Mersey 
estuary is the only place on our coasts in which he has 
not found this species;” which he attributes to the foul- 


ness of the water. This absence would be less remarkable, 


were it not that Tealia crassicornis is abundant there; but 
Actinia is clean and Tealia is dirty in its habits. In the 


plete; that is to say, in the large individuals where 192 tentacles or there- 
abouts may be counted. He has recognised also that these pouches 
communicate directly with the sub-tentacular chambers of the first cycles; 
and that they contain little muscular fibre, but carry navicular thread-cells 
of various forms, and of which the interior thread is indistinct, together 
with transparent vesicles, and pigment-globules.” —Mitnz-Epwarps, Hist. 
Corallaires, i. 240. 


182 ACTINIADA. 


neighbouring estuary of the Dee, the former is common, 
as usual. 

With ordinary attention the pretty Beadlet will attain 
a good old age in captivity. A veteran, whose portrait is 
given by Sir John Dalyell, had lived in his possession 
twenty years (in 1848), and was judged to be not less 
than seven years old when he obtained it. At Sir John’s 
death the specimen passed into the hands of Professor 
Fleming, and it was not many months ago that I heard 
of it as still surviving. If it is alive now, it must be 
approaching forty years old. This individual was the 
prolific parent of 334 children. A second specimen had 
lived about fourteen years under the worthy baronet’s 
care. 

The species is generally viviparous, producing abun- 
dantly ; but sometimes it gives birth to ciliated, shapeless 
embryos, on which tentacles appear in about ten days. 
Copious details of high interest on the embryology and 
general economy of this Anemone are furnished in the 
magnificent volumes of the eminent Scottish naturalist. 

It is superfluous to give a list of habitats for this 
species: since it occurs all round the coasts of England, 
Wales, Scotland, and Ireland, wherever there ,is rock 
enough to afford it standing ground. 

The Actinia Cari of Della Chiaje (the A. concentrica 
of Risso) appears to be a second species of the genus; at 
least in none of the recognised varieties of ours do we 
perceive an approach to the pattern of colouring,—a series 
of concentric zones or bands,—by which that is marked. 


A. cereus. 
MESEMBRYANTHEMUM. 
[Nemactis.] [Phymactis. ] 
Actinoloba. Bunodes, 


eT" 


Fa 
a 
: 
. 

} 


183 


FAMILY V.—BUNODID. 


1 propose to include in this family all those species, the 
surface of whose column is studded with persistent tuber- 
cles, and which are not provided with marginal spherules, 
nor with perforations of the integument. In some instances, 
certainly,— perhaps in all,—these excrescences have the 
faculty of adhering with force to foreign bodies; and thus 
they agree in function with the suckers of many of the 
Sagartiade ; there is this difference, however, that whereas 
in those, the margins of the suckers do not rise above the 
general level when inactive, in these the tubercles are 
always well developed, and are particularly prominent in 
those species in which the adhesive function, if it exists at 
all, is feeble and rarely exercised. 

The integuments and muscular coats appear to have 
a much greater density than in any of the previous families, 
and the movements of the animals manifest a higher degree 
of vigour, and even of intelligence. The tentacles are 
generally short, thick, and conical. 

The typical and sub-typical genera—Bunodes and Tealia 
—appear to be represented by species which are scattered 
over the seas of the world, and are for the most part 
littoral: the genera Cystactis and Echinactis are confined 
to the southern hemisphere: and the aberrant genera, Bolo- 
cera, Hormathia, and Stomphia, inhabit the deep water of 
the British and Norwegian seas. 


184 


ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA. 


Tubercles conspicuous. 
Disk and tentacles retractile. 
Tubercles of one kind only. 
In the form of rounded warts, 
Irregularly scattered . . . . . . TYealia. 
Arranged in vertical lines . . Bunodes. 
Arranged in many horizontal ro 
(Not British) . . . . “A. fusco-rubra.” 
Arranged in a single dasa line . Hormathia. 
In the form of pointed blisters (Not British) Oystactis. 
Tubercles of two kinds, viz. rounded warts and 
erectile pointed papille (Not British) . . Echinactis. 
Disk and tentacles not retractile. . . . . . . Bolocera, 
Tubercles obsolete . . . o eel see a Stomphia, 


Ee ee ee et 


an 


185 


GENUS I. BOLOCERA (Gossz). 


Anthea (JOHNSTON). 


Base adherent: not much exceeding the column. 

Column pillar-like, the diameter and height sub- _ 
equal. Surface generally very smooth, studded with 
small warts, remotely scattered. Substance “ fibro- 
cartilaginous” (W. P. C.). 

Disk smooth, circular in outline, not overlapping 
the column. 

Tentacles short, thick, constricted at foot, obtusely 
pointed, longitudinally furrowed ; flexuous and motile ; 
easily separated ; not retractile. 

Mouth not raised on a cone; stomach capable of 
being greatly protruded. 


There is but a single known species, B. Tuedia. 


ASTRAACEA. BUNODID&. 


THE DEEPLET. 
Bolocera Tuedie. 


Pirate VY. jig. 1. 


Specific Character. Body dull red; tentacles chestnut. 


Actinia Tuedie. JoHNsSTON, Mag. Nat. Hist. v. 163 ; fig. 58. 

Anthea Tuediw. Ixtp., Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2.; i. 242, fig.53. LAaNDsBOROUGH, 
Scott. Chr. Her. 1840, 248. Cocxs, Rep. Cornw. Pol. 
Soc. 1851, 11;. pl. ii. fig. 33. Gossz, Ann, N. H.; 
Ser. 3. i, 416. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent, scarcely exceeding the column. 

Column. Cylindrical, smooth and as if polished on the general surface, 
but studded, somewhat sparsely, with minute rounded warts, which are 
scarcely apparent when the animal is extended, but, on contraction, “ re- 
semble the heads of small pins in a pincushion” (W. P. C.); in this condi- * 
tion the smooth surface is thrown into transverse wrinkles. Substance 
firm and sub-cartilaginous. 

Disk. Flat, smooth, without conspicuous radii; outline aeoulte, not 
exceeding the column. 

Tentacles. Numerous, in three rows, close-set; the innermost remote 
from the mouth, sometimes two inches in length, and half an inch in 
diameter ; the other rows diminishing in gradation; stout, constricted at 
the foot, then swollen, and tapering to an obtuse point, which is perforate ; 
marked with longitudinal sulci, which are obliterated when the tentacle is 
completely distended; very flexuous and motile; readily detached, and 
retaining their irritability and worm-like motions long after the separation. 
They cannot be retracted within the column, nor are they capable of any 
considerable elongation or contraction, 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone. Lip apparently not thickened. Stomach- 
wall capable of being protruded in the form of great bladder-like lobes, 


Cotour. 


Column. An uniform deep flesh-colour, reddish, or brownish-orange. 
Disk. A lighter tinge of the same. 

Tentacles. Chestnut or reddish flesh-colour. ; 

Stomach. When protruded, reddish with paler lines. 


THE DEEPLET. 187 


SIzeE. 
Three or four inches in height, and from five to eight inches in diameter, 
when expanded. 
LocaLity. 
Deep water off rocky coasts, from fifty to two hundred fathoms. 


It will be evident from the above-mentioned characters 
that this form must be considered as generically distinct 
from Anthea. It is, in fact, intermediate between that 
genus and Tealia ; with a preponderance, however, of the 
features proper to the latter, which has induced me to 
assign it to this family. In this judgment I carry the con- 
currence of Mr. W. P. Cocks, who has enjoyed more 
opportunities of studying it in life than any other naturalist ; 
and to whom I am indebted for the carefully coloured 
drawing which embellishes my Plate VY. as well as for some 
interesting notes. 

Notwithstanding its great size, and somewhat inelegant 
-form, Mr. Cocks calls it “a charming creature ;” and says 
on another occasion, “this is certainly a beautiful animal 
when healthy and half-grown; though the queer move- 
ments of the peristome and lobed mouth, pouting like an 
old man with negro lips and toothless jaws, at once 
pronounce its relationship with crassicornis.” 

It is essentially a deep water species: Messrs. Danielssen 
and Koren ascribe it to the coralline zone off the coast of 
Norway, from thirty to fifty fathoms, and, on the authority 
of Mr. Sars, mention it as ranging to the amazing depth 
of two hundred fathoms.* On the Cornish coast, it is 
not seldom found among trawl-refuse ;f and Dr. Johnston 
tells us that in Berwick Bay it occasionally occurs at- 
tached to the deep-sea lines of the fishermen. “I have 
often found,” he remarks, “ the tentacula in a separated 


* Fauna Litt, Norv. ii. 87. + Cocks in litt. 


188 BUNODIDA. 


state adhering to their lines; and, as these retain their 
irritability and motion for a long time, they are apt to be 
mistaken for independent and perfect worms, which they 
much resemble.” * : 

I have seized so unusual a peculiarity as the ready 
parting with the tentacles, to create a generic appellation,— 
Bolocera, from Barro, to cast, and xépas, the horn, The 
word Tuedie was applied to the species by Dr. Johnston, 
because Tuedia was the ancient name of the maritime parts 
of Berwickshire. The English term I have formed in 
allusion to its habits. 

With the exception of some extraordinarily gigantic 
specimens of A. dianthus, this is the largest of British 
Anemones. The following are its recorded localities. 

Peterhead, C. W. P: Berwick Bay, G. J.: Cullercoats, 
J. A.: Falmouth, W. P. C.: Cumbrae, D. LZ. 


A. cereus. 
TUEDIA. 
T. crassicornis. 


* Br. Zooph. i. 243. 


bo 


a" 


—— - hat Aw \. a Aaa wet Hy in| ae yee S 
a a a a = at el mal - 
‘ 


a a a al 


189 


GENUS II. BUNODES (Gossg). 


Actinia (ELLIS). 
Cribrina (EHRENBERG). 


Base exceeding the column; its outline generally 


_undulate. 


Column pillar-like; the height in extension consi- 
derably exceeding the diameter. Surface studded 
with permanent rounded warts, set in vertical lines, 
which are separated by bands of plane skin. Margin 
denticulate. Substance firmly fleshy. 

Disk flat, circular in outline; scarcely overlapping 
the column. Radii conspicuously marked. 

Tentacles not very numerous, arranged in several 
rows, submarginal; moderately long and _ slender, 
obtusely pointed, smooth, not very flexuous ; marked 
(in the more typical species) with irregular white spots 
on the front face; perfectly retractile. 

Mouth not raised on a cone; stomach not habi- 
tually protruded: gonidial tubercles generally conspi- 
cuous. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Warts generally distributed. 
Warts large and small in alternate lines . . . ~~ . gemmacec. 
Warts subequal. 
Warts vertically remote, unicolorous . . ... .« thallia. 
Warts vertically contiguous, red-spotted. . . . . Ballii. 
Warts only on upper halfofcolumn ........ - coronata. 


ASTRAACEA, BUNODID. 


THE GEM PIMPLET. 
Bunodes gemmacea. 


Puate LV. jigs. 2, 3. 


Speoifie Character. Alternate series of large and small warts. Column 
grey or flesh-coloured, with six equidistant bands of white. Tentacles 
thick, marked with white oval spots. 


Actinia gemmacea. Extis and Soranper, Zooph, 3. Jounst. Brit. Zooph. 
. Ed. 2, i, 223; pl. xxxviii. figs. 6—9. Cocxs, Rep. 
Cornw. Soc. 1851. 7; pl.i. figs, 24, 25, 28. Gossn, 
Dev. Coast, 168; pl. viii. figs. 1—4, 
verrucosa. PENNANT, Brit. Zool. iv.103. LamarcKk, Anim. s. vert. 
iii. 70. Rapp, Polyp. 50. 
? glandulosa. Rapp, Polyp. 52. 
Cribrina verrucosa, ExrRerns. Corall, 40. 
Cereus gemmaceus. M.-Epwarps, Corall. i. 265, pl. C 1, fig. 3. 
Bunodes gemmacea, Gossn, Tr. Linn. Soc. xxi, 274; Ann. Nat, Hist. Ser. 3. 
i. 417; Manual Mar. Zool. i. 29. 


, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks; in general but slightly exceeding the column. 

Column. Pillar-like, rising to a height twice the diameter. Surface 
covered with round warts, arranged in forty-eight vertical rows, according 
to the following arrangement :—six primary rows equidistant, distinguished 
by their white colour, and by their superior size; six secondary rows, 
intermediate ; twelve tertiary, intercalated between the primary and secon- 
dary ;—the difference in size between these is slight, but is often dis- 
cernible ; finally a row of quaternary warts (twenty-four in all) is placed 
between all the above, and these are much smaller and less distinct. All 
these become indistinct towards the base, being traceable downwards in 
the ratio of their order; while towards the summit they become larger 
and bladder-like, the uppermost individuals of all the series crowning the 


VITIVHL @ VJIOVWWS9 SICGCONNG 
17 ve 8 SINYOOISSVHD VIIV3L 


SA0/0 WAM SUNG TOR N/ 


THE GEM PIMPLET. 191 


margin like serried teeth. In contraction the surface is thrown into trans- 
_ yerse wrinkles, which of course pass between, and not across, the warts, and 
thus a latticed or decussate appearance is communicated ;—as if each wart 
were the centre of a little square. 

Disk. Fiat or slightly concave ; the outline circular and plane, a little 
overlapping. Gonidial radii strongly developed. 

Tentacles. In four rows, containing 6, 6, 12, 24—48; corresponding to 
_ the lines of warts. They are sub-marginal, thick, moderately long, conical, 
_ obtuse; decreasing in size from the first row outwards ; and are generally 
_ earried arching over the margin, or bent into a double curve, like the 
branches of a candlestick : often, however, they assume a clumsy, thickset 
form, swollen in the middle (see fig. 3). 

Mouth. Raised on a blunt cone, Lip furrowed. Gonidial tubercles 
_ prominent. 


CoLourR. 


4 Column. Rose-pink, varying in brilliance, and often becoming brownish 
_ towards the summit. Primary warts white, making conspicuous longitu- 
dinal bands, which in the button state form a beautiful radiating pattern. 
Secondary and tertiary warts bluish- or reddish-grey, the former generally 
paler. Quaternary warts generally indistinguishable from the ground 
colour. Sometimes, however, the quaternary row which bounds each 
primary on each side is also white (see fig. 3). 
_ Disk. Ground colour bluish-grey on the outer region, blending into a 
fine yellow-green around the mouth: each radius is bounded by a scarlet 
line, lost at about half-disk; the primary radii are often marked with 
darker and paler portions, sometimes even black and white ; and the result 
is a brilliant kaleidoscopic star, of varied hues, the blue and scarlet lines 
in particular running out among the tentacles. 
Tentacles. Pellucid grey or whitish, the front face 
_ olive, undefined, and deepening into black in the median 
line, often with a purple reflection : this face is crossed 
_ by about half-a-dozen large transversely-oval spots of 
_ opaque white, occasionally interchanged with more nar- 
_ row and even linear ones. These spots are well-defined, 
and, though they vary in the tentacles of the same in- 
dividuals, are never wanting. 
Mouth. Lip whitish: gonidial tubercles grey, each 
_ marked with a central dot of bright rose-colour. 


‘S1zs, 


Rarely exceeding an inch in diameter, and an inch and a half or two 
_ inches in height. 


192 BUNODIDZ. 


Locatiry, 


The south-western and southern shores of England and Ireland; the 
coasts of Portugal, and of the Mediterranean : on exposed rocks and shallow 
pools between tide-marks. 


VARIETY. 


The species is but little subject to variation of form, or of hue, except 
within the limits mentioned above. Specimens differ a good deal, how- 
ever, in the intensity and brilliance of the tints. 


The Gem was first discovered, or at least distinctly 
described, just a century ago, by Gaertner, who found it 
on the shores of Cornwall; but it was not till fifteen years 
afterwards that it received a name. Pennant then called 
it Actinia verrucosa ; but this appellation has yielded to 
that of A. gemmacea, which was conferred upon it by 
Ellis and Solander, and which has been so generally 
adopted by British zoologists, that it would be pedantic 
to attempt to restore the original name. Both epithets are 
appropriate. Pennant’s (signifying warty) is, however, 
rather generic than specific; while Ellis’s, if somewhat 
more vague, is well fitted to suggest the delicate beauty of 
this pretty little species,— perhaps unrivalled, among British 
species, for its painting. The English term by which 
I designate the genus, alludes to the pimples, or warts, 
with which the animals are studded. 

It is essentially a littoral species. I am not aware that 
it has ever been brought up from deep water, nor does it 
much affect the concealment of holes or crevices. The 
surfaces of stones, and shallow pools within tide-marks, 
are the stations it habitually prefers, and it is often found 
in the latter even when they are but little below the level 
of high water. It appears to be gregarious; for, thorgh — 
we do not find individuals crowded together, as is the 
habit of bellis, a dozen or twenty are often seen occu- 
pying the shallow basins of an area of rock a yard or two 


Bes ee aa, eee 
4 


ene 


THE GEM PIMPLET. 193 


in extent, though none are to be seen beyond this. In 
the button-state, the radiating bands of white on the red- 
dish-grey ground, with the globular form, give a primé 
facie resemblance to an Echinus, denuded of its spines, 
which is very striking. In their native pools the specimens 
are often partially enveloped in gravel, from which, if 
closed, their six-fold star appears prettily conspicuous; 
while if expanded, the brilliant pencilled disk, and white- 
spotted tentacles, are even more attractive. 

The Gem is detached with ease, and becomes reconciled 
to captivity without difficulty, where it preserves its cha- 
racteristic habit of stationing itself on some exposed spot, 
whence it ‘is little given to wander. 

It is prolific, bringing forth living and well-formed young, 
which are produced one, two, or three in twenty-four hours, 
and not scores or hundreds in a night, as are those of S. 
bellis. The Gem, however, will often continue to breed at 
this rate for weeks. The new-born young immediately 
attach themselves, and display the characteristic colour and 
markings: they have twelve tentacles; that is to say, the 
primary and secondary series are developed before birth. 
In this condition they greedily devour food when presented. 

Miss Loddiges, of Hackney, who has been very successful 
in breeding and preserving this, as well as other species of 
Anemones, has favoured me with some particulars of her 
treatment, which may be useful to others. Speaking of 
the young, this lady observes :—“ I feed them from their 
first appearance,—rather a delicate operation,—and they 
steadily grow, though rather slowly... .. Oyster seems 
the best food for them, but I give them lobster, and even 
meat. . . . I am satisfied sea-weed is not necessary in the 
tank: I have discarded it for some time, and only admit 
one small piece of red for an ornament. I syringe the 


___ water daily.” 


0 


194 _ BUNODID. 


The voracity of the species I have already alluded to. 
From my friend Mr. F. H. West, I learn that it is even ot 
cannibal propensities. A Sag. troglodytes, var. &, he suddenly 
missed, and suspected gemmacea of murder. His suspicions 
were confirmed, for the lost wretch was disgorged in two 
portions, of which the first came away on the second day,, 
the second and larger on the fourth. The result of diges- 
tion was manifest, in the squeezed and shapeless appearance 
of the masses, the dissolution of the interior, and the flaky, 
sloughing of the exterior. 

In the published descriptions, often imperfect and vague, 
of foreign species, we can sometimes find indications of 
probable affinities. The Act. tuberculosa of Bass’s Strait 
(Quoy et Gaim.), A. dicolor of St. Vincent (Lesueur), 
A, xanthogrammica of Kamtchatka (Brandt), A. cruentata 
of Tierra del Fuego (Dana), and A. Macloviana of the 
Malouines (Lesson),—are doubtless true Bunodes, indi- 
cated not only by their warty surface, but also by the 
white spotting of their tentacles. Of these, the first two 
seem closely allied to our gemmacea, the third to thallia, 
while the last two deviate more from the type, and appear 
parallel with Ballit. 

The following are the recognised British localities of 
the species:—Guernsey, Z. W. H. H.: Jersey, G. G.: 
Weymouth, W. 7. (w.): Torquay, BP. H. G.: Paignton, 
P, H, Ge: Falmouth, W. P. C.: Ilfracombe, P. H. Go: 
Douglas, / H. W.: Youghal, J. &. G.: Cork, J. RB. G.: 
Mizen Head, #. P. W.: Valentia, J. M. Jones. 


GEMMACEA, 
[tuberculosa]. 
[bicolor], 
thallia, 


ASTRAACEA, BUNODID&. 


THE GLAUCOUS PIMPLET. 
: Bunodes thallia. 


Puate IV. Figs. 5, 6. 


“Specific Character. Warts sub-equal, vertically remote, unicclorous: 


Bunodes thallia. Gosse, Annals N. H. Ser. 2, xiv. 283: Tenby, 361; pl. 
xxiii. fig. e: Linn. Trans. xxi. 274. Annals N. H. 
Ser. 3, i. 417. 

Cereus Thalia. Minne Epwarps, Hist. Corall. i. 266. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks ; considerably exceeding column. 

Column. A rounded button in contraction, pillarlike in extension, 
rising to full twice the diameter. Surface covered with numerous (about 
thirty-six) vertical rows of sub-equal prominent warts, which are separated, 
in moderate extension, both laterally and vertically, by interspaces of about 
equal width, in which the skin is irregularly corrugated. The warts are 
about twenty-five in each row, and reach from the base to the margin, 
which is serrated with the elongated topmost warts of all the rows, They 
are strongly adhesive, and are occasionally drawn out to the length of a ~ 
line, before they yield their hold. Substance firmly fleshy. 

Disk.. Flat, or slightly concave; radii indistinct. 

Tentacles. Sub-marginal, set in four rows; 6, 6, 12, 24—=48 :—the first 
three rows are, however, so nearly equidistant from the centre that, on a 
cursory inspection, there appear but two rows altogether. They are sub- 
equal, thick, obtuse, about half as long as the diameter of the column ; and 
are commonly spread horizontally, or overarching outwards. 

Mouth. Set on a prominent cone. ; 


CoLouR. 


Column. Pale bluish or greyish green, with dark warts. 

Disk. A many-rayed star of yellow rays on a blackish ground, produced 
in the following manner. The radii are blackish, each marked with a 
central spindle-shaped line of yellow ; in the primary and seccndary radii, 

0 2 


196 BUNODID. 


the yellow mark is broader and near the mouth ; in the others, it is more 
slender, longer, and reaches to the tentacular region. 
Tentacles. Pellucid grey, with the front 
face olive, on which are scattered numerous 
spots of opaque white: these spots are gene- 
: rally roundish, or polyhedral, and large and 
TENTACLE small ones are crowded together. 
(lateral view). Mouth. Blackish, with the gonidial tuber- 
cles of a more intense hue. 


S1zE. 
Button an inch and a quarter in diameter, elongating to a height of 
two inches ; expanse of flower two inches. 
Locatity. 


Both sides of the Bristol Channel; rocks within tide-marks. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Hygroxyla. The green condition described above. 

B. Xeroxyla. Column dingy brown, with slightly darker warts; disk 
of the same tint; marked as in a. 

y. Caustoxyla. Column reddish chocolate, with darker warts; disk dark 
olive ; marked as in a; the central half sometimes white. 


I first discovered this species at Lidstep, on the coast of 
Pembroke, in 1854, and described and figured it in “ Tenby ; 
a Seaside Holiday.” Very little has been added to its 
recorded history since that time ; not more than four speci- 
mens having occurred, so far as I am aware, to subsequent 
researches, all of which were obtained near Ilfracombe. 

Though manifestly a rare species, I was so fortunate as 
to light upon a numerous colony at its discovery. About 
a dozen individuals of different sizes were associated in the 
dark angles and pools of a little insular rock exposed at 
spring-tide, that lies just off the cove called the Droch, 
near Lidstep. They were not troglodyte in habit, but 
adherent to the open rock, and therefore easily detached. 
The species seems social ; clustering together in groups, 
mutually pressing each other’s sides. 

The habits of the Glaucous Pimplet in captivity are 


THE GLAUCOUS PIMPLET. 197 


closely like those of the Gem. Like the latter, it expands 
under the stimulus of the light, rather than in darkness, 
indicating a habitually exposed mode of life. Like gem- 
macea, it frequently erects itself when closed, in the form 
of a pillar; and throws off successive rings of mucus from 
its body, which accumulate around its base, if not removed. 
The action of the waves would wash these away in a state 
of freedom ; in a tank they should be detached by means 
of a stick or hair-pencil. 

Ihave never seen the warts of gemmacea used as suckers ; 
but in specimens of the present species, F observed. this. 
function exercised by them very signally ; not in the way 
of attaching extraneous fragments to the body, like S. bellis- 
and T. crassicornis, but in taking hold of a firm support, 
like S. troglodytes. The suckers of the column adhered 
with force to the side of the glass vessel, and by contrac- 
tion were stretched as above described. 

The specific name “ thallia” (not Thalia, as M. Milne. 
Edwards misquotes it) I adopted in allusion to the elon- 
gated form and glaucous colour, from @adXéa, an olive- 
shoot. The same idea recurs in’ the epithets which distin- 
guish the varieties,—as if the glaucous, the dull brown, and_ 
the chocolate, were the twig as green, dry, and scorched. 

It is possible that the immature specimens, found by 
Templeton in Belfast Lough, and named by him Aet. 
monile,* were the young of this species ; though they have 
been generally attributed to gemmacea. 


gemmacea. 
THALLIA. 
[xanthogrammica]. 
[Artemisia}. 
T. crassicornis. 


* Loudon’s Mag. N. H. ix. 303; fig. 49. 


ASTRAEACEA. ; ‘ BUNODID. 


THE RED-SPECKED PIMPLET. 
Bunodes Balliz. 


Puate IV. Fig. 4. 
Specific Character, Warts sub-equal, vertically contiguous, red-spotted. 


Actinia Ballii. Cocks, Rep. Corn. Soc. 1849, 94; Ibid. 1851, 9; pl. ii. 

figs. 9, 17, 18. 
clavata. THompson (w.), Zoologist, 1851, App. exxvii. Gossx, 

Ann. N. H. Ser. 2, vol. xii. 127. Aquarium, 35. 
TucWELL, Man. Sea Anem. 100, pl. iv. Jorpan, Ann. 
N. H. Ser. 2, xv. 88. 

Bunodes clavata, Gossr, Linn. Trans. xxi. 274, Ann. N. H, Ser. 3, i. 
417. 

Cereus clavata. | Mitne Epwarps, Hist. Corall. i. 267. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base, Adherent to rocks; considerably exceeding the column; generally 
lengthened-ovate in outline. 

Column. Low and broad, scarcely rising to a pillar-form. Surface 
covered with warts about equal in size, arranged in forty-eight longitu- 
dinal rows, of which the alternate rows are traceable from the margin only 
about half-way down the column ; the warts are contiguous vertically, but 
the rows are separated laterally, by interspaces of equal width, of corru- 
gated skin. The primary rows consist of about twenty-four warts, 
becoming indistinct towards the base; the uppermost individuals of all 
the rows crowning the margin as blunt teeth. 

Disk. Flat; the outline nearly circular, often much overlapping the 
column. Radii distinct; gonidial radii broad and strongly marked. 

Tentacles. Nearly marginal, set in five rows; 6, 6, 12, 24,24—=72: the 
first three rows nearly equidistant from the centre. They are longer and 
more slender than in gemmacea, conical, obtuse; decreasing in size from 
the first row outwards; and are usually carried horizontally spread, with 
a very constant tendency to curl upward at the tips. 

Mouth. Raised on a cone; often gaping; throat membranous, protru- 
sile: gonidial tubercles usually prominent, often inflated. 


CoLovur. 


Base. Red, sometimes rich crimson. 


THE RED-SPECKED PIMPLET. 199 


Column. Pale yellow: each wart crowned with a well-defined crimson 
speck, the interspaces irregularly freckled with crimson. In some instances, 
the pale yellow predominates on the upper half of the column, the crimson 
on the lower. 

- Disk. Pellucid-grey, covered or dusted with opaque white specks, 
varying in size and shape, as if sprinkled with flour. 

; Tentacles. Very pellucid, pale yellow, but 
some or all frequently tinged with a lovely 
rose-colour: always sprinkled, on all sides, with 
minute irregularly shaped specks of opaque 
white. 

Mouth. Lip and gonidial tubercles some- 


TENTACLE times crimson or rose-pink; but sometimes 
(lateral view). whitish or pale yellow. 
Sze. 


Ordinary specimens are an inch in diameter and half an inch in 
height, with an expanse of two inches. Mr. Tugwell figures one two 
inches in diameter, and three in expanse; and Mr. Brodrick writes me 
that one, which has been in his possession nearly three years, measures, 
after feeding, four inches in expanse. 


LOCALITY, 


The southern and south-western shores of England; on the under sur- 
faces of stones, and in crevices between tide-marks, and in deep water. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Rosea. The most lovely condition above described. : 

B. Dealbata. The roseate hue wanting; the tentacles cream white; in 
other respects as a. 
" . Funesta. Tentacles dark umber or wood-brown, with little trans- 
lucency. Disk smoke-black. Both dusted with yellowish-white specks as 
usual, Column as a; but tinged with brown. Usually of large size. 
' 8. Livida. Tentacles and disk tinged in various degrees with bluish-grey 
or livid green, often in a sort of changeable lustre, like that of putrescent 
flesh ; with the characteristic specks. Chiefly from deep water. 


Mr. William Thompson, of Weymouth, described this 
species by the name of Actinia clavata, in the Appendix to 
the Zoologist for 1851. But Mr. W. P. Cocks had already 
described and figured, under the title of A. Ballit, the same 


200 BUNODID&. 


species, in his admirable memoir “On the Actinie of 
Falmouth,” which was read before the Cornwall Polytechnic 
Society, in the autumn of the same year. He had been 
acquainted with the species ever since. 1847 ; and had pub- 
lished the name in the Society’s Report for 1849. To Mr. 
Cocks’s appellation, therefore, belongs the claim of priority ; 
but even were it otherwise, Mr. Thompson’s name must be 
rejected, not only because it had been previously* applied 
to another species, but, according to a canon which I have 
already had occasion to apply to one of my own names,f 
because it conveys a false idea. The name clavata origi- 
nated in a misconception. In the single specimen known 
to Mr. Thompson at that time, he mistook the curling of 
the tips of the tentacles for a clubbing, whence the name 
“‘clavata’’—clubbed. These organs have not the slightest 
tendency to such a form as the term implies. The name 
which I adopt was given, I believe, in honour of the late 
Robert Ball, LL.D., an eminent marine zoologist. 

I found the species not uncommon at Weymouth in 
1853, especially on the ledges that are exposed at the 
recess of the tide, under Byng Cliff. Its habit is to lurk 
in narrow fissures in the cavities of the under side of large 
flat stones, and not unfrequently in the deserted holes of 
Pholas or Saxicava. 'The disk is very wide and flat; and, 
as it is also very expansile, it spreads itself to a consider- 
able distance around the margin ofits hole. So essential is 
it to its comfort, however, that it should have a retirement, 
that if it be put into an aquarium, though it may at first 
affix itself to a flat stone or to the surface of a shell, it will 
creep away, by means of its base, till it find some loose 
stone, under which it will insinuate itself till it is quite 


* M. Rathke had named clavata an Actinia, which he found on the coast 
of Norway, in 1843. 
+ See ante, .p. 75. 


ee 


THE RED-SPECKED PIMPLET. 201 


concealed ; or a narrow crevice, as between two contiguous 
stones, into which it may thrust its body. The variety 
livida, which is not rare in Weymouth Bay, in deep 
water, manifests the same habit, for it is usually found to 
have ensconced itself in one of the angular cells or cham- 
bers formed by the coral-like plates of Eschara foliacea, 
which afford retreat to so many and so various creatures. 

A remarkable peculiarity of this species is the degree to 
which it becomes transparent by distension with water. 
The effect of this is not the general swelling of the body, 
as in ZT. crassicornis, which is remarkable for the same habit 
effected in another way, but a great dilatation of the disk 
and tentacles, which then expand to an extraordinary 
degree, becoming so diaphanous as to be almost destitute of 
colour, and showing with absolute clearness the craspeda 
in the intersepts of the visceral cavity. 

The species is hardy in captivity, and the varieties a and 
8 are very beautiful, especially the former. The variety y 
has not unfrequently beguiled me, on a hasty examination, 
into the notion that S. dellis was before me; and I think 
that these two species form links by which the families 
Bunodide and Sagartiade are connected. There is also a 
remote affinity between this species and Azpt. Couchit. 

My friend, Mr. F. H. West, has received B. Ballit from 
the French coast of the Channel. On our own side it 
ranges in tolerable abundance from the Hampshire coast to 
the Lizard, as the following list will indicate :-— 

Selsey; Ventnor, G. G.: Freshwater Bay, F. N. B.: 
Weymouth; Torquay, P. H. G.: Falmouth, W. P. C. 


thallia. 
~ Sag. bellis. BALuil. Aip. Couchii. 
[cruentata]. 


[Macloviana]. 


PM IE OLN A TL I, LM te ASE EIEN GPE EOE Tl er Tg 


Pope 


ASTRHACEA. . “BUNODIDA. 


THE DIADEM PIMPLET. 


Bunodes coronata. 


Prats VII. Fig. 4. 


Specific Character. Warts almost confined to upper half of column, in 
lines and irregularly scattered ; sub-equal, small. 


Bunodes coronata. Gossr, Annals N. H. Ser. 8, ii, 194. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to shells, scarcely exceeding column. 

Column. Cylindrical in expansion, much higher than wide; covered on 
the upper two-thirds with moderately numerous small warts, neither per- 
forate nor excavate; they are arranged in twelve longitudinal rows, with 
irregularly scattered ones between; and are generally wanting towards the 
base. Skin between the warts smooth, and when distended having a satiny 
lustre. Whole column invested with a thin drab epidermis, deciduous in 
ragged shreds, but adhering pretty firmly. A distinct parapet, with a 
smooth sharp edge, but no appreciable fosse. 

Disk. Circular, flat, but often protruded so as to be convex, or to form 
a low cone; radii distinct. 

Tentacles. In five rows; 6, 6, 12, 24,48=96. They are sub-marginal, 
the first row springing at about three-quarter radius; they are shorter 
than radius, diminishing outwardly, conical, sub-acute. 

Mouth, Large, protrusile : lip sharp: throat evertile, coarsely furrowed. 


CoLour. 


' @Qolumn. A rich orange, or orange-scarlet, with the warts either paler or 
darker than the ground-colour. Edge of parapet cream-white, immediately 
below which the margin is marked alternately with square patches of 
dark purplish chocolate, and narrower spaces of whitish (twelye marks of 
each colour in adults, six of each in young); these, from the fine contrasts 
of colour, when the button is not quite closed, have a very striking and 
characteristic effect, as if the animal were surmounted by an elegant 
coronet. 

Disk. Red, varying from pellucid scarlet to a reddish chocolate; each 
radius bearing a longitudinal central streak of white, which does not reach 


NS RH OE ae Nie ai ee UTE 


THE DIADEM PIMPLET. 203 


either tentacle or lip, and bounded by a very fine 
white line on each side; thus is produced a pat- 
tern of fine radiating lines of white on red. Some- 
times the lines are irregularly blotched and dilated, 
with ragged edges. 

Tentacles. Pellucid, nearly colourless, crossed by 
three dim sub-opaque white bars, of which the middle 
one is most distinct ; near the base are two chocolate 
bars, generally divided by a central longitudinal line 
of pellucid white, giving the appearance of four dark 
spots set in square. Sometimes one bar is nearly or 


quite obliterated. 
Mouth. Lip whitish. Throat rich orange-scarlet ; TENTACLE 
the furrows darker than the ridges. (front view). 


SIze. 


Diameter of column in button, one anda quarter inch ; height two inches 
expanse of flower one inch. 
Locality. 


The south coast of Devon ; moderately deep water. 
VARIETIES. 


a. Patricia. The rich orange-searlet condition just described. 

B. Plebeia. The column of a dirty light brown; the markings of the 
marginal coronet distinct, but duller. The usually red ground of the disk 
‘replaced by deep brown, and the white lines by pellucid drab; the whole 
interrupted by four or five broad irregular radial bands of pure white. 
The bars of the tentacles obsolete. 


This fine species first occurred to myself when dredging 
off Berry Head, in about twenty fathoms, in August, 
1858. Three or four specimens came up in about the same 
number of hauls. In every case the animal was adherent 
to the shell of the living Turritella terebra, a mollusk 
which is so abundant there that the dredge comes up half- 
filled with it. The base of the Bunodes clasps the long 
turreted -shell, nearly enveloping it when adult, only the 
apex and the mouth of the shell being exposed. 

Other specimens have occurred since in similar circum- 
stances; and Mr. Densham, a collector of Torquay, informs 
me that in October he. obtained a group of eight or ten 
adhering to a mass of oysters. 


204 BUNODIDZE. 


It is manifest that this species departs considerably from 
the type of Bunodes. The irregularity of the warting, the 
conical form of the tentacles, and their style of colouring, 
in alternate undefined rings, and the occasional eversion 
of the walls of the throat, indicate a sensible approach 
to the following genus. It is always to aberrant species 
that we look for cross affinities; and therefore I was more 
gratified than surprised to see in this animal evident 
marks of connexion, both in appearance and habit, with the 
Sagartiade. Before I had seen it expand, I suspected it 
to be &. parasitica, especially when in the act of unfolding. 
It has much resemblance to that species, as well as to 8. 
coccinea, with which it was associated ; for a number of this 
little species occurred in the same dredge-hauls ; these also 
adherent to the shells of the Turritelle. 'The whole aspect 
of the Diadem Pimplet, including the colouring, is that of 
a Sagartia, though the preponderance of its characters deter- 
mines it to Bunodes. It is interesting, in this relation, to 
notice, that one specimen in my possession protruded from 
the mouth a bundle of what appeared to be true acontia. 

The species lives well in a tank ; where it readily deserts 
its shell, and attaches itself to stones, or-the vessel. It is 
lively, opening freely, frequently constricting its column, and 
changing its form with considerable rapidity; its vivacity and 
brilliant colour render it an acquisition to the aquarium. 

Both the scientific and the English appellations by which 
‘I distinguish the species, allude to the coronet of purple 
spots which surround the margin. 

Berry Head, P. H. G.: Torbay, #. W. H. H.: off 
Teignmouth, G. H. King. 


Ballii. 
Sag. parasitica. | CORONATA. Sag. coccinea. 
T. crassicornis. 


205 


GENUS III. TEALIA (Gossz). 


Actinia (Luxy.). 

Cribrina (EHRENB.). 
Cereus (MitnE EpwarDs). 
Bunodes (Gosse). 

Base exceeding the column. 

Column not pillar-like; the diameter usually much 
exceeding the height. Surface studded with per- 
manent rounded warts, which are hollow, and have a 
strong adhesive power, irregularly scattered, or not 
set in vertical lines. Margin denticulate. Substance 
cartilaginous. 

Disk flat, circular in outline, considerably over- 
lapping the column. Radii inconspicuous. 

Tentacles not very numerous, arranged in several 
rows, sub-marginal ; short, thick, and conical; uni- 
colorous, or marked with undefined rings or bands 
of alternate colours; perfectly retractile. 

Mouth raised on a cone; stomach habitually pro- 
truded to a great extent. 

Muscular system highly developed ; very dense, and 
of a cartilaginous firmness. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. = 


Warts unequal: stomach and warts red; tentacles un- 
PON: a hb ales acd indecat octet «et whine ban, 82 6 digitata. 
Warts equal : stomach and warts grey ; tentacles banded . crassicornis. 


ASTRAACEA. BUNODID&. 


THE MARIGOLD WARTLET. 


Tealia digitata. 


Prats VI. Fig. 10, 


Specific Character. Warts unequal; stomach and warts red; tentacles 
not banded. 


Actinia digitata. MuUxumr, Zool, Dan. iv. 16; pl. exxxiii. ALpER, Zooph. 
of Northumberland and Durham, 44, 

Cereus digitatus. Mitnz Epwarps, Corall. i. 272. 

Tealia digitata. Gossz, Ann, Nat. Hist, Ser. 3, i. 417. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form, 


Base. Adhering to shells, often exceeding the column ; outline undulate. 

Column. Cylindrical, about as high as wide, sometimes dilated and 
overarching above. Margin smooth, parapeted. Surface studded with 
large warts, having a tendency to form transverse rows, but with no 
perpendicular arrangement. ‘“ A row of larger warts is usually found on 
the upper part, which, when the tentacles are withdrawn, form a tuber- 
- culated margin to the aperture.” (J. A.) 

Disk. Flat, often partly everted and overarching. Radii strongly 
marked, ' 

Tentacles. Numerous, in three or four rows, stoutly conical, bluntly 
pointed, the first row largest, diminishing to the outmost, which are papil- 
lary : carried arching outwards. 

Mouth. Throat evertile, strongly ribbed. 


CoLour. 


Column. Scarlet-orange, with paler warts. 

Disk. Dull red. 

Tentacles. Dull red, unbanded, a little deeper towards the ts 
Mouth. Ribs of throat’ brownish-orange. 


— ee 


THE MARIGOLD WARTLET. 207 


Size, 


-_ Golumn one and a half inch high, and the same wide. Expanse about 


2) EX SEEN Sys AEB TIE ee 
. sis Bihan ad ar! 


LocaLirty, 


Be Coast of Northumberland and Cornwall. Deep water. 


ee ee a 


__. The name by which I have distinguished this genus is 
| given as a tribute to the skill and acumen of Mr. Thomas 
' Pridgin Teale, of Leeds, who published an elaborate and 
_ excellent Memoir on the anatomy of the following species. 
| The English appellation is sufficiently obvious. The specific 
| term digitata, “ fingered,” doubtless alludes to the thick 
conical form and dull reddish hue of the tentacles, in which 
_ the Danish zoologist saw a resemblance to fingers,—those 
_ ofa ploughman or a scullery-maid, surely ! 

__ I distinguish this species from crasstcornis on the autho- 
| __ rity of Mr. Joshua Alder, of Newcastle, who first mentioned 
| it as British, in his Catalogue of the Zoophytes of that 
_ coast. The same gentleman has kindly favoured me with 
several drawings of the species, executed with his well- 
known beauty and precision (one of which is reproduced — 
in my Plate), as well as with his MS. notes, from all of 
_ which combined I have compiled the foregoing diagnosis. 
_ Mr, Alder entertains no doubt of its specific distinctness ; 
_ and his numerous opportunities of seeing it alive and 
comparing it with the more common kind, render his 
__ opinion valuable. He says, “‘ It is the most coriaceous and 
__ warty species that I am acquainted with.” And again, 
_ “Itis always much smaller than crassicornis, more tough 
__ and coriaceous, with larger warts, and constantly of a pale 
_ redcolour.” : 
- *“ Tt is not uncommon,” adds the same excellent natu- 
__. ralist, “ in deep water on our coast; and as the cod-fishing 
__ boats are coming into port frequently at this season [April], 


208 BUNODIDA. 


I may be able to get you a specimen, though not in a 
lively condition.” 

Among the numerous drawings of Actinoids for which I 
am indebted to Mr. W. P. Cocks, there are two which he 
has not named, but which are evidently identical with the 
Northumbrian species. Thus I am able to assign it to the 
Cornish coast. These are the only British localities I yet 
know for it. 


DIGITATA. 
crassicornis. 


| ASTRAACEA. } BUNODIDE. 


THE DAHLIA WARTLET. 
Tealia crassicornis. 
Pirate IV. Fig. 1. 


i - Specific Character. Warts equal; stomach and warts grey; ‘entacles 
generally banded. 


Actinia felina et A. senilis. Linx. Syst. Nat. 1088. 
‘crassicornis. Mixer, Prod. Zool. Dan. 231. Fasr. Faun. 
Greenl. 348. Jounston, Br. Zooph. i. 226; 
pl xl. Gosse, Devonsh. Coast, 34. Cocks, 
Rep. Corn. Soc. 1851, 7; pl. ii fig. 1. 


Holsatica. Miuirr, Zool. Dan. iv. 23, pl. exxxix. ' 

? fiscella. TIsm,. Ibid. iii. 3, pl. Ixxxii. figs. 5, 6 (jue. ?). 
? bimaculata. Gruse, Actinien, 4, fig. 4. 

coriacea. Cuvier, Tabl. élém. 653; Régne Anim. ed. 1, 


iv. 51. Rapp, Polypen, 51, pl. i. fig. 3. 
Tate, Trans. Leeds Soc. i. 91, pls. ix—xi. 
Jounstoy, Br. Zooph. i. 224; pl xxxix. 
figs. 1, 2. Cocks, Rep. Corn. Soe. 1851, 7; 
pl. ii. fig.2. TuGweEtt, Man. Sea Anem. 54, 


pl. iii. 
~ gemmacea. DatyEtt, Rem. Anim. Scotl. 223; pl. xlviii. 

figs. 1,2. Joust. Br. Zooph., Ed. i. 213. 
Coucs, Corn. Fauna, iii. 76. 

Oribrina coriacea. Exrens. Corall. Roth. Meeres, 40. 

Tsacmea papillosa. Ism. Ibid. 33. 

Bunodes crassicornis. Gosss, Trans. Linn. Soc. xxi, 274; Man. Mar. 
Zool. i, 29, fig. 42. 


Tealia crassicornis. Imp. Ann. N. H. Ser. 3, i. 417, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base, Adherent to rocks and stones. In general not much exceeding 
the column. 
Column. Rarely pillarlike. In expansion, the diameter greatly ex- 
ceeding the height. Surface covered with small hollow adhesive warts, 
P 


210 BUNODIDA. 


sometimes having a tendency to run in longitudinal lines, but more 
generally irregularly scattered, leaving intervals of three or four times 
their diameter in ordinary states of distension, and these intervals have 
often a silky lustre. Substance firm and even cartilaginous. Margin 
entire, but roughened with the scattered warts, forming a thick parapet, 
separated from the tentacles by a broad fosse. In freedom, the column is 
generally more or less disguised by fragments of stone and shell adhering 
to the suckers, 

Disk. Fiat, circular in outline, plane but overarching. Radii con- 
spicuous chiefly by colour. 

Tentacles. Arranged in five rows, the first set at about half radius,— 
5, 5, 10, 20, 40 = 80; the first and second so nearly equidistant from the 
centre as to seem but one. Their form is conical, thick at the foot, 
regularly tapering to a point, which is sometimes slightly inflated. The 
animals appear to have the power of changing the shape of these organs at 
' will; for I have had individuals, in which the tentacles, after having for 
a while borne the ordinary conical form, suddenly became nearly cylin- 
drical, with truncate extremities, and maintained this form for a long time. 
These organs are nearly equal among themselves, and their length is about 
equal to one-third of the diameter of the disk. They are capable of little 
flexure, and are generally spread in a regular star-like manner, the outer 
rows deflected, the inner erect, and the intermediate ones horizontal. They 
are powerfully adhesive. 

Mouth. Frequently elevated on an eminence of varying form and 
dimensions. Throat and stomach often protruded to such an extent as to 
conceal the whole disk. Gonidial tubercles two pairs, small. 


CoLourR. 


Column. Dull green, streaked and flaked with crimson, with pale grey 
warts. 

Disk. Glaucous-olive, with conspicuous radial bands proceeding from 
each outer tentacle, in pairs, which curve around the foot of each tentacle 
of the higher rows, and are lost at varying distances from the centre ; 
those pairs which enclose the inner tentacles extend farthest and are most 
conspicuous. The colour of these bands is scarlet, often edged with white, 
and they are highly characteristic of the species. 

Tentacles. Pellucid light brown, with a band of opaque white across the 
foot, which frequently stretches a little way up each side: a broad band 
of crimson surrounds the middle, bounded below, and sometimes above, by 
a narrower band of sub-opaque white. All these bands are undefined, and 
are often rendered sub-pellucid by’ distension. 

Mouth, Generally tinged with crimson. Gonidial_ tubercles crimson. 
Throat and stomach light grey. 


THE DAHLIA WARTLET. 211 


Srze. 


_ Diameter of column frequently three inches; expanse of flower five ; 
height two. Specimens from deep water are occasionally much larger 
than this. ‘ 


LocaLity. 
_ The Atlantic coasts of Europe, universally distributed; in tide-pools, 


and crevices and angles of rocks, near low-water mark ; and in deep water. 
I am not certain whether it extends to the Mediterranean. 


VARIETIES. 


_ The colours of this species are very sportive, and scarcely two specimens 
_ ean be found exactly alike; but all these modifications may be traced to 
different degrees of predominance of the hues above mentioned. This 
variety, from its resemblance to a streaked apple, may be named ,— 

a. Meloides. 

8. Purpurea. Column wholly dull crimson; disk crimson, with the 
radial bands and sometimes the central region more brilliant than the rest. 
Tentacles pellucid crimson, with purplish bands. 

7. Insignis. As B, but the tentacles pellucid white, with broad and con- 
spicuous bands of opaque white. (PI. iv. fig. 1.) 

3. Aurea. Column yellow, from alight straw or brimstone colour to the 
hue of a ripe apricot. 

¢. Vilis. All colour lost in a semi-pellucid dusky grey. (Deep-water 
specimens generally very large.) 


In my “ Devonshire Coast” (p. 36), I stated, with the 
reasons which led me to it, my firm conviction that what had 
hitherto been considered as two species, under the names 
of A. crassicornis and A. coriacea, were one and the same. 
_ Seven years’ additional experience has only added to the 
_ strength of that conviction, and I have not been able to 
_ find a single stable character on which their separation 
‘eould be grounded. It is equally clear which of the two 
‘specific names must stand. Rejecting Linnzus’s as out of 
the question, we find that crassicornis was applied to the 
‘species by Miiller, twenty-one years before Cuvier called it 
_ coriacea. With regard to significance, both appellations 
_ -are good, perhaps equally good; the former indicating the 
P2 


212 ; BUNODIDA. 


thick horn-like form of the tentacles, the latter the tough 
and leathery consistence of the flesh. The law of priority, 
however, must be obeyed. 

Scarcely less abundant than Act. mesembryanthemum, 
this magnificent species is sown broadcast upon all our 
shores, and seems everywhere to be equally common. In 
its habits, however, it is widely different from that favour- 
courting species. Somebody has illustrated the character 
of two peoples by saying, that if an Englishman retires 
from business and builds a box, he raises a high wall, and 
plants a shrubbery before it, to keep off the eye of the 
profanum vulgus ; but a Frenchman under similar cir- 
cumstances builds his house on the very edge of the high- 
_ way, and takes his meals in the verandah. If this be true, 
the Actinia is a Frenchman, the Tealia an Englishman. 
You may hunt among the rocks till the rising tide covers 
them, and, finding hundreds of Beadlets, but not a single 
‘Dahlia, go away with the conviction, that the latter is a 
scarce species; but to-morrow, an initiated friend accom- 
panies you to the same spot, and, pointing with his toe to 
an angle, says, “ Here they are! and here! and here!— 
three, four, half-a-dozen in a group!” and you are tired of 
collecting before the profusion fails. 

It is in the angles formed by some great boulder with 
the beach, that the crassicornis delights to dwell; and here, 
according to his recluse habits, he chooses to conceal 
his showy person from intruding eyes, by covering himself 
with a coat of gravel and fragments of shell, which he has 
attached to his adhesive suckers, till only the experienced 
eye can detect the difference between the animal and the 
‘surrounding rubbish. 

Not seldom, however, do we meet with a colony in 
‘some persistent rock-pool, in whose never-ebbing fulness 
the gorgeous creatures remain almost permanently ex- 


THE DAHLIA WARTLET. 213 


panded, despising, or not needing, the precaution of con- 
cealment practised by their tide-deserted brethren of the 
beach. It is a’ remarkable example of the economy of 
creation, that these tide-pool specimens, as well as those 
which are brought up from deep water, rarely, if ever, 
indue their bodies with an extraneous covering. 

In such pools crassicornis makes a noble appearance. 
His great size, the wide expanse of the flower, the thick 
tentacles so symmetrically disposed, and the rich hues 
often finely contrasted,—make it by far the most showy of 
our native species. By some of our fair collectors it has 
been named the Dahlia; a comparison which the size, 
symmetry, and varying hues of that favourite flower render 
not inapt. I have accordingly adopted it; designating the 
preceding orange-hued species by the appellation of the. 
Marigold. 

The resemblance has been acknowledged by one more 
conversant with flowers than even the ladies. “On one 
occasion,” observes Mr. Jonathan Couch,* “ while watching 
a specimen that was covered merely by a rim of water, 
a Bee, wandering near, darted through the water to the 
mouth of the animal, evidently mistaking the creature for 
a flower; and though it struggled a great deal to get free,. 
was retained till it was drowned, and was then swallowed.” 

_Mr. E. L. Williams, who has enjoyed unusual opportu-- 
nities of acquaintance with the deep sea, writes me con-- 
cerning this species as follows :—‘‘ When diving in bells at: 
Dover, at the Admiralty Pier, in eight to ten fathoms” 
water, I have often seen it, generally on the tops or sides 
of lumps of rock. The Alsop Prawn [Pandalus annuli- 
cornis ?} was very common there, and seemed its food. I 
never saw a —_— crassicornts in deep water, except while 
catching its prey.” 

* In Johnston's Brit. Zooph. i. 225; et in litt. priv. 


214 BUNODIDA. 


My esteemed friend, Professor E. P. Wright, of Dublin, 
has favoured me with one of his vivid pictures, in which 
this species forms a prominent feature. It will be read 
with interest :— 

“There is a very fine cave here, [Crookhaven, county 
Cork,] entered at either high or low water by a boat, whose 
entrance is guarded on both sides by a long low reef of 
rocks, and of a depth at low water of about ten or twelve 
feet. ‘The sea-floor is shaped somewhat like a Spanish hulk, 
z.e. rather flat at the bottom, and then rising up gradually 
and ‘wideningly’ to a distance far above our heads, and 
then ending in an arch formed of sharp-pointed icicles of 
the by-me-never-to-be-forgotten Devonian slates. To this 
cave all the fat and fair anemones of the county seem to be 
sent, when once they have reached a good bodily condition. 
The cavern is of ample dimensions, so they don’t crush 
each other for room; and the regular manner in which they 
dispose of themselves is worthy of note. Actinia mesem- 
bryanthemum—the green, scarlet, and strawberry varieties 
—occupied the highest row, some of them partly out of the 
water; they had eyes, and kept a ‘look-out’ for the rest. 
Then came Sag. venusta and Sag. nivea, lovingly inter- 
mixed, and in a large broad band some four feet deep. 
Then there came an empty row of benches, necessary to 
keep the tenants of the galleries from the aldermen in the 
pit, for it was filled with T. crassicornis. 1 verily believe 
the biggest of the big were here; and the commonest 
variety was the one with the white tentacles and red disk— 
a splendid show for size of specimens and magnificence of 
colour. This cave of Anemones never can be surpassed, 
and seldom will the wild grandeur of the cliffs, a hundred 
feet and more high, with the Atlantic waves rolling in to 
fill up the picture,—be equalled.” 

The voracity of this fine creature is remarkable. The 


THE DAHLIA WARTLET. 215 


Shore-crab (Carcinus) is its ordinary prey, but it feeds on 
limpets, and other Mollusca. Dr. Johnston tells of one, 
that had swallowed a valve of the Great Scallop, and of 
the strange result;* Dr. E. P. Wright had one which 
discharged as the remains of his evening’s meal, ‘‘ a mode- 
rate sized Fusus, and a mass of Nereids and Shrimps, that 
exhaled such a fearful smell as killed all my tank-full;” 
and one in Mr. F. H. West’s possession actually made 
a bonne bouche of an Echinus miliaris, as large as a shilling, 
making no bones of the spines. Two days afterwards 
the shell of the Urchin was disgorged, perfectly empty, 
denuded of its spines, the oral plates crushed in, and partly 
wanting. The common Blenny and other fishes frequently 
fall victims to the rapacity of this gourmand, which spares 
not its own kindred. 


__ The tentacles are very adhesive, as is sufficiently mani- 


fest to our fingers, when we touch them; and contact with 
these organs is amply sufficient to resist the most vigorous 
attempts to escape of the animals above-mentioned. 
Beautiful as is the Dahlia, it is not a very frequent 
tenant of our aquariums; as it is one of the most difficult 
to keep. I have, however, kept specimens for four and 
five months; and Mr. West still longer; for the epicure 
whose urchin-diet is recorded above, had been then nine 
months in captivity. It appears to be little able to sustain 
extremes of temperature. The heat of summer is generally, 
fatal to our captive specimens; and a severe winter makes 
havoc among those which are in the enjoyment of freedom. 
After the intense and protracted frost of February, 1855, 


_ the shores of South Devon were strewn with dead and 


dying Anemones, principally of this species, which were 

rolled helplessly on the beach, their bodies almost concealed 

by the protruding craspeda. This symptom is almost the 
* Brit. Zooph, i. 235. 


216. BUNODIDZ. 


invariable accompaniment of disease and death in crassi- 
cornis ; these organs are present in unusual profusion, and 
are forced out at ruptures of the integument, by the con- 
tractions of the animal. The mesenteric membrane by 
which they are united to the septa is capable of great 
expansion: Sir John Dalyell has seen it protruded and 
spread up the side of a glass vessel, to the breadth of an 
inch. I have seen a similar phenomenon, but not quite to 
the same extent, in Peachia hastata. 

As in the case of A. mesembryanthemum, the ubiquity of 
this species renders a catalogue of its localities unnecessary: 
it is distributed everywhere on the British coasts. 

Of foreign species, so far as may be conjectured from 
published figures and descriptions (often imperfect), the 
following may belong to this genus: Artemisia (Dana) 
from N.W. America; pluvia (Dana) from Peru; gemma 
(Dana) from Cape Verd Isles; papillosa and ocellata 
(Lesson) both from Peru; and fusco-rubra (Quoy et Gaim.) 
from the Tonga Isles. Of these the first-named seems 
intermediate between the present species and B., thallia. 


B. thallia. 
Anthea. [Artemisia]. 
Bolocera. CRASSICORNIS. 
[Phymactis]. H. Margarite. [Echinactis]. 
Actinia. St. Churchie. [Cystiactis]. 
Sagartia. 


TEALIA GREENEI (Wright). 


Dr. E. P. Wright finds on the Irish coast a Tealia, 
which he thinks new, and for which he proposes the name 
of 7. Greenet. The parapet is much smoother than in 


PPLE IE AERO LL EIT eT TO 


THE DAHLIA WARTLET. 217 


crassicornis, the tentacles much longer and more slender, 
the warts fewer and of a purplish hue. He has favoured 
me with a spirited drawing of it, but I cannot satisfy 
myself that it is anything more than 7. crassicornis. 


TEALIA TUBERCULATA (Cocks). 


In the Report of the Cornwall Polytechnic Society for 
1851, Mr. W. P. Cocks has described and figured a species, 
which he names Actinia tuberculata. ‘“ Body globular, light- 
brown, densely covered with large greyish-white tubercles, 
the apex of each tubercle depressed; disk white; mouth 
large; lips thick, corrugated, and everted ; tentacula nume- 
rous, large, obtuse, some bifurcated, others trifurcated. 
Diameter three and a half inches when contracted.” By 
private communication I learn further particulars. It was 
obtained thirteen miles south-west from Falmouth, attached 
to a valve of Pecten maximus ; it lived with Mr. Cocks for 
some months. “ Bulky, rather loose in texture, when fully 
expanded covering the bottom of a large pan,—it had the 
appearance of a mammoth Bellis. It appeared to be ex- 
tremely irritable, and upon the slightest provocation would 
throw off from its body a large quantity of thick glaire, 
which, if allowed to remain, produced a disagreeable smell. 
When contracted it had the appearance of a half-boiled 
sago pudding.” 

I ventured to suggest that it might have been a great 
colourless deep-water specimen of crassicornis; but Mr. 
Cocks repudiates the identification, while he admits the 
relationship. The tendency of the tentacles to a monstrous 
fission seems to me its most marked peculiarity. It may 
be distinct. 


218 


GENUS IV. HORMATHIA (Gossz). 


Base adherent ; greatly expanded. 

Column pillar-like, much corrugated, surrounded 
by a single horizontal row of warts. 

Disk slightly concave; scarcely exceeding the 
column. 

Tentacles moderately long and slender; perfectly 
retractile. 


There is but a single known species, 1. Margarite. 


ASTRG&ACEA. BUNODID&. 


THE NECKLET. 
Hormathia Margarite. 
Prate VIII. Fig. 1. 
‘Specific Character. White, with purple tentacles. 


” Hormathia Margarite.  Gossr, Annals Nat. Hist. Ser. 3, iii. 47. 
_ 1 Actinia nodosa. Fasricivs, Faun. Groenl. p. 350; No. 341. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Very closely adherent to a living Pusus antiquus; far exceeding 

the column, and clasping the shell. 
Column. Skin delicate, much corrugated transversely ; below the margin 
a horizontal row of large well-defined warts, about ten in number; summit 
extremely corrugated, and falling into radiating folds in incipient retracta- 
tion. A slight but distinct margin. 

Disk. Slightly concave; outline almost circular. 

Tentacles. Arranged in two or three rows, rather long, sub-equal, but 
the inner row somewhat longer than the outer; when fully expanded, 
curving over the margin. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone, slightly corrugated. 


CoLouR. 
Column. White. 
Disk. White, streaked with very light brown. 
Tentacles. Dark reddish purple, without any markings. 
Mouth. Lip slightly yellow. 


Suze. 
Diameter two inches; height two inches. 


Locatiry. 
Moray Firth, near Banff; deep water. 


220 THE NECKLET. 


For this magnificent species I am indebted to the 
kindness of the Rev. Walter Gregor, who obtained it in 
October last, from the lines of a deep-sea fishing-boat, and 
forwarded it to me. It was dead, however, when it reached 
me; but his own careful notes and sketches, made while it 
was alive, have enabled me, in combination with my own 
imperfect observations, to characterize it as above. As he 
had never seen another specimen, I can add no more parti- 
culars of its history. 

The name of the genus I have formed from dppafos, a 
necklace of pearls, and the English appellation perpetuates 
the same allusion. The specific name is given at the 
discoverer’s request, in honour of a lady, one of his most 
esteemed friends. The unsullied pearly whiteness of the 
animal, as well as its necklace, gives a peculiar propriety 
to this name,—margarita signifying a pearl. 

The genus is aberrant in this family; the paucity of 
warts, and the soft and thin texture of the skin, departing 
manifestly from the typical forms. It approaches the 
Sagartiade through Adamsia palliata and Sagartia para- 
sitica, with both of which it has obvious relations. — 


T. crassicornis. 
MARGARITA. 
Sag. parasitica. St. Churchie. 
Ad. palliata. Sag. miniata. 


221 


-GENUS V. STOMPHIA (Gosssg). 


Base adherent, expanded. 
: Columa pillar-like; without warts or suckers, im- 
perforate (?); skin much corrugated; substance not 
at all cartilaginous, but soft and lax. 

Disk very protrusile. — 

Tentacles perfectly retractile. 
_ Acontia not present. 


Only one species “has been yet recognised, 8. 
Churchia. 


ASTRAACEA. BUNODID&. 


THE GAPELET. 
Stomphia Churchie. 


Prats VIII. Fig. 5. 


Specific Character. Body dashed with scarlet on white or yellow ; ten- 
tacles white, with scarlet bands. ‘ 


Stomphia Churchie, Gosse, Ann, Nat. Hist. Ser. 8, iii. 48. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks in deep) water, expansile considerably beyond 
the column. 

Column. Very protean in shape, Pipa a short thick pillar, sometimes 
constricted hour-glass fashion or like a dice-box; the base sometimes 
detaches itself, and becomes very concave with sharp edges, or, on the 
other hand, protrudes as a low cone. Skin much and irregularly cor- 
rugated transversely, and also longitudinally from the margin a little way 
downwards, thus giving a decussate appearance to the upper portion. 
Margin distinct, but without parapet or fosse, the outer tentacles springing 
from the very edge. Substance pulpy, or softly fleshy, very lax. 

Disk. Fiat, but often protruded as a low cone; radii well marked. 

Tentacles. About 60, arranged in four rows, viz. 6, 6, 12, 36; sub-equal, 
the inner slightly longer than the outer, conical, much corrugated in con- 
traction; when expanded, about equal in length to half the diameter of 
the disk ; generally carried horizontally spreading, or descending with the 
tips slightly up-curving. 

Mouth. Often widely opened. Lip sharp, protrusile, forming a narrow, 
low, circular wall. 


CoLouR, 


Column. Cream-white deepening to positive yellow, most irregularly 
sprinkled with dashes and streaks of rich scarlet, very much like a flaked 
carnation, 


THE GAPELET. 223 


Disk. White or yellowish white, pellucid. 

Tentacles. White or yellowish white, pellucid, marked with three 
remote rings of scarlet, and, on the lower half of their front face, with 
two parallel stripes of the same hue, running longitudinally to the foot, 
sometimes confluent throughout or in part. These lateral stripes vary 
much in distinctness and size even in the tentacles of the same indi- 
vidual ; occasionally they run in upon the radii, and at times they are 
quite obsolete. ; 

Mouth. Edge of lip rich scarlet, “like the nectary of the Hoop-petti- 
coat Narcissus ;” the colour sharply defined without, but within blending 
off quickly into the throat, which is white and strongly furrowed. Interior 
of gonidial tubercles scarlet. 


Size. 


Column. Two inches and a half in height, and the same in diameter; 
flower about three inches in expanse. 


Locatiry, 
All round the Scottish coasts, in deep water. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Lychnucha. The condition just described. 

B. Incensa. The red of the column predominant and almost wholly 
confluent, interrupted merely by a few yellow flakes. : 

+. Extincta. Column and disk pure white ; lip faintly tinged with red ; 
tentacles having the usual scarlet bars and the scarlet foot-lines: the latter 
faint but distinct, and running in far upon the radii. 

8. Pyriglotta. Colours nearly asa; but remarkable for its large size, 
and the short thick-set form of the tentacles, which give it a considerable 
resemblance to Tealia crassicornis. 


In the month of January, 1857, I was favoured with a 
communication from Miss Church of Glasgow, containing 
descriptions and figures of this showy and undescribed 
Species, a specimen of which she had procured in Loch 
Long, in the previous summer. It had been brought up 
in the meshes of a turbot net. Its brilliant hues, and their 
_ flaked arrangement, the protean variability of its shape, 
and its vivacity, attracted her notice, as did also the fact 
_ that it discharged a multitude of globular ova, of the size 
of mustard-seed, and of a rich scarlet hue. 


224 . BUNODIDA. 


Last May, Mr. C. W. Peach, of Wick, sent me numerous 
sketches, some of which were coloured, of an Anemone 
which he had obtained at Peterhead, in April, 1850, and 
again in December, 1851; on each occasion from the hook 


of a fisherman’s deep-sea line. These were manifestly — 


identical with Miss Church’s specimen. 

It was not, however, until October, 1858, that I became, 
‘through the kind zeal of the Rev. W. Gregor, of Macduff, 
personally acquainted with this fine species. Within three 
months he has sent me, on different occasions, half-a-dozen 
individuals, including all the varieties distinguished above, 
which argues its variability of character. This gentleman 
has been familiar with it for several years, as a not un- 
common inhabitant of the deep water of the Moray Frith. 
It is observable that all the specimens on record have been 
obtained by means of the deep-sea fishing boats. 

The generic name I have formed from ordudos, wide- 
mouthed ; and the English appellation alludes to the same 
peculiarity, which is highly characteristic. The specific 
name is in honour of the kind correspondent to whom I am 
indebted for my first knowledge of the animal. 

More aberrant even than Hormathia from the typical 
Bunodide, and about equally intermediate between this 
family and the Sagartiade, the genus might with equal 
propriety be placed in either. In its general aspect it 
rather inclines to the present family, especially by the 
intervention of Hormathia, with which it has much in 
common. I have not been able to find any acontia, but 
fragments of craspeda issue from ruptures in the skin, and 
-have much the appearance of. acontia.* 


‘* On two occasions I have seen protruded what looked like acontia. 
On one, it was very slender, streaming from the mouth to nearly an inch 
in length, so that I felt sure it was an acontiwm, till I put it under the 
microscope, when I found throughout the entire length, the ragged edge 
of the mesentery from which it had been torn. Jt was but a craspedum. 


Ee ee ee ae Fe ce ae 


THE GAPELET. 225 


The Gapelet is rather difficult of domestication. In 
general, it attaches itself (usually to the perpendicular 
side of the vessel) for a short time, but soon relinquishes 
its hold, and, after rolling about a few days on the bottom, 
dies. The approach of death seems to be always symptomed 
by spontaneous rupture and sloughing of the skin, and 
_ protrusion of the viscera. One, however, of the variety 
| pyriglotta, the gift of my kind friend, Mr. Gregor, esta- 
_ plished itself in my largest tank, and survived three 
months. My friend Mr. West has had a specimen from 
the Yorkshire coast a still longer time. 

In health, Stomphia is remarkable for its extreme ver- 
satility of form. The column is sometimes cylindrical, 
sometimes shaped like a dice-box, sometimes like an hour- 
glass, while frequently successive constrictions chase one 
another along the extent. The base, when the animal is 
free, is sometimes coneave, at others convex, and occa- 
_ sionally conical, while not unfrequently these forms are 
_ combined, the centre being conical while the rest is concave, 
—a cone inacrater. The disk is sometimes a deep bell, 
like a Convolvulus; then a low cone, with the widely- 
gaping mouth crowning the summit. 

__ My first consignment from Macduff consisted of two 
individuals, which on dissection proved to be of opposite 
sexes. They showed no external diversity of form or 
 eolonr, but of one the pale salmon-coloured reproductive 
_ organs, which were very plump and full, were found under 
the compressorium to be filled with an infinite multitude of 
| spermatozoa; each of which consisted of a long-oval body 

_ *00015 inch in length, and a vibratile tail about thrice as 
long. In the other example the mesenteries were loaded 
_ with grape-like ova of a brilliant scarlet hue, varying in 
_ dimensions;—one of the largest measured -03 inch: in 
_ diameter. These consisted of an opaque scarlet yelk in a 
Q 


226 BUNODIDA. 


colourless chorion, which was perfectly globular, 0027 inch 
in thickness. By flattening some, I could discern the 
segmentation at the edges, which appeared to be well- 
advanced. When ruptured, the yelk escaped from the 
larger ones,—a mass of oil-globules of various sizes. 

The recognised localities of this species may be tabulated 
thus :— 

Loch Long, A. B. C.: Peterhead, C. W. P.: Moray 
Frith, W. G@.: Redcar, Scarborough, D. F. 


T. crassicornis 
H. Margarite 
CHURCHIZ. 
Bolocera Sagartia. 


Srompuia ? SPECTABILIS (Fabr.). 


Mr. Gregor has a strong conviction that there exists, in 
the same locality, an Anemone closely allied to the above, 
in which the colours are blue and green, arranged in a 
flaked or splashed manner, like the scarlet and yellow of 
S. Churchie. This statement reminds me of the Actinia 
spectabilis of Greenland, which “has the body smooth, blue 
or green, striped longitudinally with rows of white points, 
and thick tentacles paler than the body, and spotted with 
white.”* From the locality of this species, it would be 
not unlikely to occur on the northern coasts of Scotland. 


* Fabricius, Fauna Groenl, p. 351, No. 342, b. 


- ebrorte bicaieA anata ak te 


ee 


WhO fT rt 


Cg OO RRMA 


227 


FAMILY VI.—ILYANTHID. 


When Johnston published his second edition of the 
* British Zoophytes,” a single Free Anemone alone was 
recognised: I shall have to include in the family at least 
a dozen, known to inhabit our seas, with two or three 
others as yet obscurely indicated ; a number considerably 
greater than M. Milne Edwards assigns to the whole world, 
in his “ Histoire Naturelle des Coralliaires,” published 
little more than a year ago. 

The Ilyanthide form a very natural group, readily dis- 
tinguished by the important character, that. they possess 
no adherent base; the column, which is generally length- 
ened, terminating below in a rounded, often more or less 
retractile, extremity. Hence they are characteristically 
unattached ; but many of the species, perhaps all, possess 
_ an adherent power in the entire surface of the column, by 
means of which they can readily crawl over a solid body. 
Most of them inhabit tubes, which may be membranous 
and free, as in Cerianthus; membranous and investing 
epidermically, as in Edwardsia ; or mere burrows in the 
sand or mud, as in Halcampa, Peachia, and Ilyanthus. 
Most of them have the habit of distending the hinder part 
of the column with water, assuming the form of a blown 
bladder. 

A remarkably vigorous and spasmodic contractility in 
this family indicates a more intense muscular force, and 
points to a higher physiological rank, than the preceding 
families possess. 


228 


ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA. 


Tentacles of one kind, marginal. 
Column thick, pear-shaped. 
Mouth with a papillate gonidial tube . 
Mouth simple 1.0450. . : 
Column slender, long, worm-shaped. 
Invested with an epidermis 
Without an epidermis . ‘ : 
Tentacles of two kinds, marginal and giles: 
“Naked; freely swimming. - , 
Dwelling in a membranous tube ; sodantacy 
Column inferiorly perforate . : 
Column inferiorly seca a (Not British) 


Peachia. 
Ilyanthus. 


Edwardsia. 
Haleampa. 


.. Arachnactis. 


‘Cerianthus. 


Saccanthus. 


IdOYD VHd YOWI TIVO ( VYLSANIA VWIGOORZYO ‘€ 
WONIIGHLINYS A / ‘ M é d 
VIVI9Hd °1 


> 


Me. ig 


‘7m An ToS 


229 


GENUS I. ILYANTHUS (Forszs). 


Column pear-shaped, tapering to a blunt point at 
the inferior extremity, which is probably perforated.* 
Surface smooth, without suckers, warts, or loopholes. 
_ Yentacles of one kind only, marginal, numerous 
 (.e. exceeding thirty). 

Mouth of the ordinary form, with no promirent 
gonidial development. 


* There is no evidence on this point with respect to our two British 
species. Dr. Kelaart, in his “ Description of Ceylon Zoophytes,” speaking 
of a species, which he has done me the honour to name Peachia Gossei, but 
which is evidently an Jlyanthus, says that it has “ an inferior orifice, large 
enough to admit a moderate sized probe, which gives passage to ova and 
" excrementitious matter.” (Trans. Roy. Asiatic Soc. ; Ceylon Branch.) 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Tentacles slender, filiform,long; limed . . . -..-+ . Scoticus. 
Tentacles thick, conical, short; banded... .-+.-. - Mitchellii. 


ASTRAACEA. ILYANTHID&. 


THE SCOTTISH PEARLET. 


Ilyanthus Scoticus. 


Specific Character. Tentacles slender, filiform, long; marked with a 
dark line. 


Iluanthos Scoticus. Fornes, Ann. N. H. Ser. 1. v. 183. pl. iii. figs. 2, 3. 
W. Tuompson, Ann. N. H. Ser. 1. xv. 322. Joun- 
ston, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 243. pl. xlv. figs. 1, 2. 
M. Epwarps, Hist. Nat. des Coralliaires, i. 284. 

Ilyanthus Scoticus. Goss, Man. Mar. Zool. i. 30; Ann, N. H. Ser. 3. i. 417. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Column. Pear-shaped, large above, tapering to a point at its lower 
extremity. 

Disk. (“ Mouth,” Forbes ; but probably the Disk is meant.) Round, 
and rather small. 

Tentacles. Numerous (44, according to Forbes’s figure), long (more than 
half as long as the body), slender, filiform, of nearly equal thickness 
throughout (apparently set in two or three rows). 


CoLour. 


Column. Pink, with regular distant longitudinal white stripes. 
Tentacles. Greenish, with a dark line down the middle of each; very 
nearly resembling those of Rapp’s Act. filiformis. 


SIZE. 
Length about an inch and a half. 


LOCALITY, 


The west coast of Scotland, and the east of Ireland: deep water. 


This genus was instituted by the late E. Forbes, to 
receive a “remarkable zoophyte,” which he had dredged 


i a 


ee ot 


<= 


THE SCOTTISH PEARLET. 231 


among Corbule and other inhabitants of mud, in four 
fathoms, in Loch Ryan, on the west coast of Scotland, 
in 1839. The name of the genus is formed from Ads, 
mud, and dv@os, a flower, and was originally written 
Iluanthos ; but, as the Greek used in science is in a Latinized 
form, the correct orthography is certainly I/yanthus. The 
English appellation refers to the pear-like form. 


ILYANTHUS SCOTICUS 
(from Forbes). 


When we add that a specimen, presumed to be of this 
species, was found on the beach at Balbriggan, in Ireland, 
after a storm, in March, 1843, its whole known history is 
recorded. 


ey ScorTicus. S. viduata. 
Mitchellii. 


ASTRAACEA. ILYANTHID&.. 


THE SCARLET PEARLET., 
Ilyanthus Mitchellit. 


PuaTeE VIII. Fig. 6. 


Specific Character, Tentacles thick, conical, short, marked with trans- 
verse bands, 


Tlwanthos Mitchellii. Gossz, Ann. N.H. Ser. 2. xii. 128. M. Epwarns, 
Hist. Nat. des Corall. i. 284. 

Ilyanthus Mitchellit. Gossz, Man. Mar. Zool. i. 30, fig. 44; Ann. N. H 
Ser. 3. i, 418, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Column. Stout, somewhat pear-shaped, thickening from the summit 
for about three-fourths of an inch, whence it gradually tapers to a blunt 
point, “‘in the centre of which is a minute wrinkled disk, which the animat 
does not appear to use as an adhesive sucker.” * 

Disk. Very protrusile; not so wide as the body: radii distinct. 

Tentacles. About 36, set in two complete rows; thick, short, conical, 
and usually curled. The bases of the two rows are in contact, but the 
outer is fully one-sixth of an inch from the margin, and the inner about as 
far from the base of the oral cone. 

Mouth. Prominent, seated onacone. Lip thick, coarsely furrowed. 


Corour. 


Column. Upper parts pale scarlet; lower two-thirds flesh- white, 
blotched with scarlet; lower extremity sabilek, 

Disk. A ring of purplish-black surrounds the mouth, which is suc- 
ceeded by a wider circle of white; and the remainder of the disk is 
pale red. 

Tentacles. Pellucid white, marked on their front faces with numerous 
alternate bands of opaque white and purple, sometimes taking a diagonal 


* I quote the words of my original description ; but I suspect that this 
appearance was only the retractation of the terminal point. 


Pea =. 


THE SCARLET PEARLET. 233 


direction. The tentacle that is opposite the mouth-angle on each side is 
wholly dull purple, with pale bands almost obsolescent. 
Mouth. Lip rich scarlet. 
Size. 
Length about two inches ; greatest diameter one inch. 


Locatiry. 
The coast of Dorset ; deep water. 


This very fine species came into my possession in the 
spring of 1853, when I was engaged in collecting marine 
animals for the tanks of the Zoological Society of London. 
It was obtained by one of the Weymouth trawlers, who 
fish chiefly off the west side of Portland. As it remained 
with me but a few hours, and was then forwarded to its 
destination, the above description and the figure were all 
I could contribute to its history. ‘The species has not been 
met with since. 

I associated it with Forbes’s [lyanthus (naming it in 
honour of D. W. Mitchell, Esq. the Secretary of the 
Zoological Society) ; but it appears to approach nearer to 
. Peachia than that species. Fuller observations are much 
needed on both. 


Scoticus. 
MITCHELLII. 
DP. hastata. 


234 


GENUS II. PEACHIA (Gossz). 


Siphonactinia (Dan. et Kor.). 


Column cylindrical, pear-shaped, or swelling in the 
middle, rounded at the posterior extremity, where 
there is an orifice; margin entire, forming an indis- 
tinct parapet. Surface smooth, without loopholes, 
but studded in every part with very minute and very 
numerous suckers. 

Disk flat, or very slightly conical, smooth. 

Tentacles of one kind, twelve, thick, short, obtusely 
pointed; marginal; imperfectly retractile. ) 

Mouth not elevated ona cone; lip thin, abrupt, pro- 
trusile, sometimes lobed. A single gonidial groove, 
the edges of which are soldered together so as to 
form a tube, which terminates above in a thickened, 
expanded rim (conchula), the margin of which is more 
or less divided. , 

Acontia wanting. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Column lengthened. 
Conchula with from 12 to20 lobes. . . . . «2... hastata, 
Conchula with 8 ovatelobes . . . ». + «© «+ » « © triphylla. 
Column short. 
Conchula with 5 shallow lobes . . . ..-+.e-s wndata. 


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ASTRZACEA. . ILYANTHID2Z. 


THE ARROW MUZZLET. 
Peachia hastata. 


Puate VIIL. Fig. 3. 
_ Specific character. Column lengthened ; conchula bearing from 12 to 20 
lobes, which are mostly bifid ; tentacles marked with arrow-heads. 
Peachia hastata. Gossz, Linn. Trans. xxi. 267, pl. xxviii. ; Man. Mar. 
Zool. i. 31, fig. 46; Ann. N. H. Ser. 3. i. 418. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
ForM. 


Column. Club-, pear-, or spindle-shaped, or cylindrical, the same indi- 
vidual assuming all these forms ; lower extremity rounded, with a minute 
central orifice, distinct, but generally closed, and apparently furnished with 
asphincter. Surface smooth, but covered with microscopically minute 
suckers, which have the power of strong adhesion to foreign bodies. 
Substance fleshy, becoming more membranous below, where, when in- 
flated, it resembles a blown bladder. 

Disk. Fiat, but protrusile, as a low cone ; radii distinct. 

Tentacles. Twelve, in one circle, 
marginal; short, thick, and some- 
what flattened at the foot, tapering 
to a point; generally carried hori- 
zontally expanded ; sometimes they 
are considerably lengthened and 
attenuated. 

Mouth, Prominent, with a pro- 
trusile cushion-like lip, deeply fur- 
rowed. 

Conchula, There is but one go- 
nidial groove, the edges of which 
are united, the suture marked by 
: oye ade eee CONCHULA pa ccctrie wg P. HASTATA 
edge of the tube rises into a con- 
spicuous organ (conchula), and is cut into papillary lobes, placed in single 
series, but generally so crowded as to overlap each other. They are from 12 
to 20 in number, but are not perfectly regular either in form or order. Most 


iad red cc aa Me 


236 ILYANTHIDA. 


of them are bifid; the back lobes have a tendency to be simple, except the 
central back one, which is large, and composed of two bifid ones united 
on a single stem; this compound one is generally bent over as a protection 
to the orifice of the gonidial tube. The papille resemble tentacles in that 
they are hollow, with thick walls, the internal surface of which is lined 
with brown pigment, deepening at the tips; they are very moveable. 


CoLourR. 


Column. Pale red or flesh-colour, through which the edges of the 
septa appear as twelve white lines: the fore half of the column is fre- 
quently marked with irregular splashes of chocolate-brown, which are 
sometimes confluent. 

Disk. Pale red or buff, each radius marked with two Ys of deep 
brown, one within the other, the points of which are outwards; the point 
of the outer one meets the tentacle, and sends off a branch on each side, 
encompassing its foot. 

Tentacles. Pellucid, each marked on its front face with arrow-heads of 
deep brown, arranged in two longitudinal rows, the points downwards ; 
there are about six in each row, but near the tip they become indistinct. 
Each arrow-head is separated from its successor by one of opaque cream 
colour or pale sulphur-yellow. 

Mouth. White, with the furrows deep brown. 

Conchula. Pale salmon-colour; the lobes pellucid, with an opaque 
white core, which is crossed by a brown bar near the tip. 


SIZE. 
About four inches in length, and one in greatest diameter. I have seen 
the body lengthened to eight inches, without any signal attenuation. 
Loca ity. 
Torbay, at extreme low water, and thence downward, buried in sand, 


In a paper read before the Linnean Society on the 20th 
of Mareh, 1855, I characterised this genus and species 
from specimens presented to me by the Rev. Charles 
Kingsley. I named it after Mr. Charles W. Peach, who 
was the discoverer of the first British Ilyanthidan known, 
which I at that time referred to the same genus. In June, 
1856, MM. Danielssen and Koren founded, on a species 
occurring on the coast of Norway, their genus Siphon- 
actinia, which is evidently identical with this, though 
they appear to have mistaken the conchula for the mouth, 


THE ARROW MUZZLET. , = SBR 


The heavy easterly gales of last autumn, coinciding with 
_ the October spring tides, must have disturbed the Peachia 
_ in their burrows; for the species suddenly became common, 
_ as many as fifty having found their way into the possession 
of the Torquay dealers about that time. A few of these 
fell to my lot, and enabled me to correct and amplify the 
history of the species. 

These specimens were very lively, ever bending their 
columns, and rapidly changing their forms. While under 
_ examination, they frequently adhered by various points of 
_ the column, and when lying on the side would, gradually 
but quickly, bring the hinder extremity round, under the 
body, nearly to the front, and then applying it to the bottom 
of the vessel, adhere, not by the orifice, but by the swollen 
surface around it. Constrictions were constantly passing 
along, commencing about the middle of the column, and 
passing off downwards, the effect of which was to throw 
out the translucent posterior extremity, like a clear dis- 
_ tended bladder, within which the septa could be very 
_ distinctly defined. 

_- One only of the specimens survived, the others I dis- 
sected. The former I put into a vase of sea-water with 
_ a bottom of sand. This was at night; in the morning it 
__ was just beginning to insert the hinder extremity into the 
sand, and thence the process of burrowing went on regu- 
larly. In two hours it elevated the fore parts, and assumed 
_ a perpendicular position, continuing to descend.* By 


* Mr. Holdsworth, who obtained another of the Torquay specimens, has 
made an interesting observation on this process. “ After it had selected a 
. suitable place for burrowing, in the darkest part of the vase, the posterior 

SD cetromity of the body became tapered to a fine point by a partial expulsion 
_ of the contained water, and at the same time turned downwards and 
pressed slightly into the ground ; the fluid contents of the animal were 
_ then forced back until the base was completely distended, and by this 
_ means a shallow depression in the sand produced ; the tail then resumed 


. _ its conical shape, was again thrust into the ground, and swelled out; and 


these proceedings were continued until a hole was made sufficiently large 
to admit the animal. Its first efforts in burrowing had but little effect, 


238 ILYANTHIDZ. 


eleven A.M. only about an inch in length of the fore parts 
remained above the level of the sand, when it expanded, 
and seemed satisfied. At night, however, it came out of 
its burrow, and remained wallowing on the surface; and 
for a week after this it continued to go in and out once or 
twice a day, grovelling and stretching awhile, and then 
burrowing comfortably almost to the tentacles. 

This individual still survives in the same vase, after 
six months’ captivity; it frequently remains for days 
completely hidden, sometimes shows only the tips of the 
expanded tentacles, and rarely more than the disk, above 
the sand. It is perfectly domiciliated. 

Another of the individuals referred to gave birth, while 
under my observation, to some half-dozen or more embryos, 
of oblong or ovate form, which appeared like little Peachias, 
but I could not see any trace of disk or tentacles in any. 
They were discharged one by one through the gonidial 
tube, as the animal lay on its side. 

. This one was ruptured in two places; and as it lay in a 
small tank, the craspedal mesenteries were protruded, and 
spread in large irregular areas on the glass bottom, per- 
fectly flat and adherent, the membrane being pellucid and 
very delicate, and the craspedum bounding the outline like 
a white thread. ; 

The conchula is generally protruded, even when the 
tentacles and disk are wholly retracted. Perhaps it is the 
seat of some sensation. 

J. Mitchellii. 
Halcampa. HASTATA. Cerianthus. 
triphylla. 
undata. 


and it was only after an hour's labour, when the cavity had become large 
enough to allow the polype to work in an upright position, and with the 
assistance of its whole weight, that rapid progress was made,” (Annals 
N. H. for Jan. 1859, p. 78.) 


—— 


a ee 


a 


 ASTREA CEA. ILYANTHID, 


THE WAVED MUZZLET. 
Peachia undata. 


Puate VIII. Fig. 4. 


Specific Character. Column cylindrical, short; conchula cut into five 
shallow lobes ; tentacles crossed by dark wavy bands. 


Peachia undata. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 3. i. 418. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Column. Cylindrical, rounded below, slightly fluted, about twice as 
long as the diameter of the disk ; terminating below in a central perforate 
depression, around which the skin is much puckered, and minutely cor- 
rugated. Surface wrinkled, both transversely and longitudinally, espe- 
cially when contracted. Margin distinctly angular, sometimes forming a 
_ very low parapet. 

Disk. Smooth, flat, or rising with an even and very gentle elevation 
from the foot of the tentacles to the edge of the mouth; marked with 
twelve radii forming so many fine lines. 

Tentacles. Twelve, in one circle, marginal; thick and rounded at foot, 
_ tapering regularly to the tip, which is obtusely pointed; transverse 
section sub-ovate, the diameter from side to side exceeding that from back 
to front. By irregular contraction, they sometimes become slender and 
cylindrical, often with the tip clubbed or knobbed. They are generally 
_ carried widely expanded horizontally, with the tips arching downwards 
_ like a twelve-rayed star. ’ 
Mouth. Descends abruptly from the disk . 
_ with a sharp angle, but which can scarcely 
be called a lip, as it is not thickened. It 
is protrusile at the will of the animal, when 
ordinarily it embraces the exserted gonidial 
groove, and displays a number of plice at 
its edge. 

Conchula. The groove is greatly de- 
_ veloped; its edges are in contact until CONCHULA OF P. UNDATA 
about one-sixth of an inch from the tip, (magnified). 

_ where they separate, and turn over with a scroll-like expansion, the margin 
of which is cut into five shallow teeth, as follows:—one terminal and two 


240 ILYANTHIDA, 


lateral, all of which are bluntly triangular, or sub-square, two others 
still further removed from the terminal one, which are rounded and merge 
into the smooth descending edges. The mouth is sometimes widely re- 
tracted, and the groove exposed for the greater part of its length ; but 
usually the conchula only is protruded from the almost closed mouth. 


Contour. 


Column. Very pale yellow, marked with irregular longitudinal splashes 
and stripes, of dull red, more or less confluent at the lower extremity. 
Margin pellucid, with alternating spots of opaque white. 

Disk. Creamy white: each radius marked with a minute brown speck 
at the foot of each tentacle; except that radius which is opposite (not 
correspondent) to the gonidial groove, in which the speck is wanting. 

Tentacles. White, crossed by seven waved bands of deep’ brown, each 
band strong and well defined at its upper edge, but ill defined and fainter 
at its lower edge: the fourth band (the central one) is broader and fainter 
than the rest. The lowest two bands are rather of a deep bluish-black. 
On the tentacle which corresponds to the groove, the lowest two bands 
are wanting, as are the lowest three on the tentacle opposite, leaving the 
face of this part of the tentacle pure white. The bands in all cases 
extend only across the front face and sides, disappearing on the back. 

Mouth. Whole interior of throat and stomach, and exterior of the lower 
parts of the groove, a rich red buff or salmon-colour. 

Conchula. Both without and within pure cream white. 


S1zE. 


Length about an inch and a quarter; diameter of disk about seven- 
eighths of an inch ; expanded flower an inch and three-quarters ; thickness 
of column one inch, 


Locality. 
The Channel Islands. 


The only individual of this species that I have seen was 
one which I owed to the kindness of my friend Dr. Hilton, 
of Guernsey, who obtained it on the island of Herm, lying 
on the sand at very low water, in April, 1858. When it 
arrived, after just thirty-six hours’ confinement, it looked 
much exhausted, and lay flaccid, with the mouth very 
widely gaping, displaying the thickly folded stomach, of a 
salmon-buff hue, and the gonidial tube greatly exposed 
and protruded. The tentacles were collapsed. When put 


= 


pe ee ee ee 


ye Te a a ee oe ae 


- ‘THE WAVED MUZZLET. 241 


into sea-water, no immediate change appeared, but after an 
hour or two the tentacles began slowly to move one by 
one backward and forward, and slightly to swell and to 
lengthen, while the mouth partly contracted. Next morning - 
it had quite recovered health and beauty. 

The tentacles were very versatile, constantly changing 
_ their form. The mouth also was perpetually opening or 
closing, but slowly. 

The animal appears unable to enclose the disk, but the 
tentacles contract individually, when touched, or spon- 
taneously, shortening to mere warts. I have seen the 
animal when several of its tentacles could scarcely be 
_ distinguished from the general level of the disk-edge, 
_ except by the coloured rings. 

_ It would lie rolling about on the sand in a vase, with 
constrictions successively passing up its body, and throwing 
off clear mucus. When put intoa hole in the sand it 


would not remain; being very buoyant, it was soon on the 


_ surface, the hole gradually filling beneath it. 
It remained in health for a few days, at which period 
the mouth gaped widely, and the lax corrugated stomach 


_ was exposed ; the tentacles contracted to warts, and, the 
_ animal being manifestly feeble and dying, I dissected it. 


Ms. Whitchurch, of Guernsey, reports having found a 
_ Peachia, which he supposes to be this species, on re- 
__ peated occasions; it may, however, have been the following. 
_ He mentions the interesting fact that the tentacles are 
luminous. 

____‘The Stphonactinia (= Peachia) Boeckii has so close a 
_ resemblance to this species, that I am not certain whether 
_ my specific appellation will not have to be merged in that 
of the Norwegian zoologists. I rely, however, on the 
_ figure in Faun. Litt. Norv., ii., in which the lobes of the 
 conchula are distinctly three in number, and are square in 
R 


242 ILYANTHID A. 


form. The manner in which the mouth is represented as 
pursed out, and closely investing the gonidial tube, with 
the gular furrows looking like rudimentary tentacles, I 
have observed both in this and the foregoing species. 
P. Boeckii is assigned to a depth of 80 to 200 fathoms in 
the fjords of Norway. 

The posterior orifice in this genus cannot always be 
observed; I have, however, satisfactorily demonstrated it 
by dissection in both hastata and undata. When the inte- 
gument is cut away from the whole vicinity, it appears as 
a circular foramen, about half a line in diameter. It does 
not appear to be an anus, but probably admits water for 
respiration. 

The specific name, wndata, indicates the waved pattern 
of colouring on the tentacles. The term Muzzlet, which 
I have assigned to the genus, alludes to its most prominent 
characteristic,—the protrusion of the gonidial tube, like a 
proboscis or muzzle. 


hastata. 
triphylla. 
UNDATA, 


ee ee 


ee ee ee ee ee 


PEI a SO re? Ee Ad ded 


ASTRZEACEA. ILYANTHIDA. 


THE TREFOIL MUZZLET. 
Peachia triphylla. 
(Sp. nov.) 


Pirate X. Fig. 2. 


Specific Character. Column pear-shaped, moderately long; conchula 
bearing three ovate or leaf-like lobes ; tentacles marked with arrow-heads, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


_ Column. Pear-shaped ; lower extremity rounded, with a distinct central 
_ orifice, around which the skin is puckered. Surface covered with fine and 
_ @lose-set transverse wrinkles, and with minute suckers, which have a 
_ strong adhesive power. 

Disk. Fiat, but very protrusile; radii distinct. 

Tentacles. Twelve, in one circle, marginal ; thick at foot, and tapering 
to a point. 

Mouth. About one-fourth of an inch wide at the margin, shelving 
downward funnel-like ; lip rugose and erectile. 

Conchula. Cut into three ovate, leaf-like lobes. 


CONCHULA AND MOUTH OF P. TRIPHYLLA 


CoLouR. 
Column. Opaque pale reddish-brown, or bay, with numerous irregular 
longitudinal splashes of rich red-brown. No pale lines indicate the septa. 
R2 


244 ILYANTHIDA. 


Disk. Reddish buff; each radius marked with a minute brown speck 
in its centre: the gonidial radius, however, and the opposite one, are pure 
white, without spots. 

Tentacles. Pellucid, each marked with a double row of brown arrow- 
heads, exactly as P. hastata, but the foot is crossed by a band of deep 
brown, the discal edge of which is perfectly defined; the confluence of 
these bands forms a broad circle of brown bounding the disk, In the 
gonidial tentacle, however; and in the opposite one, the band is wanting, 
as well as the lower arrows, the opaque white of the radius running up 
the front of each of these tentacles half-way to the tip. 

Mouth. Dark brown. 

Conchula. Pure opaque white; the lobes without spot or core. 

Size. 

Length three inches; greatest diameter one inch and a half. Disk 

three-quarters ; tentacles about one inch, , 


Locality. 
The Channel Islands. 


I have had no opportunity of seeing the animal to which 
the above description applies. It was taken at Guernsey, 
in December, 1858, and came into the possession of Dr, 
G. C. Wallich, who has kindly drawn out for my use 
copious notes, and furnished me with beautiful coloured 
drawings. It appears intermediate between hastata and 
undata, the species already recognised ; but I cannot satis- 
factorily assign it to either, as it differs from both in the 
form and number of the conchular lobes. I have there- 
fore given it a name expressive of these peculiarities. 

“ The suctorial processes,” remarks Dr. Wallich, “ ap- 
pear to consist of simple depressions of the integument, 
each of which exhibits an oblong muscular body at its 
base, whereby a vacuum may be formed, and adhesion 
accordingly secured. On examining these muscular bodies 
under a power of 250 diameters, longitudinal as well as 
transverse strie are distinguished. The nature of these 
suckers was strikingly manifest on attempting to turn the 
animal in the glass, when they exhibited the appearance of 


ed Oe es 


THE TREFOIL MUZZLET. 245 


_ @ number of pointed papilla, the apices of which clung 
_ forcibly to the glass, whenever a strain was put upon the 
creature to disengage it.” 
hastata. 
TRIPHYLLA. 
undata. 


PEACHIA CYLINDRICA (Reid), 


In the Annals of N. H. for January; 1848, Dr. Reid 
_ described and figured, under the name of Actinia cylindrica, . 
_ an Actinoid, which was washed ashore at St. Andrews. 
_ It must have certainly been a Peachia, and may possibly 
have been an immature P. hastata. The points in which 

_ it disagreed with such specimens of the latter as I have 
"Seen were the following:—1. It was but one and a quarter 
inch long. 2. The conchular lobes were twelve, six of 
which were very minute; triangular, orange, with trans- 
lucent edges. 3. Twelve bands of faint reddish-brown 
_ radiated across the disk. 


246 


GENUS III. HALCAMPA (Gossz). 


Actinia (Prac). 
Peachia (Gossk). 


Column \ong, slender, cylindrical, ‘or swollen at 
the inferior extremity, which appears to be imper- 
forate: no distinct margin. Surface without loop- 
holes, but studded with minute suckers. 

Disk flat. Radii distinct. 

Tentacles of one kind, few (less than twenty), 
marginal or sub-marginal, cylindrical, obtuse; per- 
fectly retractile. 

Mouth simple. No obvious gonidial development. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Tentacles 12, banded; livesinsand ...... chrysanthellum. 
Tentacles 16, white; lives in eroded rocks . .°. . miécrops. 


ee 


ASTRZACEA. ILYANTHID&. 


THE SAND PINTLET. 
Haleampa chrysanthellum. 


Prats VII. Figs. 9, 10. 


Specific Character. Tentacles twelve, in one row,as long as the diameter 
of the column, banded. 


Actinia chrysanthellum. Pgacu, in Johnston’s Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2, 
i, 220; pl. xxxvii. figs. 10—15. Cocks, 

; Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851, 6; pl. i. figs. 20, 21. 

_ Peachia (2) chrysanthellum. Goss, Linn. Trans. xxi. 271; Man. Mar. 

: Zool. i. 31. 

_ Halcampa chrysanthellum. stp. Annals N. H. Ser. 3. i. 418. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Column. Cylindrical, lengthened, worm-like (extending to ten times its 
diameter or more); slightly invected; terminating below in a rounded 
extremity, which is generally distended into a bladder-like form and 

_ translucent thinness, and is incapable of being retracted; merging above 

into the tentacles without a parapet. Surface studded with excessively 

numerous, minute, sucking warts. 
Disk. Plane. Radii twelve, distinct. 


HALF-DISK OF H. CHRYSANTHELLUM (magnified). 


: Tentacles. Twelve, strictly marginal, set in a single row, their feet in 

_ contact. Nearly cylindrical, with rounded extremities, about as long as 

_ the general diameter of the column, usually carried pointing upwards and 

__ outwards, slightly arched ; perfectly retractile by the ordinary process of 
_ inversi : 


on. 


248 ILYANTHIDA. 


Mouth. <A line without distinct lip; not elevated onacone. Furrowed 
within. 
CoLourR. 


Column. Drab or dirty white; the septa distinct as white longitudinal 
lines; the swollen bladder-like extremity translucent, and almost colour- 
less, except for the septa. 

Disk. Marked with a pretty star-like pattern, consisting of a pale blue 
area, inclosed ina pale line, and surrounded by twelve triangular rays of a 
dark brown hue; each triangle surmounted by a pale W-like figure, 
whic incloses a dark brown area, according to the accompanying pattern. 

Tentacles. Pellucid brown, the front crossed by six semi-rings of opaque 
white, of which the second, the fourth, and the fifth (counting from the 
foot upward) are angular, the second pointing downward, the fourth and 
fifth upward. The pellucid interspaces are tinged with brown, deepest 
on the first, second, and fourth ; and the first white ring, surrounding the 
foot, is sometimes tinged with sulphur-yellow. 

Mouth.~ Yellowish-white. - 


Sizp. 


Specimens reach to an inch and three-quarters in length, and one-eighth 
of an inch in average diameter; the extremity is frequently inflated to 
ene-fourth. 


LOCALITY. 


Coast of Cornwall: buried in sand at low water, and in tide-pools. 


This is a very interesting little zoophyte, which was 
first made known by Mr. C. W. Peach, who has faithfully 
described its person and manners. Its lack of an expanded 
base of course removes it from the genus Actinia; and 
when I formed the genus Peachia, it was under the sup- 
position that the present little species was to be therein 
included. Subsequent personal acquaintance with it, 
however, induced me to constitute a°new genus for its 
reception, to which I have since added a second species, 
The name of this genus, Halcampa, formed from @Xs, the 
sea, and xdumn, a maggot, alludes to the grub-like form of 
the animal; a form which I commemorate also in the 
English name, pintlet, from pintle, an iron pin. The 


THE SAND PINTLET. 249 


_ specific appellation must be accepted, I suppose, as ex- 
pressing the general resemblance of the painted disk to a 
J ‘ fic ; 
| -In May, 1858, by the kind courtesy of J. Scott, Esq. of 
_ Her Majesty’s Customs, I was favoured with two consign- 

ments of this pretty little species, including upwards of a 


dozen specimens. They were procured at Fowey, in Corn- 


wall When turned out of the package in which they had 
travelled, they looked like little earthworms. 

_ Some of them I dropped into holes which I had made 
with a stick in damp sand, carefully pouring the sea-water 
in afterwards. These maintained their place, and soon 


_ protruded and expanded their disks from the surface of the 


sand. Others I simply laid on the sand when covered 
with water; these presently began to bore with the in- 
’ ferior extremity, and soon descended as far as the level 
_ of the disks, which then expanded, as if at home. 
_ Several of those specimens I still possess in health, after 
about eleven months’ captivity; and I have reason to 
_ think that in the meantime they have produced living 


young. 


_ After they had been domiciled for a time in a wineglass 
_ neatly filled with sand, and covered with a shallow layer 
of water, I wished to remove them to a larger vase. On 
_ washing out the sand, I found the animals firmly adhering 


to the glass by the lower parts of their bodies. When 


removed, they would take instant hold of the smooth glass, 
_ with the suckers on any part of the body, four or five of 
_ these drawing out to a considerable length when force was 
applied. On examination of these suckers, we see that 
_ the skin is covered with very minute and close-set, irre- 
- gularly shaped, rounded warts, which have a firmly adhering 
_ function. They are best seen on the distended skin of the 
_ hinder extremity, where, under a power of 150 diameters, 


250 ILYANTHIDA. 


they prove to be granular nuclei in the substance of the 
skin, dense in the centre, and gradually thinning to an 
undefined circumference, elevating the surface with a smooth 
rounded outline to a height about equal to their diameter ; 
viz. about .002 inch. Many of them certainly have a 
shallow pit on the summit, and I am persuaded that their 
adhesion is a sucking. In the middle part of the body, 
these warts are elongated transversely, and have a ten- 
dency to run in close-set annular lines. 

I have not been able to satisfy myself of the character 
of the inferior extremity. It often appears as if it were 
distinctly perforate; but I believe this is an illusion, 
produced by the following phenomenon. As the animal 
lies on its side, it is continually being constringed, the 
constriction gradually moving downward till it passes off 
at the extremity. The parts above and below being in- 
flated, and being as transparent as glass, one sees, looking 
directly at the extremity, the inner edge of the constriction, 
through the transparent integument, exactly like a ter- 
minal orifice, at the moment before it passes off. 

The manners of the species are lively and pleasing: it is 
very susceptible of alarm, when it closes and disappears in 
its burrow with great quickness ; it is, however, soon full- 
blown again. Under irritation, as when fine clay is mixed 
with the water, the tips of the tentacles are jerked from 
side to side with a suddenness and force that contrast 
with the languor common to the tribe, and which seem to 
indicate both a higher nervous sensibility, and also a. 
greater development of the muscular system. 

My experience, as well as that of Mr. Peach, shows that 
it is a species well adapted for an aquarium, and that no 
special treatment is needful beyond a layer of sand equal 
in depth to the length of the column. 

The stomach is sometimes protruded, and inflated so as 


THE SAND PINTLET. 251 


to form an ovate bladder as wide as the diameter of the 
column. This occurs as well when comfortably ensconced 
_ and expanding, as when exhausted by lying out of water. 
_ Mr. Peach has favoured me with notes of a singular 
example of the reproduction of organs in this species. A 
specimen in his possession displayed a transverse cut, 

apparently the result of accident, which extending almost 
quite across the column just below the disk, caused the fore 
_ part to fall over, hanging only by a fragment of skin. 
_ The tentacles, which now of course drooped from the 
bottom of this hanging part, presently disappeared by 
absorption, while at the same time from each of the severed 
surfaces a new disk with new tentacles was developed. 
_ Thus the old stump became pretty much as before, only 
slightly shorter, but the severed piece lost the tentacles at 
one end, and acquired new ones at the other. 

Halcampa chrysanthellum has been found as yet only in 
Cornwall, but in the following spots :— 

Fowey, C.W.P. : Gwyllyn Vase, Pennance, &c., W.P.C. 


P. hastata. 
CHRYSANTHELLUM. 
microps. 
Edwardsia. 


ASTRAACEA. ILYANTHIDA. 


THE ROCK PINTLET. 


Halcampa microps. 
Puate VII. Fig. 11: XII. Fig. 6 (magn.). 


Specific Character. Tentacles sixteen, in two rows, very short, without 
markings. 


Haleampa microps. Gossz, Annals Nat. Hist. Ser. 8. ii, 195. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Column. Cylindrical; 8-invected, the tegumental insertions of the septa 
being the boundaries of the swellings; hinder extremity inflatable, pro- 
trusile, adhesive: skin minutely granular, enveloped in a thin mucus, 
which entangles foreign matters; ordinarily covered with minute, close- 
set, transverse wrinkles. 

Disk. The rounded anterior extremity of the column, around which 
the tentacles are planted in two contiguous circles (though those of each 
row are remote inter se). Sometimes this rounded form is not observed, 
and then the disk is flat. 

Tentacles, In two rows; the first of eight, about .014 inch long, and 
.0045 inchin medium diameter ; the second also of eight, marginal, remote, 
alternate with the former, papilliform, their length not exceeding their 
diameter, or .005 inch. When expanded, those of the first row either stand 
erect, or arch slightly outward ;: their movements are rather sudden ; their 
form quite cylindrical, with round ends; their walls thick, apparently 
imperforate ; a few cnide scattered in their substance. 

Mouth. Elevated on a small abrupt papilla. 


CoLour. 


Pellucid yellowish white, positive in the ratio of opacity of the parts 
without markings. Ovaries tinged with flesh-colour. 


Siz. 

Column when moderately extended about .025 inch in diameter, to a 
point about halfway down its length ; diameter of posterior inflation at the 
same time .065 inch. Total length in this condition .3 inch. 

LOocaLirty. 


South Devon ; rocks between tide-marks. 


THE ROCK PINTLET. 253 


I found this tiny species in much eroded limestone from 
a cavern at Oddicombe, Devon, associated with Edwardsia 
carnea, in June, 1858. Having chiselled off many frag- 
ments of the rock, I put them into glass jars of sea-water ; 
and in a day or two found Haleampa microps crawling up 
_ the side of the jar, adhering by its inflated skin. In the 
- course of a day or two more, another and another appeared, 
until five or six had come under my notice, most of them 
adhering to the glass. They were active and locomotive, 
moving along the surface with ease and comparative 
_ quickness (at least ten times their length in a night), 
adhering by any part of the hinder moiety of the column. 
Very frequently they threw the anterior portion suddenly 
_ round, like an irritated caterpillar ; and almost continually 
constrictions were passing down in succession from head 
to tail. 

They are very coy and very sensitive, retracting forcibly 
and suddenly when alarmed. I attempted to feed them, 
but only frightened them. 

_ The specific name is from pexpds, small, and dy, the 
chrysanthellum. 
MICROPS. 
Edwardsia. 


254 


GENUS IV. EDWARDSIA (Qvarreraggs). 
Scolanthus (Gossk). 


Column long, slender, cylindrical, divided into 
three distinct regions, of which the two terminal are 
retractile within the central one. Anterior region 
forming a short thick pillar (capitulum) of less diameter 
than the central, and more delicate. Central region 
(scapus) covered by a skin (epidermis) more or less 
thick and opaque. Posterior region (physa) thin, 
pellucid, inflatable like a bladder; imperforate (?). 

Disk sometimes flat, sometimes conical. 

Tentacles of one kind, few (less than thirty), mar- 
ginal, arranged in one or two rows; slender, mode- 
rately long, pointed ; perfectly retractile. 

Mouth simple. No obvious gonidial development. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Tentacles sixteen, transversely dashed with white ; 
capitulum purple brown, with white markings ; lives 
UWn GATE aie kw ere why area) ee asl 8 ler eee 

Tentacles twenty-eight, pellucid crimson ; capitulum 
pellucid carneous; lives in eroded rocks . . . » canned 


; 


ASTRZACEA. ILYANTHID2Z. 


THE PAINTED PUFFLET. 
Edwardsia callimorpha. 


Prate VIL Fig. 7. 


| Specific Character. Tentacles sixteen, transversely dashed with white : 
capitulum chocolate-brown, painted with white. 
Scolanthus callimorphus. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 2. xii. 157; pl. x. 
Edwardsia callimorpha. Isr. Linn. Trans. xxi. 271: Man. Mar. Zool. 
‘: i. 31; fig. 45: Ann. N, H. Ser. 3. i. 418. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Column. Nearly cylindrical, slightly enlarging posteriorly, worm-like, 
the length in extension being to the diameter as 10:1. Capitulum a 
short pillar, slightly contracted above and below the middle, and most 
expanded at the margin ; marked with eight invections, each of which is 
divided towards the summit into two; the surface smooth and delicate. 
_ Scapus opaque, leathery, rough and minutely corrugated. Physa (not 


Disk. Plane; radii distinct. 

Tentacles, Sixteen, marginal, set apparently in a single row, but yet 
slightly alternating, corresponding to the invections and semi-invections ; 
_ long (nearly thrice the diameter of the disk), slender, slightly tapering, 
_ obtusely pointed. They radiate horizontally or diagonally, and are fre- 
_ quently intro- or retro-verted. 

Mouth. Set on a prominent cone. 


CoLour. 


Column. Capitulum rich chocolate-brown, irregularly dashed with white 
and black, each invection bearing a conspicuous lozenge-shaped spot of 
cream-white at its foot, and each semi-invection a triangular spot of white 
at the summit. These marks are well defined, and their effect is very 
_ beautiful. Scapus a deep orange-yellow, somewhat tarnished. 

Disk. White, marked with a star of pointed arches of deep sienna- 
_ brown, each arch having a radial stria for its centre, and a circle sur- 
_ founding the mouth for its base. The two gonidial radii dark brown. 


256 ILYANTHIDA, 


Tentacles. Transparent and colourless, marked with spots and dashes 
of opaque white, arranged in irregular transverse rows and rings, which 
increase in number and size until they become confluent towards the tips, 
which are thus pure white. The glassy translucency of the tentacles 
throws out these opaque markings with beautiful effect, especially as the 
foot of each is girded by a broad circle of white. 


Size. 


Column about three-quarters of an inch long when contracted, but 
extending to two and a half inches, with a diameter of one-fourth : disk 
one-fifth of an inch ; expanse of flower about one inch. 


Locanity, 


The south-western coasts of England ; deep water. 


In the summer of 1853 I obtained, from about five 
fathoms in Weymouth Bay, a specimen of this species, 
which I described and figured in the Annals of Nat. Hist. 
under the name of Scolanthus, as I supposed it to be an 
unrecognised form. M.de Quatrefages had, however, pub- 
lished an able and elaborate Memoir* on a form which 
he had named Edwardsia, in well-merited honour of the 
eminent French zoologist, M. Milne Edwards. On mature 
consideration, I was convinced that my Weymouth spe- 
cimen ought to be placed in this genus; for though I had 
described a posterior orifice, which is wanting in Ldwardsia, 
it is probable that I mistook, for such, the depression at 
which the physa, which I did not see, was retracted. The 
animal appears to be quite distinct from all of the three 
French species described by M. de Quatrefages, and to be 


well marked by its beautiful painting, which, resembling | 


the inlayings of veneer-work, or the figures of the kalei- 
doscope, suggested to me a name derived from «adds, beau- 
tiful, and op), form. The English term commemorates 


* Annales des Sci. Nat, 1842, Ser. 2, xviii. 65. . 


, THE PAINTED PUFFLET. 257 
the habit of the genus, of puffing out the bladder-like 
termination of the column. 
_ The habit of the species, judging from what I have seen 
tof it in captivity, is to burrow in fine gravel or sand at 
such a depth as allows it to protrude the coloured capitulum 
_ from the surface. Here it expands its tentacled disk for 
passing prey: I fed it with fragments of a shrimp, and 
_ found that it ate with the same avidity, and in exactly 
the same manner, as its cousins, the Sea-Anemones; the 
tentacles catching and moving to and fro the morsel, and 
_ disposing its position and direction so as to facilitate the 
_ mouth’s grasping it; this latter organ expanding its flexible 
. lips to an apparently indefinite width, and gradually en- 
_ veloping the presented food. 
If rudely touched, the disk was suddenly withdrawn ; the 
capitulum, and then the upper two-thirds of the scapus, 
‘ 


_ disappearing in rapid succession by a process of intro- 
version, exactly like that by which the earthworm with- 
draws its fore parts, or, to use a homely simile, like the 
turning of a stocking. The extent to which the intro- 
version proceeds depends on the degree of annoyance to 
which the animal has been subjected, or on its wayward 
will. It is capable of crawling along in its subterraneous 
: abode, while contracted ; pushing aside the gravel with the 
_ front of its body. It proceeded in this way two or three 
_ inches in as many hours, while I was watching it, before it 
_ turned upwards and thrust out its head; the evolution of 
_ the capitulum not beginning until the surface was reached. 
A second specimen of this species was dredged by the 
Rey. Charles Kingsley, off Brixham, in January, 1854. 
| He informed me that the form and colours agreed with my 
| description, except that the hues of the capitulum were 
" more brilliant, and those of the disk less so. ‘ He broke 
off his tail in disgust two days ago, but has now thought 
8 


258 ILYANTHIDA. 


better of it, and has begun wisely to grow a new tail, 
which is at present transparent, but with a well-defined 
orifice. He lies half-buried in sand, and has several times 
temporarily attached himself by his new tail.”*. _ 

Since this page was in type, Dr. Hilton has taken a 
specimen at Bordeaux Harbour, Guernsey, which he has 
kindly transmitted to me. In its general characters and 
markings, it agrees with the specimen described above; it | 
is, however, much larger, being at least five inches long, — 
and three-eighths in diameter. The scapus is more spindle- — 
shaped, and more coarsely invected and corrugated; the — 
physa 1 have seen inflated, but slightly. The tentacles — 
which correspond to the gonidial radii, and the pair at — 
right angles to these, are much shorter than the rest. The — 
dark gonidial radii have a flush of rich green. 

Many points in the form and anatomy of this genus 
indicate, as has been ably shown by Quatrefages, a decided — 
approach to the Echinodermata, through such forms as — 
Syrinz and Sipunculus. : 

Weymouth, P. H. G.: Brixham, ©. K.: Guernsey, 
Tl Hi ; 


[Beautempsii.] - 
ECHINODERMATA. CALLIMORPHA. 
[Harassi. ] 
carnea. 
H. chrysanthellum. f 


* Kingsley in litt. 


_ASTRAACBA. ILYANTHIDZ. 


THE CRIMSON PUFFLET. 
E - Edwardsia carnea. 
Prats VIL. Figs. 5,6: XII. Fig. 3 (magn.). 


_ Specific Character. Tentacles twenty-eight, pellucid crimson ; eapitulum 
-pellucid flesh-pink. 

FEdwardsia carnea. Gossz, Annals N. H. Ser. 2. xviii. 219; pl. ix. figs. 
; 1—4, Ibid, Ser. 3. i. 418. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Column. Generally cylindrical, sub-equal in diameter throughout, worm- 

Tike, length to diameter as10:1. Capitulwm cylindrical, or slightly barrel- 
haped, marked with eight invections and eight semi-invections, like the 

§ eding ; margin tentaculate. Scapus slightly more coriaceous than the 

Baier regions, but clothed with a very rough epidermis, so slightly adherent 

that it frequently forms a partially free tube. Physa thin, membranous, 

globose, transparent, revealing the septa ; imperforate. 

Disk. Plane; radii distinct. 

_ Tentacles. “Twenty-eight, sub-marginal, arranged in three rows,—8, 8, 

12 =28 (perhaps the ultimate number of the third row may be 16); 
srsatile in shape, being sometimes very short and fusiform, at others 

ongated to thrice the diameter of the disk, tapering and very slender. 

They generally radiate diagonally, arching outwards. 

Mouth. Set on a low cone; lip furrowed. 


CoLour. 


Column. Capitulum translucent, delicately tinted with pink, each in- 
vection bounded by a fine line of opaque white or brilliant pale yellow, and 
5 "2 rked with a longitudinal dash of the same near its foot. The stomach is 
lainly visible, as a thick axis of rich scarlet. Scapus and physa of the 

me rose-tinged translucency, but the epidermis of the former is of a 
brownish-yellow hue. 
_ Disk. A star of cream-white rays on a translucent ground. 
Tentacles. Lovely pellucid pink, sometimes with alternate bands of less 


s2 


260 ILYANTHIDA, 


and more positive colour; frequently becoming a pale opaque yellow at 
foot, which hue runs up in a point on each side. 
Mouth. Scarlet, leading to a stomach of the same rich hue. 


S1zE. 


Column, in extension, reaches to nearly an inch in length, with a general 
diameter of one-tenth; capitulwm one-sixth in length, one twenty-fourth in 
diameter; expanse of flower one-fourth. 


Locatiry. 
The south-western coasts of England; eroded rocks, 


This beautiful and interesting little species was first 
made known by myself in the Annals of Nat. Hist. for 
September, 1856, from a specimen kindly forwarded to me — 
by Miss Pinchard, who obtained it from the rocky islet 
called the Orestone, off Torquay. 

In May, 1858, three specimens were forwarded to me by 
my friend, Mr. F. D. Dyster, out of some hundred and fifty 
that were found by a collector on rocks, between tide- 
marks, near Tenby ; and a few weeks after this I was so — 
fortunate as to discover a populous home of the species, in 
the neighbourhood of Torquay. 

On the south side of the promontory, called Petit Tor, 
on the coast of South Devon, there is a low-roofed cavern, — 
whose orifice is left bare at the lowest water of spring-tides. 
The interior parts of the floor are covered with the common 
limestone shingle, and, being more elevated than the mouth, 
afford an opportunity of working within, whenever one 
can gain admittance. The roof and sides of this cave are 
studded with the pretty little Crimson Pufflet, as well as 
with many other Anemones. The tide having receded, 
they are very readily discovered by their crimson columns 
projecting an eighth of an inch from the dark floccose rock. 
The limestone is much eroded by Saaxicave ; and it is 
in the old burrows of these Mollusca that the Hdwardsta 


THE CRIMSON PUFFLET. 261 


- dwells, clinging to the sides or bottom of the hole by the 
suckers on its- skin, the column and disk now protruding, 
where formerly the siphons of the Mollusk projected. It 
has forcibly reminded me of Ossian’s beautiful image of the 
_ fox looking out of the window in the desolate dwelling of 
~ Moina. : 
In captivity the animal is able to roam about the glass 
by means of its adhesive suckers. 

Under high magnification the epidermis is seen to be a 
film of condensed mucus, evidently composed of disin- 
tegrated cells, in which are entangled a few cnide, some 
_ threads and many spores of Conferve, and multitudes of 
_ Diatomacee, of many species. I carefully removed piece- 
meal the whole epidermis from one, exposing the skin of 
_ the entire scapus, which then was seen to be fleshy, pel- 
lucid, pink, and in all respects like that of the terminal 
_ regions, except that it was slightly more dense. In a few 
_ days the scapus was again encased in an epidermic tube, 
_ thin and semi-transparent, but, instead of being yellowish 
or brown, it was quite grass-green. This I found to be 
owing to the entanglement of conferva-spores in the mucus, 
_ the water having been exposed for some days in a shallow 
__ After having been kept some days in stale water, the 
animal is found much contracted and retired to the middle 
part of the epidermic case. This may be then readily 
removed, the adhesion having ceased. The organic con- 
nexion between the epidermis and the scapus thus appears 
to be less in this species than in others of the genus, and 
"approximates it to Phellia in the Sagartiade. 
_ This pretty Pufilet is easily kept in the aquarium, but it 
“appears to require a considerable volume of water in a state 
of purity. It sometimes floats at the surface, extended at 
fall length. It will feed readily on minute atoms of raw 


262 ILYANTHIDA, 


meat, like the common Anemones. All its movements are 
rapid, sudden, and spasmodic. 
Torquay, P. H. G.: Tenby, F. D, Dyster. 


{ Harassi. } 
Phellia. CARNEA. 
H. chrysanthellum. 


? Epwarpsia BEAUTEMPSIL (Quatref.). 


About the same time that Mr. Kingsley dredged £. cal- 
limorpha at Brixham, he found at Torquay, washed up 
after an easterly gale, an individual of the same genus, but 
manifestly distinct in species. While generally agreeing 
with Z. callimorpha, in size and form, it differed in the 
following points:—1. The scapus was less opaque, more 
smooth and lubricous, and studded with longitudinal rows 
of minute warts between theinvections. 2. The capitulum 
was clavate, proportionally longer, and of the same colour 
as the scapus, a pale pinkish-buff, or light orange. 38. The 
tentacles were fourteen in number, slightly uncinate or 
incurved, banded with dark buff. 4. The disk was trans- 
parent and colourless, with a dark protruded mouth. From 
these characters I think it probable that the animal in 


question was referrible to the E. Beautempsid of M. de § 


Quatrefages. 


263 


GENUS V. ARACHNACTIS (Sars). 


Veeies moderately long, cylindrical, rounded at 
the inferior extremity, but not swollen, imperforate. 
Surface capable of temporary adhesion, and therefore 
probably studded with minute suckers. 

Disk ? ; 

| __ Zentacles of two kinds, the one marginal, very long, 
_ slender ; the other gular, short ; few in each series, not 
retractile. 

Mouth, a simple slit. 

Habit: freely swimming in the sea. 


_ ‘There is but one British species, 4. albida. 


ASTR&ACEA. ILYANTHID&. 


THE SPRAWLET. 


Arachnactis albida. 


Specific Character. Marginal tentacles longer than the column,. gular 
tentacles about one-fourth of the length of the column. 


Arachnactis albida. Sars, Fauna Litt. Norveg. i. 28; pl. iv. fig. 1—6. 
Forses and Goopsir, Trans. Roy. Soc. Edinb. xx. 310. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION 


Form. 


Column. Shortly cylindrical [pear-shaped, E. F.], sub-globular in 
contraction, becoming gradually smaller and rounded at the inferior 
extremity, where no orifice has been observed. Surface smooth [but with 
the power of adhering, at least by the inferior extremity (E. F.), which 
implies the existence of suckers]. Substance softly fleshy. 

Disk. [Undescribed.] 

Tentacles. Of two kinds. First series marginal, twelve to fourteen in 
number, filiform, tapering, very long, slender and pointed: of these 
eleven are about equal in length and thickness, while one or two are very 
much shorter and smaller, and un- 
equal inter se. Some individuals 
show traces of the budding forth 
of another tentacle. These smaller 
and apparently sprouting tentacles 
always occur at that part of the 

ns Cork eeee hnete ke circle which corresponds to one 

; angle of the mouth. Second series 

springing immediately around the mouth-slit, eight. to twelve in number 

[sixteen, E. F.], conical, pointed, scarcely one-tenth as long as those of the 

first series ; some smaller than the rest, and apparently budding, and these 
correspond in position with the budding ones of the first series. 

Mouth. A simple slit. 


CoLour. 


Column. Pellucid whitish, displaying the dark brown stomach through 
its translucency [dusky white, tinged with tawny, E. F.]. 

Tentacles. First series whitish with dark brown tips [tawny and white, 
E. F.]. Second series dark brown on the front face. 


THE SPRAWLET. — 265 


Size. 


Length of column about one-third of an inch [one inch, E.F.] ; diameter 
one-eighth; length of marginal tentacles one and a half inch [three or 
four inches, E. F.]. 


Locatiry. 


The Hebridean and Norwegian Seas. 


This very interesting form, the only British example of 
- anatatory Anemone, has occurred on two occasions, both 
in the month of August, and both in the Minch, the strait 
that divides the Isle of Lewis from Scotland :—first by 
_ Dr. Balfour in 1841, who obtained a number of specimens, 
but all in a mutilated condition, and subsequently by 
_ Messrs. E. Forbes and Goodsir in 1850. In the interim, the 
_ Rev. Mr. Sars, of Bergen, had described and figured it in 
an elaborate memoir in the “ Fauna Littoralis Norvegie ” 
(1846) ; and it is from this that we derive our chief know- 
ledge of the species, Forbes’s account being exceedingly 
meagre. 

It appears in the vicinity of the Isle of Florde, on the 
coast of Norway, in autumn and winter, swimming on the 
‘smooth sea, sometimes in dense shoals, sometimes singly, 
borne on the northward current. Comparing the periods 
_ of its occurrence in the Hebridean and Norwegian seas, we 
€ may infer that it comes up from the warmer parts of the 
_ Atlantic; and it might be hopefully looked for on the 
_ west coasts of Ireland in the earlier summer. As it 
Swims it carries the marginal tentacles horizontally spread, 
_ when it looks not unlike a long-legged spider: hence 
_ the generic name from apdyvn, a spider, and aris, a ray, 
_ and hence also the English term I have assigned to it. The 
_ superior or the inferior extremity is indifferently carried 
_ uppermost. It swims by a languid undulation of the long 


266 ILYANTHIDA. 


tentacles; but it has a certain power of crawling also; for 
these organs are strongly adhesive throughout, and the 
animal, attaching itself by these means to foreign bodies, 
slowly draws itself forward. 

The gular tentacles are usually projected, and clasped 
together, but sometimes they are horizontally spread. In 
the latter case, if touched, they are instantly drawn to- 
gether, and slightly contracted, but never retracted; they 
have no adhesive power. The appearance and situation of 
these organs have suggested to my mind the thought that 
possibly they may be the lobes of a conchula, in which case 
the animal would be a swimming Peachia: if, however, 
they are true gular tentacles, then the alliance is obvious 
with the following genus Cerianthus. May it not possibly 
be the immature condition of this latter ?* 

There are discrepancies in form and colour, and especially 
in size, between the specimens seen on our own coast, and 
those described by Mr. Sars, which make-it possible that 
these may constitute two species. We trust other speci- 
mens may clear up.this and other questions of interest. 
Forbes found a species of the same genus abundant in the 
Grecian Seas, but whether identical with this, we are not 
informed. 

The internal structure, which, from the transparency of 
the integuments is clearly seen, presents nothing peculiar. 


? Peachia. : 
ACALEPHA. ALBIDA. Anthea. 
? Cerianthus. 


* See M. Haime’s observations on the free-swimming young of Cerian- 
thus, infra, p. 273. 


ST ee ee 


eS a, eee 


267 


GENUS VI. CERIANTHUS (Dexia Cutasz). 


Tubularia (GMELIN). 
Moschata (BLAINVILLE). 
Edwardsia (FoRBEs). 


Column lengthened, cylindrical, swollen and bulb- 


like at the inferior extremity, which is perforated with 


a distinct orifice; expanding trumpet-like at the 


"margin, which merges into the tentacles, without 
' parapet or fosse. Surface smooth, without loop-holes, 
"or (apparent) suckers. Usually enveloped in a loose, 


_ non-adherent tube, closed at the lower end, of tough, 
_ membranous texture, and ragged exterior. 

_ Disk wider than column, but not over-arching : 
_ funnel-shaped, with conspicuous radii. 

Tentacles of two kinds ; the one marginal, the other 
_ gular; both in perfect circles, those.of each equal 
_ inter se, moderately numerous, slender; absolutely . 
_ incapable of retraction. 


There is but one British species as yet certainly 


| assigned to this genus, C. Lloydit. 


ASTRAACEA. ILYANTHIDZ. 


THE VESTLET. 
Cerianthus Lloydii. 


Puate VI. Fig. 8. 


Specific Character. Inferior orifice excentric : septa regularly graduated. 


Edwardsia vestita. Gossz, Ann. N. H. Ser. 2. xviii. 73. 
Cerianthus membranaceus. Iptp. Ibid. Ser. 8. i. 418. 
Lloydii. Isrp. Ibid. Ser. 3. iii. 50. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
For. 


Column. Greatly lengthened, cylindrical for the most part, but gene- 
rally swollen at the inferior end into an elliptical bulb, and gradually 
expanding into a trumpet-shaped summit to about twice the median 
diameter. No distinct margin, the summit of the column itself dividing 
into the tentacles, the ridges of which are apparent for some distance 
below the point where they separate. Inferior extremity pierced with a 
round orifice, which is placed at one side of the axial line. Mesenteric 
prolongations of the visceral septa twenty-four, of which one pair are very 
minute, while the opposite pair extend to the immediate vicinity of the 
inferior orifice. From the one to the other of these conditions there is a 
regular gradation in length, but from the longest to the middle pair the 
diminution is slight, while from the middle pair to the shortest it is great 
and rapid. 

Disk. A deep funnel-shaped cavity, about twice as wide as the column, 
entire, circular, not overarching. 

Tentacles. Oftwo kinds, First series strictly marginal, sixty-four, set 
in two rows, alternating, but with their bases in mutual contact. They 
are equal, slender, conical, sharp-pointed, divided more or less conspicu- 
ously into knobs, by some half-dozen constrictions. Their contour is some- 
what stiff, and they are generally carried arching upward and outward ; 
but some of the inner row are frequently erect, and others inclined to a 
point over the disk. Second series remote from the first, crowded, in four 
irregular circles, springing immediately around the mouth ; filiform, obtuse, 
sub-equal, not half as long or thick as those of the first series. 


THE VESTLET. 269 


Mouth. A transverse slit; lip minutely furrowed, not projecting. 

Investing Tube. Cylindrical, much wider than the animal, which is 
loosely invested by it without attachment in any part, papery or felty in 
texture, thick and soft, 
composed of many layers, 
the outer of which pre- 
sent ragged foliations. 


ne 


The tube can easily be ‘ WY WS 


detached, when the ani- 
mal immediately begins 
to form a new one, by 
throwing off the material 
from the entire surface 
of the column; this at 
first is adhesive, tena- 
cious, and very tough, 
pellucid, but gradually 
becomes milky,and finally 
opaque, entangling mud 
and sand in its substance. 
Tt is wholly composed of 
enide, the discharged 
ecthorea of which, in in- 
calculable numbers and 
of great length, inter- 
twine and form a sort of 
felt. 


CoLour. 


Column. Pale buff or 
whitish, gradually becom- 
ing rich chestnut brown 
at the summit. 

Disk. Pellucid white. 

Tentacles. First series 
maronne or chocolate-brown at the foot, above which pellucid whitish, with 
chestnut bands. Second series dark maronne. 


S1ze. 


Length seven inches, under strong irritation contracting to two; general 
diameter of column one-fourth of an inch; of disk half an inch; expanse 
of flower one inch and a half. 


270 “ILYANTHID A. 
LOcALiry. 


The Menai Strait, in North Wales, and the Channel Islands; between 
tide-marks, 


VARIETIES. 


Specimens differ considerably in the depth and extent of the brown 
tints of the upper parts. In some the maronne or red-brown hue 
extends across the disk; in others it is scarcely discernible on the 
tentacles, 


The present species has generally been supposed to be 
identical with that of the Mediterranean, of which M. Jules 
Haime has given an elaborate memoir (Ann. d. Sci. Nat. 
Ser. 4,1. 341). But in that species the arrangement of 
the mesenteric septa,—which M. Milne Edwards (Hist. 
Nat. des Coralliaires, i. 308) gives as generic, differs so 
importantly from what obtains in ours, as to demand a 
revision of the generic characters. I have therefore con- 
stituted it a new species, naming it after Mr. W. Alford 
Lloyd, to whose intelligent enterprise the study of Actino- 
logy is so greatly indebted, and to whom we owe our 
acquaintance with this very animal. 

In the summer of 1856, this gentleman first obtained 
specimens from the Menai Strait, a fact which I noticed in 
the “ Annals N. H.” for July of that year, assigning the 
species to the Edwardsia vestita of E. Forbes. Mr. Lloyd 
also himself about the same time communicated two notes 
on the animal to the “ Zoologist,”’ in one of which he stated 
that he had then obtained eighteen specimens. Since that 
period he has procured many more, but, as I believe, only 
from the same locality. Some of these specimens he has 
courteously presented to me, and has thus enabled me 
to become personally familiar with the habits of the 
species. 


ee eS ee 


a et el” oe oe 


ee a ee Se 


THE VESTLET. 271 


The animal is hardy in the aquarium, bearing even the 
confinement of travel with more impunity than many 
commoner species. It is large and handsome, with a striking 
_ and noble aspect, and as it lives habitually expanded, and 
manifests considerable vivacity, it is a very desirable 
- acquisition. ‘The appearance of its felty tube is, however, 
repulsive ; but this I have found by no means essential to 
_ its comfort, and have managed to dispense with it, by the 
_ following device. Having prepared a glass tube of suit- 
able size, by cementing it perpendicularly to a stone of 
sufficient weight to maintain its stability in an upright 
_ position, I carefully removed the animal’s own case, and 
- dropped the denuded body into the new lodging. The 
Cerianthus, in every instance, became immediately at 
home, presently lengthened itself, and expanded at the 
margin of its new abode ; and, as if the protection hereby 
_ afforded were sufficient, it threw off a new natural coat, 
only to such an extent as did not interfere with the sight 
_ of the body through the glass. 

Another advantage is secured by this treatment ; for 
_ whereas naturally the animal burrows in the mud, so that 
only the expanded flower is visible, and when put into a 
_ tank sprawls uncouthly along the bottom, the upright - 
glass tube exposes the entire animal to observation, while 
it is protected from injury. I have specimens now which 
_ have been kept for many months in these circumstances, 
_ and are still in the highest condition. 

In handling the animal during the process of strippmg 
off the coat, it contracts by strong, sudden, and repeated 
_ jerks, at each becoming shorter. In these contractions 
_ the water in the visceral cavity is forcibly ejected from the 
_ terminal pore. This is not placed at the extreme point, 
_ which is marked by a depression, and by the convergence of 
lines, but is considerably excentric. Ihave also seen water 


272 ILYANTHIDA. 


ejected at intervals by the same orifice, when undisturbed, 
and that so forcibly as to hurl the floating atoms to the 
distance of two inches. Iam pretty sure that I have also 
seen an inflowing current; but this is more gradual, and 
therefore less conspicuous. The orifice must be considered 
as only a provision for respiration, and not as a termination 
to the alimentary canal: the half-digested food is, as usual, 
discharged from the mouth. 

The Vestlet feeds freely in captivity, greedily accepting 
fragments of raw flesh, and also skilfully catering for itself. 
One evening I amused myself with observing it capture 
its prey. It was one of those mentioned above, set in an 
upright test-tube, in an old-established tank, close to the 
side. The water contained a large number of minute 
Entomostraca, which, when the candle was placed near the 
tank, flocked from all parts to the light. I thus was able 
to direct the migrant crowd to any point that I pleased ; 
and so brought them, when pretty well assembled, to the 
quarter which the expanded tentacles of the Certanthus 
occupied. One and another were continually coming into 
contact with the tentacles; and it was highly interesting to 
mark the unerring certainty with which each was arrested 
the instant it touched a tentacle. No matter whether the 
foot, middle, or tip of the organ were touched, the little 
intruder inevitably adhered as if birdlimed, and apparently 
without a struggle; when immediately, with the most 
beautiful ease and precision, the fortunate tentacle jerked 
inward,—all the rest remaining as they were,—and, deliver- 
ing the prey to the grasp of the gular tentacles, in a moment 
resumed its expectant position. So numerous was the 
giddy throng, that this manceuvre was every moment in 
practice, with some or other of the tentacles; so that 
scores, certainly, of the Water-fleas were captured while 
I was observing. 


ee ae 


—— 


ee a ee ee ey ee 


THE VESTLET. 273 
Mr. E. Edwards, of Menai Bridge, who has politely sent 


mea peculiarly fine specimen, has also favoured me with 


the following interesting note of the haunts and habits 
_ of the species. 
_ The only account I can give of the Cerianthus is, that 


_ have found it in the Menai Straits in two distinct places, 


_ about five miles apart. 
_ The ground is a mixture of stones, gravel, and mud. 
_ The disk (some of a light and some of a dark colour) when 
_ first seen is on a level with the surface of the ground, but 
on approaching instantly disappears into its sac. 
j “The operation of taking it is difficult, as on the least 
disturbing of the ground it slips through the sac and is 
lost. The plan I adopt is to surround it with two or three 
“spades, and each to act at the same moment, so as to 
_ undermine it in an instant, and press the ground, which 
causes its escape to be more difficult.” 
__. Mr. Holdsworth informs me that he found a specimen of 
_ this species* at the island of Herm, near Guernsey. “It 
was close to low-water mark, buried among mud and 
stones, with a large piece of granite covering it. Not 
more than half an inch of the tube was exposed when 
the stone was removed; and I found the rest winding 
about the irregularities of the ground in a most tortuous 
manner, turning sharp corners in its course downwards.” 
M. Haime (Op. cit.) furnishes us with some interesting 
details of the development of C. membranaceus, which 
_ doubtless apply equally well to the present species. “The 
_ young,” he observes, “which I obtained, all died in the 
_ course of a few days. I never found any young advanced, 
_ within the parent, as is so common with Actinie ; but the 
eggs, which float freely there, had already passed the first 
* It is right, however, to observe that the distinction between this 


_ Species and C. membranaceus was not then suspected. 
T 


274 . ILYANTHIDZ. 


period, and I had no opportunity of seeing their segmen- 
tation. All were strongly ciliated, and therefore were 
already larve. They were oval in form, 3 millim. in 
length. One end becomes concave, the other conical. 
In the centre of the former an opening forms, through 
which granules escape, and this becomes the mouth; the 
escape of the granules leaving the visceral cavity. Soon 
around the mouth four minute tubercles bud, which become 
- tentacles ; then two other tubercles nearer the mouth form 
lips ; meanwhile the body becomes smooth, and cylindro- 
conical, 

“The young lived in this state ten or twelve days; and 
attained one or one and a half millimetre in length. The 
body continued entirely ciliated, and was become very con- 
tractile. They swam freely in the manner of a Medusa, 
mouth downward, by means of elongations and shortenings 
of the trunk, and by openings and closings of the ten- 
tacles. Sometimes they would oscillate, or revolve on 
themselves.” 

Arachnactis. _ ; 2. ah 
Lroyptl. Cyathophylliade. 
{membranaceus. | fie 


“CERIANTHUS (?) VERMICULARIS (E. Forbes). 


Dr. Johnston, in his “ Brit. Zooph.” Ed. 2, p. 222; pl. 
xxxvili. figs. 2—5, has described and figured, on. the 
authority of E. Forbes, under the name of Act. vermicu- 
laris, what seems either the young of the preceding 
species, after it has become stationary, or else a near 
ally to it. It is described as “ O#% long,” and the larger 


- EE ——— 


THE VESTLET. 275 


‘tentacles “Qs%;” but what the integer is to which these 
fractions refer we are not informed. There is doubtless 
‘some error, as in the description these organs are called 
“Jong;” and the figures, which are rude enough, are said 
to be “of the natural size,’’ and these represent the animal 
as 14 inch in length, with the tentacles, both marginal and 
gular, about 4 of an inch. A slender cylindrical column, 
with a trumpet-shaped margin, a funnel-shaped disk, two 
kinds of tentacles, and a slit-like mouth,—this animal 
“possesses in common with the Cerianthus. It is repre- 
‘sented, indeed, as standing erect, with the base attached 
‘in the manner of an Actinia ; but this was probably drawn 
from assumption, and the attachment may have been 
similar to that which I have described in other [/yanthide. 
_ Professor Forbes says the base was “not expanded,’ which 
favours this supposition. No tube or case is alluded to, 
_ but it may be that this is developed only at a later period 
_ of life. The specimens were dredged in fifty fathoms in 
the Shetland Seas; the column was greyish pink; the disk 
and gular tentacles white; the marginal tentacles fulvous. 
It gave out a vivid phosphorescent light when irritated in 
’ the dark. 


276 


TRIBE I1.—CARYOPHYLLIACEA. 


The large number of tentacles in the polypes of this 
tribe allies them to the ASTRMACEA, and at the same time 
separates them from the MADREPORACEA and ANTIPA- 
THACEA. Moreover, while the mode of increase in the 
compound species, by gemmation of the sides or base, 
removes them from the former, it affiliates them to the 
latter tribes. The majority of species deposit a corallum 
of lime, the calices of which are many-rayed. In compound 
species, the interstices between the corallites are not occupied 
by prolongations of the septal plates, but are granulous 
or porous, or sometimes faintly channeled. The stony 
plates (septa) are nearly or quite entire, rarely denticulate. 
Within the corallum the septa are connected laterally only 
by very distant dissepiments, if at all, never by series ot 
transverse plates. The stars, in a transverse section, are 
simple; the chambers being rarely crossed by dissepi- 
ments: the calices are very commonly cylindrical, with 
narrow plates, arranged neatly around, and have often 
a broad bottom, generally porous and convex (DANA). 

The vast majority of CARYOPHYLLIACEA are coralli- 
genous ; but this statement will not apply to those which 
belong to the British seas: for of the seventeen species 
presently to be described, seven are destitute of a corallum. 

So far as I am acquainted with them, the tentacles of 
our native species (with the exception of Zoanthus) differ 
from those of our ASTRAACEA, in having the enide not 
lodged in the substance of the walls, but aggregated into 
masses which form warts on the surface. Most of them 
have, moreover, these organs terminated with globose 
heads, destitute of enide, but studded with minute hairs 


(palpocils). 


Cavity gradually filling up. . . . - - Oculinade.. 
) , Cavity permanently open . . . . . . Angiade. 
Substance of corallum porous . . . . . . - . Ewpsammiade. 


278 


FAMILY I.—CAPNEAD&. 


The members of this Family do not, at any period of 
their existence, so far as is known, deposit a corallum, or 
any trace of calcareous matter. They are, moreover, per- 
manently simple ; for though there is reason to believe that 
they increase by budding, the polypes so formed quickly 
sever their connexion with the parent, and become inde- 
pendent though associated individuals. Thus they are 
essentially Anemones, such as we have already considered ; 
yet there is something in their aspect which at once 
betokens their ‘affinity with the Corals. In particular, the 
tentacles have the singular structure and knobbed form 
already noticed as peculiar to this tribe: and, contrary to 
the universal rule in the Astrwacea, they increase in size 
outwardly,—the outer row containing the largest. 

The body, adherent by a broad base, is fleshy or pulpy, 
copiously lubricated with mucus, and sometimes separating 
the outer skin into a deciduous epidermis. The surface is 
not furnished with suckers, nor pierced with loopholes. 
There are no acontia, but the craspeda are numerous and 
large, and their contained cnide are remarkably developed. 


ANALYSIS OF THE GENERA, 


Tentacles truncate... inlet en mye ie 8) sc) eee Capnea. 
Tentacles crowned with bilobed heads . . ... + + « Aureliania, 
Tentacles crowned with globose heads . . . +. - . + Corynactis. 


ee ee 


a 


ee ee ee ee 


279 


GENUS I. CAPNEA (Forszs). 


Base expanded, swollen, adherent. 

Column cylindrical, pillar-like ; the margin forming 
a thick parapet, with a fosse. Surface smooth, without 
loopholes, invested with a woolly epidermis. 

Disk circular, entire. 

Tentacles very short, truncate, retractile. 


But one species is known, C. sanguinea. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. CAPNEAD&. 


THE CROCK. 


Capnea sanguinea. 
Puate IX. Fig. 13. 
Specific Character. Body scarlet ; epidermis brown, 8-lobed. 


Kapnea sanguinea. Fores, Ann. N. H. Ser 1. vii. 82; pl. i. fig. 1. 
Capnea sanguinea. JOHNSTON, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2. i. 203; fig. 48. Cocks, 
Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851, 1; pl. i. figs. 1, 2. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form, 


Base. Greatly expanded, irregularly inflated and lobe-like; its outline 
irregularly undulate ; adherent. 

Column. Cylindrical, pillar-like, higher than broad ; the margin form- 
ing, when fully expanded, a thick and prominent granulate parapet, or 
collar, with a deep fosse. Surface smooth, without loopholes, invested on 
the lower two-thirds with a woolly epidermis, the upper edge of which is 
regularly 8-lobed. 

Disk. Circular, entire. 

Tentacles. Extremely short, truncate, having the aspect of squared 
tubercles ; arranged in three rows of sixteen each, those of the outermost 
row the largest. Disk and tentacles perfectly retractile. 

Mouth. Round, slightly puckered. 


CoLourR, 


Column. Vivid vermilion, or dull brownish scarlet, with darker 
longitudinal stripes on the inflated basal portion. Epidermis brown. 

Disk. Yellowish flesh-colour. 

Tentacles. Orange-scarlet, paler than the column. 


Size. 


Height of column one inch; diameter of disk one-fourth. 


THE CROCK. 281 


LocaLiry. 


Deep water, off Isle of Man, on nullipore beds : deep water, four leagues 
west of Falmouth, on a valve of Pecten maximus. 


The late E. Forbes first obtained this interesting form 
in August, 1840, and assigned to it its generic and specific 
names; the former from xdzvn, a chimney, from its re- 
_ semblance to a chimney-crock, of which suggestion I have 
availed myself to make an English appellation. He tells 
us little of its history beyond what I have embodied above; 

except that it is an active creature, changing its form often, 
_ but always presenting more or less of a tubular shape; and 
that the upper part of the body can be retracted within the 
column as low as the commencement of the epidermis. 

Mr. W. P. Cocks has since obtained a second specimen. 
This was considerably smaller than Forbes’s, but agreed 
with it in essential points. Mr. Cocks has kindly put into 
my possession some notes of his specimen, which have 
enabled me to add a few details to Forbes’s diagnosis ; and 
also a coloured drawing made from the living animal, 
_ which I have copied in my Plate IX. 


Phellia. 
SANGUINEA. 
Aureliania. 


282 — 


GENUS H. AURELIANIA (Gossz). 


(Gen. nov.) 


Corynactis (THOMPSON). 


Base expanded, adherent. 

Column conico-cylindrical, low, the margin forming ~ 
a thick parapet with a fosse. Surface smooth, without 
suckers or loopholes: invested with a deciduous epi- 
dermis. Substance firm and coriaceous, opaque. 

Disk flat, entire; radii distinct. 

Tentacles in several rows, very short, knobbed; the 
heads more or less bilobate, and differing in form in 
the different rows; perfectly retractile. 

Mouth slit-like, furrowed: stomach-wall protrusile. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Base greatly expanded: crimson . .... + augusta. 
Base not exceeding column: yellow . ... . heterocera, 


| CARYOPHYLLIACEA. ’ CAPNEADE 


THE CRIMSON IMPERIAL. 
Aureliania augusta. 
(Sp. nov.) 


Puate IX. Fig. 11. 


- 


& z Specific Character. Column rising from a widely expanded base : crimson, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks; greatly expanded ; the outline undulate. 
Column. A low, thick pillar, springing gradually from the broad base 
like the trunk of a tree; the margin forming a thick and prominent 
_ parapet, the inner edge of which is crenate; and separated from the ten- 
_ tacles by a narrow and shallow fosse. Surface smooth, entirely invested 
with a soft, woolly, firm, thin epidermis (which fell off in patches 
% _ soon after capture, and was not renewed). Substance firmly fleshy ; 


Disk, Somewhat elliptical, entire, flat or slightly convex; radii fine 
ont distinct. 
_ entacles. In four rows, the outer row containing 42; very short, 
F _ knobbed ; the knobs agreeing in form with those of the following species. 
- Disk and tentacles freely and completely retractile. 
 Leeee oie slightly furrowed. 


CoLour. 


~ Column. Rich crimson, splashed with deeper crimson, and with pale 
_ yellowish. Epidermis dark olive-brown. 
Disk. Light crimson. r 
Tentacles. Rosy white, with opaque white tips. 

Srzz. 
Diameter of base two inches and three-quarters: of disk rather more 
_ than an inch ; height from one to one and three-quarters. 


2 Locatiry. 
- North Devon ; low water. 


284 CAPNEADA, 


In August, 1856, the Rev. J. P. Greenly, being on a 
visit to Ilfracombe, found in a crevice of the slaty rock at 
Bull Point, at extreme low water, this magnificent species, 
which lived in his possession till the following April. To - 
his courtesy I owe copious descriptions and drawings made 
from the animal while in life and health; by which I am 
enabled to draw up the foregoing diagnosis. I forwarded 
to him for comparison some drawings which I had by me 
of Mr. Thompson’s Oorynactis heterocera ; and the agree- 
ment of the two forms in all essentials, and especially in 
the singular shapes of the diverse tentacles, showed that 
they were of one and the same genus, which was thus 
proved to have characters that called for its separation from 
Corynactis. At the period last named my kind corre- 
spondent forwarded the specimen to me: but it was already 
dead; and while it retained its form and colour, I was 
precluded from adding anything to my knowledge from 
personal observation. 

In captivity the animal was lively and extremely sensi- 
tive, retracting its disk with remarkable suddenness and 
rapidity on alarm. It early crawled from the piece of slate 
on which it was captured, and took up a position on the 
side of a finger-glass in which it was kept. The tentacles 
were observed to vary the shape of their knobs, within 
slight limits: one here and there in the outer row occa- 
sionally approaching the hastate form of the next row, 


sanguinea. 
AUGUSTA. — 
heterocera. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. CAPNEAD&. 


THE YELLOW IMPERIAL. 


Aureliania heterocera. 
Puate IX. Fig. 12. 
Specific Character. Base scarcely exceeding column : yellow. 


Corynactis heterocera. W.THoMPSON (W.), Proc. Zool. Soc. 1853. Gossz, 
Man. Mar. Zool. i. 28. E. P. Wricut, Nat. 
Hist. Review, April, 1859, p. 122. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


_ Base. Adherent to rocks: scarcely exceeding the column in width; 
yery slightly undulate. 

Column. A stout cylindrical pillar, about as wide as high, but often con- 
stricted below the margin, when the lower portion becomes nearly hemi- 
spherical: margin forming a thick parapet, the inner edge of which is 
crenate, and separated from the tentacles by a narrow fosse. Surface smooth, 
entirely invested with a thin slimy epidermis, which is easily rubbed off. 
and quickly renewed. Substance firm and coriaceous ; perfectly opaque. 

_ Disk. Nearly circular, entire, ample, membranous, fiat or slightly 
convex : radii fine but distinct. 

Tentacles. About 120, set in four rows, of which the outermost con- 
tains 32; the others one or two less: they are short, thick, cylindrical, 
with knobbed tips, diverse among themselves. The 
Knobs of the outermost row are little wider than 
_ the stems, they are sub-conical, or kidney-shaped, 
_ seemingly formed of two lobes, with a round 
tubercle seated on the inner face just below the 
knob. Of the second row the knobs consist of two 
swellings divided by a constriction, each swelling 
composed of two globose lobes placed side by side, 
with a mucro terminating the whole. Of the two 
innermost rows the knobs are nearly sessile ; they 
are rondo-quadrangular, or shaped somewhat like spam aera ipa 
a loaf of bread. In the expanded state all these 
organs lie nearly horizontal, pointing outwards, and slightly overlapping 

the parapet. 


286 CAPNEADA. 


Mouth. Slit-like, coarsely furrowed. Stomach-wall capable of protru- 
sion, so as to conceal the whole disk. 


CoLour. 


Column. A rich apricot-yellow, which here resides in the epidermis, for 
when this is rubbed off, the colour is white, but when renewed the colour 
returns. 

Disk. Pellucid white, with fine opaque white radii. 

Tentacles. Pellucid white, faintly tinged with red, and tipped with 
opaque white. P 

Mouth. Lips deep buff. 


Srzu. 


Diameter and height of column about an inch; expanse the same. 


LOCALITY. 


The south of England and south-west of Ireland: deep water. 


This fine species, only inferior in beauty to the one just 
described, was dredged by Mr. W. Thompson in Wey- 
mouth Bay,—eight fathoms, gravel,—in September, 1853. 
As I was at Weymouth at the time, he kindly showed it 
to me, and I thus had the opportunity of making careful 
drawings and notes from the life. We considered it as more 
nearly allied to Corynactis than to any other recognised 
form; and, the species augusta being then unknown, I was 
induced to suggest the specific name heterocera, which Mr. 
‘Thompson adopted, from €repos, diverse, and «épas, a horn. 

In confinement, the species appeared hardy. When 
detached it readily adhered again; soon expanded after 
having been provoked to close; often passing from one 
condition to the other many times’in quick succession. 
It is subject to very little change of shape, in this respect 
contrasting with Corynactis, which is most protean: Mr. 
Thompson observed that it opened slowly, exserting the 
tentacles of one-fourth of the periphery, while the rest 
remained closed. These organs were nearly motionless. 


. 
Pe es ee ee ee ee EE EE EEE EE eGO7wWmoOoeererororoooOw 


. 
ie i se eo 


THE YELLOW IMPERIAL. 287 


When a piece of meat was dropped on the open disk, 
it remained awhile apparently unnoticed; at length the 
animal slowly bent itself on one side, and the unwelcome 
morsel rolled across the tentacles and fell to the bottom. 

_ When Dr. E. P. Wright was on the south-west coast of 
Treland, in July, 1858, he found, at Crookhaven, a small 
number of specimens of this species, agreeing with Mr. 
Thompson’s description in every particular, except their 
smaller size. He kindly sent me three, but they all died 
in transitu, from the length of the journey. Dr. Wright. 
says “it can assume an almost transparent appearance, ’— 
which was not the case with the Weymouth specimens ; 
but which assimilates it to Corynactis. He observed also 
that the outer tentacles were reverted, so as actually to 
_ touch the rock, which gave it a strange aspect. 

The circles of tentacles resemble a coronet of pearls ; 
and searching for a name by which to distinguish the 
"genus, I was reminded, by this peculiarity, of the diadem 
which was the distinctive badge of the Roman Augustz, and 
by the splendid colours of the animals, of the no less imperial 
gold and purple. I have therefore called it Aureliania, 

after him who of the Roman emperors first wore the 
' diadem and the gold-embroidered purple.* The splendid 
appearance of the zoophytes, especially of the preceding 
species, must plead my apology for so presumptuous an 
appropriation. 

Weymouth, W. T. (w.): Crookhaven, Z. P. W. 


augusta. 
HETEROCERA. 
Corynactis. 


* “Tste primus [scil. Aurelianus], apud Romanos, diadema capiti 
vas)” gemmisque et auraté omni veste, . . . usus est.” (Aurel. 


288 


GENUS III. CORYNACTIS (Atimay). 


Base expanded, adherent. 

Column versatile, tall; the margin forming a 
parapet, with no fosse. Surface smooth, without 
suckers or loopholes ; not invested with any separable 
epidermis. Substance fleshy or pulpy, pellucid. 

~ Disk flat, entire, circular. 
Tentacles in several rows, all of the same form ; 


each consisting of a conical stem and a globular head: — 


perfectly retractile. 
Mouth simple, protrusile ; lip coarsely furrowed : 
stomach evertile. 


Only one British species exists, C. viridis. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. CAPNEAD#, 


THE GLOBEHORN, 
Corynactis viridis. 
Puate IX. Figs. 1—5. 


Specific Character. Rarely exceeding half an inch in height; trans- 
parent ; tentacles very unequal. 


Corynactis viridis. Auman, Ann. Nat. Hist. Ser. 1, xvii. 417; pl. xi. 
JOHNSTON, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2, i. 205; pl. xxxv. 
figs. 10, 11. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851, 3; 
pl. i. figs. 3—5. M. Epwarps, Hist. Corall. i. 258. 
Allmanni. Tsompson, in Johnst. Br. Zooph. Ed. 2, i. 474; fig. 
85. Cocks, Rep. Cornw. Soc. 1851, 4; pl. i. fig. 
. 6. Gossz, Dev. Coast, 422; pl. viii. figs. 8—10. 
Tpm. Man. Mar. Zool. i. 28; fig. 39. E. P. Wricur 
Nat. Hist. Rev. vi. 122; pl. xiii. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks and shells; generally broader than column ; 
its outline sometimes slightly undulate. 

Column. Pillar-like, very variable in height and shape; the margin 
forming a distinct parapet or terrace, crenated within, but not separated 
from the tentacles by a fosse. Surface smooth, or slightly furrowed, 
lubricous. Substance pulpy, transparent. 

Disk. Circular, never waved, often greatly exceeding the column, flat 
or slightly concave ; smooth, with the radii marked, but no gonidial 
distinction. 

Tentacles. Upwards of 100, set in four rows,—16, 24, 32, 32, = 104; 
the outer rows largest; each composed of a more or less pillar-like or 
conical stem, and a globular head: in the inner rows, the stem is very 
short, and the head nearly sessile. The outer rows usually diverge 
upward and outward, projecting over the margin, and not seldom hang 
downward. 

Mouth. Protrusile at pleasure into a truncate cone or cylinder, sur- 


U 


290 CAPNEADA, 


rounded by a thick lip strongly furrowed, like the mouth of a cowry-shell. 
No trace of gonidial tubercles, or grooves. 


CoLour. 


Column. A yellow emerald-green, becoming far richer and more opaque 
at the margin. 

Disk. Transparent, with the radii brilliant emerald-green. 

Tentacles. Stems with dark umber-brown warts on a transparent 
colourless ground ; heads rich rose- pat 

Mouth. Emerald-green. 


wee) 


Size, 


Seldom exceeding half an inch in height, and three-eighths of an inch in 
diameter of disk. 


Locattty. 


The south-west coasts of England, Scotland, and Ireland: deep water, 
and between tide-marks. 


VARIETIES. 


a. Smaragdina. The condition above detailed, which was the one first 
described, and is by far the most abundant. (PI. ix. fig. 5.) 

8. Rhodoprasina. Column and disk rosy-lilac; margin emerald-green ; 
tentacles, stem umber, head pearl-white. (Fig. 1.) 

y. Tephrina. Column and disk pearl-grey; margin faint emerald; 

tentacle-stem and head dull wood-brown. (Fig. 3.) 

6. Chrysochlorina. Column pale yellow-green below, blending above into 
orange; margin rich orange; disk emerald-green ; tentacle-stem maronne 
(or white), head pearl-white; lip searlet-orange. (Fig. 2.) 

e. Prasococcina. Column and disk pellucid pearl-grey, flushed with 
scarlet ; margin emerald; tentacle-stem and head pale scarlet. 

’ ¢ Oorallina. Column brownish scarlet, margin orange-scarlet; disk 


scarlet ; tentacle-stem and head pearl-white ; lip scarlet (or white). (Fig. 4.) 


n. Coina. Wholly pure white, translucent; the margin, lip, and 
tentacle-heads opaque. 


This is one of the most exquisitely lovely little gems of 
the aquarium; and fortunately it is abundant on our south- 
western shores, and very easily preserved in confinement 
for an indefinite period. In the Channel Islands; from 
Torquay around the promontory of Cornwall to Ilfracombe 


sie eternal teste ad diced p<. Se 


THE GLOBEHORN. 291 


in the Bristol Channel; and again on the indented coast of 
Cork, it occurs in profusion on the perpendicular and over- 
hanging rocks; while it has been dredged in deep water 
_ off various points of the same shores, and even in the land- 
locked gulfs on the north-east of Ireland. It is almost 
invariably found in close-set clusters of a dozen to fifty ; 
and though several distinct varieties frequently occur in 
the same immediate vicinity, yet the individuals of the 
_ Same group are invariably found to agree in their tints. 
Hence I incline to believe that these groups are produced 
either by the spontaneous fission,* or the gemmation of a 
_ primitive polype. I have seen some which were evidently 
connected together by the base, the process of separation 
being incomplete. | 
| It is somewhat difficult to detach the animals; their 
_ bodies are excessively pulpy and tender, and under irrita- 
_ tion they excrete a vast quantity of mucus, so dense as 
almost to equal in consistency the substance of their own 
bodies, and which might sometimes assume the form of 
an epidermis. If carefully detached, however, they will 
re-adhere ; and I have known individuals even crawl off 
from a fragment of rock to the sides of the tank. In 
_ general, however, they are stationary, and even sluggish; 
allowing their tentacles to be handled without contracting. 
t They open very freely, and ordinarily remain expanded. 
_ Ina well established aquarium, they will live for a long 
_ period; I have some which have lived in captivity fifteen 
months. They seem in other respects tenacious of life; 
for I have seen the tentacles and margin of one side appa- 
rently healthy and contractile, while the whole opposite side 
had become a putrescent mucus, sloughing away. 
_ All the varieties are charming; perhaps none more so 
_ than the translucent white one which I have named Cozna. 
* Several in the possession of Mr. Holdsworth spontaneously divided. 
U2 


RISES Sas 


292 _ CAPNEADAL _. 


The expanded disk, with the opaque white tentacle-heads 
scattered over it, looks like what the ladies call “spotted 
muslin ;’’ while, under a lens, the tentacle-stems resemble 
lace, or figured blonde. 

Around Torquay the species exists in much variety. 
On the shadowed sides of the perpendicular wall-like rocks, 
near Meadfoot, I have seen, at extreme low water, countless 
groups, displaying their lovely little coronets within reach 
of my hand, as I was pushed in a small boat through the 
narrow passes of the islets. Dr. E. P. Wright finds it in 
amazing profusion, “ covering whole rock-pools,” at Crook- 
haven. He says that some of these expanded to nearly 
an inch in diameter,—dimensions which far exceed those 
of such as I have seen. They have been occasionally found 
on roots of Laminaria, and Mr. Cocks has taken a number, 
half-digested, from the stomach of a Plaice. ; 

They feed readily on minute morsels of raw meat; which, 
however, must be laid on the disk with great caution, or 
the animal will close. In taking-in the morsel the Cory- 
nactis does not protrude the lips to embrace it, nor close 
the tentacles over it, like the Actiniée, but dilates the 
mouth slowly and uniformly, until the lips form a circle of 
great width, nearly as wide, indeed, as the disk, within 
which the visceral cavity, like a broad saucer, is seen, with — 
the coiled craspeda lining its sides and bottom. Into this — 
gaping cavity the morsel is drawn, and then the lips 
gradually contract and embrace it, finally protruding in a 
pouting cone. This is exactly the manner of Caryophyllia 
Smnithit. 

There is much in the appearance of this animal which 
agrees with Caryophyllia: the colours and their distribu- 
tion, the general translucency of the tissues, the form and — 
crenation of the mouth, and, in particular, the shape, 
arrangement, and minute structure of the tentacles, are — 


THE GLOBEHORN 293 


so exactly those of the Coral, that Ihave often more than 
half suspected that the former is the immature condition 
of the latter: Both are found in the same localities, in the 
same haunts, and often in close proximity, which helps the 
conjecture. No trace of calcareous deposit is found in the 
tissues of Corynactis when crushed between plates of glass; 
but the observations of Mrs. Thynne* have shown that 
the young of Caryophyllia attain a large size without depo- 
siting a corallum. But the results of this lady’s experi- 
ments,—so far as they go,—tend to negative the identity 
_ of the two animals; though I must still consider the species 
as in near affinity. 

Under the microscope the tentacle is seen to consist of 
a transparent thick-walled tubular stem, in which longi- 
_ tudinal fibres are conspicuous, and a globose head. The 
_ stem is studded with large oval warts, varying in shape 
and size, and without orderly arrangement, but set trans- 
versely on the whole, very close together in contraction, 


but separated by wide spaces when the tentacle is 


elongated. Both the head and the warts are pellucid 
_ in themselves, but are sub-opaque from their contents : 
both are thickly covered with palpocils, while the trans- 


7 parent portions of the stem are clothed with cilia. 


In conformity with the great predominance of the longi- 
_ tudinal over the annular muscular fibres in the tentacle- 
_ wall, the contraction of these organs is in length rather 
_ than in diameter; or at least that of the diameter is only 
_ the result of elongation. The globose head seems non- 
; contractile ; and hence, when the stem is much elongated, 


| we see a spherple at the’ tip of a narrow foot-stalk, while, 


when the form is much contracted, the head remaining 
unchanged, we have the “corrugated cup” of Mr. Peach, 
_ with the sphere seated as it were in it. 

_* Annals Nat. Hist. for June, 1859. 


294 CAPNEADA. 


The cnide in this species attain a higher development 
than in any other zoophyte that I am acquainted with, and 
hence they afford peculiar facilities for the study of these 
interesting organs. 

No one familiar with this beautiful little creature can 
_ for a moment doubt that the two supposed species, viridis 
and Allmanni, are in truth but one. The former name 
must of course be retained, as having the claim of priority. 
It was given by the discoverer, Professor Allman, who 
found it, where since it has been so abundantly met with 
by Dr. E. P. Wright. The name Corynactis is formed 
from xoptyn, a club, and daxris, a ray. 

There are several exotic species, whose tentacles are 
tipped with globose knobs;—as Act. globulosa (Quoy et 
Gaim.), A. globulifera (Ehrenb.), and A. clavigera (Dana) ; 
but I know too little of their structure to pronounce upon 
their degree of affinity with the present. The clavigera, 
a species of large size from the Pacific Islands, may 
perhaps be a link of connexion between Corynactis and 
Sagartia. 

Guernsey, 7. D.H.: Torquay, P. H. G.: Dartmouth, 
E. W. H.H.: Plymouth, G D.: Fowey, Polruan, Goram 
Haven, C. W. P.: Falmouth, W. P. C.: Lundy, 0. K.: 
Ilfracombe, P. H. G.: Cumbrae, D. &.: Crookhaven, G. J. 
Allman: Bantry Bay, Ventry, £. P. W.: Strangford 
Lough, W. 7.: Belfast Bay, G. C. Hyndman. 


Aureliania. 
VIRIDIS. [clavigera. | 
Caryophyllia. Sagartia. 


295 


FAMILY IIl.—ZOANTHID#. 


The polypes in this family are persistently fixed, and 
aggregated: the adherent base extending itself laterally, 
and sending up new polypes at intervals, which remain 
permanently united to each other, and to the primary 
polype. The extension may be in irregular lines, carrying 
the polypes in single file; in broad bands, supporting several 
abreast; or in all directions, producing large clustered 
masses, incrusting the foreign body to which they happen 
to be adherent. 

This variation in the manner of base-extension has been 
hitherto considered as so important, that genera have been 
constituted on this character alone,—Zoanthus, including 
those whose base runs in lines; Palythoa, such as form 
carpet-like surfaces. But evidence will presently be 
adduced to show that these variations may occur in the 
same species. Again, the genera Mammilifera and Corti- 
cifera, of Lesueur, have been formed for clustered species ; 
the former being fleshy, with a mucous surface, not en- 
veloped in sand; the latter “ inclosed in cellules of sand, 
agglutinated ; the cellules themselves agglutinated for their 
whole length, and forming a corticiferous expansion.” It 
appears, however, from Lesueur’s own description, that 
what he considered “ cellules,” inhabited by the animals, 
was simply the integument of each polype, in which sand 
was imbedded. The presence or absence of sand, however, 
can in no wise be allowed to constitute a generic distinc- 
tion. I cannot, therefore, recognise in the family more 
than the single genus, Zoanthus, 


296 


GENUS I. ZOANTHUS (Cuvier). 


Actinia (ELLIs), 


Zoantha 

Pal rihoa ¢ (LAMOUROUX). 
Zoanthus 

Mammilifera > (LEsvEuR). 
Corticifera 


Sidisia (J. E. Gray). 


Base permanently attached; spreading over rocks, 
stones, or shells, in either a linear or incrusting 
manner. 

Column pillar-like, higher than wide; margin cut 
into strongly marked teeth, which are united by a 
thin membrane. Surface smooth, excreting a mucus, 
in which occasionally grains of sand become imbedded, 
constituting an adventitious epidermis. 

Disk slightly concave ; radii inconspicuous. 

Tentacles conical, pointed, similar in structure to 
those of AstRa#ACEA: wholly retractile. 

Mouth more or less protrusile, simple. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Invested with sand; extension various . . « . . « « « + Couchii. 
Without sand— 
Polypes cylindrical, olive; several abreast . . . . « « sulcatus. 
Polypes obconic, pellucid white; in single file. » .-. . Aldert. 


* 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. ANTHID. 


THE SANDY CREEPLET. 


Zoanthus Couchii. 
Pirate IX. Figs. 9,10; X. Fig. 5. 


Specific Character.. Basal band extending variously ; Res invested 
with a sandy coating ; tentacles in two rows. 


Zoanthus Couchii. JOHNSTON, Brit. Zooph. Ed. 2, i. 202 ; pl. xxxv. fig. 9. 
: Coucu, Corn. Faun. iii. 73; pl. xv. fig. 3. Hoxps- 
WorTH, Proc. Zool. Soc. 1858 ; pl. x. figs. 3—7. 
“Dysidea © papillosa. Jounston, Brit. Sponges, 190, fig. 18; pl. xvi. 
figs. 6, 7. 
Sidisia Barleei. J. E. Gray, Ann. N. H. Ser. 3, ii. 489; Proc. Zool. 
_ Soe. 1858; pl. x. fig. 8. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Basal band. Narrow, irregularly creeping, soft, elastic, fleshy to the 
feel, very sensitive ; invested with sand, like the column. 

Column. Cylindrical, rising to about three or four times its diameter ; 
_ smooth, transparent. Margin cut into twelve or fourteen (generally the 
latter number) large fleshy triangular teeth, which are connected by a thin 
web of transparent membrane, the inner layer of which is composed of 
transverse fibres, the outer is granular and cutaneous. In astate of semi- 
contraction, these teeth form strongly-marked converging ridges on the 
flat summit of the column. 

Investment. Fine sand, evidently not a secretion, but extraneous, imbedded 
in the epidermis,—the fragments (in Torquay specimens) being of different 
colours, some being of white limestone, others of red sandstone. When 
the column is much distended, the grains of sand become considerably 
separated, and we can distinctly see through the transparent and smooth 
integuments into the visceral cavity. Thus the sand forms manifestly 
only a single layer. Only very minute grains are used, and there is very 
little difference in their size. 

Disk. Generally flat or slightly concave, but protrusile in a conical 
form. _Radii apparently distinct, but only because the upper edges of the 


septa appear through the perfectly transparent disk. 


298 ZOANTHIDA. 


Tentacles, Twenty-eight (twenty-four in less mature specimens), arranged 
in two rows, fourteen in each: those of the inner row correspond to the 
marginal teeth, those of the outer are intermediate. They are sub-equal, 
taper, bluntly pointed, and, when extended, about equal in length to the 
diameter of the column, hollow, not warted, with thick walls, which, in 
contraction, fall into transverse or annular corrugations. They are pro- 
truded in a brush, but, when fully expanded, spread out horizontally. 

Mouth. Lip sharp, much crenated, protruded after feeding. 


CoLour. 


Investment of root-band and column. Pale brown, the hue of the sand. 

Column. Beneath the investment, transparent and colourless. 

Disk. Pellucid reddish-grey, dusted with excessively minute white 
specks. i 

Tentacles. Translucent, nearly colourless; but each has a small mass of 
opaque white pigment on the internal surface, just at the tip: the aggre- 
gation of white points has a pretty effect. 

Mouth. Lip opaque white. 


Size, 


None that I have seen alive exceeded one-eighth of an inch in diameter, 
and about thrice that height in extension. In contraction the button is 
usually about a line in height. Mr. Holdsworth has obtained specimens 
much larger than these. 


Locatiry. 


The extreme northern and southern points of the British Islands, North- 
umberland, and various other points of our coast; deep water; on stones 
and shells, and free on the sea-bottom. 


VARIETIES, 


a. Linearis. The condition above described, in which the root-band 
creeps in a narrow ribbon over stones and shells. Cornwall and Devon. 
(Plate x. fig. 5.) 

B. Diffusus. The root-band spread over the surface of a shell as a 
continuous carpet, whence the polypes spring, irregularly crowded together. 
Northumberland. (Plate ix. fig. 10.) 

y. Liber. Unattached. The root-band forming a free cylinder, exactly 
resembling the column of the polype,and of the same diameter. The 
polypes in this case branch irregularly from the cylinder, and terminate 
both its extremities. Shetland, (Plate ix. fig. 9.) 


If we selected a single specimen of each of these varieties, 


THE SANDY CREEPLET. 299 


and compared them, without any other information, nothing 
would be more manifest than that we must assign them not 
only to distinct species, but even to distinct genera. Mr. 
Alder has favoured me with many specimens, obtained by 
Mr. Barlee, at Shetland, some of which, each consisting of 
several full-grown polypes, are perfectly independent and 
compact, showing not the slightest trace of adhesion to any 
foreign body, nor of any part that can be distinguished as 
a root-band. Thus, in the specimen figured in Plate ix. 
fig. 9, three polypes diverge from a common centre ; others 
are similarly formed, sometimes with a triangular dilatation 
of the point of divergence, which thus becomes flat, but 
still with both surfaces equally entire. I have not seen 
more than three polypes on any free specimen. 

But among these, we see specimens at first sight hardly 
distinguishable from them, except by a slight globosity at 
the point of divergence: when we turn these over, we dis- 
cover that the globosity has been moulded on a minute 
shell, evidently that of a Natica. Then others occur, in 
which the shell, almost always a Natica, is larger, and 
there is a distinct basal carpet uniformly spread over it, 
of the sand-covered flesh, from which spring four or more 
polypes: these are manifestly identical with the free ones. 
But on larger shells the colony of polypes is made up of 
more individuals ; in one specimen before me, in which the 
shell is about the size of Natica Alderi, there are nineteen 
polypes. In every case the basal carpet has spread in 
uniform thickness over the entire shell, following the form 
accurately, and extending to the edge of the outer lip, and 
clothing the rotundity of the inner lip as far as the eye can 
follow it. Strange to say, in every example, the shell itself 
has wholly disappeared, and all that is left is the’ exact 
model of it in the sand-clothed membrane, or basal carpet, 
of the polype. 


300. ZOANTHIDA. 


In this condition, the zoophyte was mistaken by Dr. G. 
Johnston for a Sponge, and he has accordingly figured and 
described it in his “ British Sponges,’ under the name of 
Dysidea papillosa. I do not see in what single particular such 
specimens differ from the genus Palythoa of Lamouroux, 
as this is characterized by M. Milne Edwards :—*“ Poly- 
préroides cylindriques, naissant sur une expansion basilaire 
membraniforme, libres latéralement, ou soudés entre eux, et 
formant des masses encroatantes ;” * and thus we find the 
same species in some circumstances a Zoanthus, in others a 
Palythoa. Nay, more, as if to increase the confusion, Dr. 
J. E. Gray has actually made a new genus for the inter- 
mediate free condition, which he calls “ Sidista.”+ 

The only way in which I can account for the free condi- 
tion is by supposing that the germ was, in those cases, 
deposited on a fragment of shell or stone so minute as to 
be completely overspread and enveloped by the increasing 
base.t The unvarying disappearance of the shell in the 
diffuse variety is more remarkable, and seems to imply a 
corrosive or absorbent power in the base. 

That the Shetland and Northumberland specimens are 
identical with ours in Torbay seems pretty certain; for Mr. 
Alder, who has had opportunities of seeing both in the 
living state (some from the north having been sent him alive 
by Mr. Barlee, and some from the south by myself), can see 
no specific diversity between them. But. that they are the 
same species as the Zoanthus Couchii of the Cornish coast, 
I assume rather than prove. It is unlikely that there should 


* Hist. des Coralliaires, i. 301. + Annals Nat. Hist. Dec. 1858. 

t+ Mr. Alder remarks on these varying conditions as follows :—“I have 
come to the conclusion that when the zoophyte has free space on a stone 
it runs over it as Zoanthus ; but when the base is confined to a shell, it 
spreads into an uniform crust, as Palythoa. The loose branched speci- 
mens, I conclude, having affixed themselves to some minute object not 
affording a proper base of attachment, take a tubular form until they 
terminate in polypes.’”’—( In litt. ) piety 


THE SANDY CREEPLET. 301 


‘be two species of the same uncommon genus, having so 
‘many points in common, found in so close proximity as the 
Devon and Cornwall coasts, and yet there are glaring dis- 
crepancies between Mr. R. Q. Couch’s published descrip- 
tions and the characters of our animal. He describes the 
surface as “ glandular,’ the form as frequently “ contracted 
to an hour-glass shape,” and as being very versatile; the 
habit as sluggish, and slow to change ; the tentacles as 
* darker at the extremities than at the base;” not one of 
which particulars do our specimens confirm. 

My first personal acquaintance with the species I owed 
to Mr. Holdsworth, who dredged several colonies in twelve 
fathoms, off the Ore Stone, near Torquay, in October, 1858, 
where further researches show it to be quite common. They 
were of the variety Jinearis, affixed to fragments of slate 
and old valves of Cardiwm rusticum, twenty or thirty 
polypes on each, running in sinuous bands from half a line 
to three lines apart in the series. The colonies meandered 
over both surfaces of the fragments. 

One of these colonies my friend kindly gave to me, and 
it has lived now ten months with me. The polypes are 
by no means sluggish, but are continually opening and 
closing with considerable vivacity. When completely con- 
tracted, each polype is a cylindrical button, with the summit 
round and depressed in the centre. As expansion proceeds, 
the centre evolves, and the summit becomes nearly flat, 
with the twelve or fourteen strongly marked marginal 
ridges radiating from the central orifice. The central aper- 
ture enlarges, and the white tips of the tentacles are seen 
protruding, and presently the tentacles themselves, blunt 
and pellucid white, which soon arch outwardly. 

They feed readily on raw flesh or earthworms, but will 
take only very minute fragments. These, however light 
their contact, cause the tentacles to retract; but if the 


302 ZOANTHIDA. 


morsel be laid gently on the truncate summit of the closed 
column, the converging teeth appearing, it will remain there 
until the animal seizes it. The tentacles are protruded one 
by one so cautiously that the meat is not disturbed, and 
soon we discern that it is environed by a wall of tentacles, 
and that the mouth is gaping widely to embrace it. 

After feeding, or when food which has been resting on 
the disk is suddenly taken away, the whole disk is protruded 
as a cone, on the summit of which the open throat forms a 
wide valley, coarsely furrowed. 

The creeping-band is very sensitive ; when touched with 
a needle-point, all the polypes suddenly contract, yet not 
quite simultaneously, but in the order of succession cor- 
responding to their proximity to the point of attack. 

Mr. Holdsworth tells me that “the polypes live very 
well when detached from their support.” 

The generic name is formed from @ov, an animal, and 
av0os, a flower; the English term is meant to express its 
peculiar habit. 

Shetland, G. Barlee : Northumberland, J. A.: Guernsey, 
J. A.: Torquay, H. W. H. H.: Cornwall (thronghout), 
R. Q.C.: Strangford Lough, W. 7. 


ASTRZEACEA,. 
ZOANTHUS. 
CARYOPHYLLIACEA. 


eet aliens 


ee eee 


 CARYOPHYLLIACEA. ZOANTHIDE 


THE FURROWED CREEPLET. 


Zoanthus sulcatus. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Prate IX. Fig. 7. 


Specific Character. Upper half of column free from sand, and indented 
with longitudinal furrows. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Basal band. Broad, with an irregularly sinuous outline, and offshoots, 
often bearing three polypes abreast ; loosely invested with coarse sand. 

Column. Generally cylindrical, but versatile, sometimes hour-glass 
_ shaped, springing out of a membrancus epidermis, which tightly invests 
it, and holds a few grains of very fine sand imbedded in it. When ex- 
tended, the column rises free and smooth out of this, which then reaches 
to about one-third of the height. Surface marked with twenty-two (in 
immature specimens twenty) longitudinal sulci, most conspicuous towards 
the summit : in the button state this is rounded, with a central depression, 
where the sulci meet. Each alternate intersulcus forms a marginal tooth. 

Disk. Saucer-shaped ; radii not conspicuous. 

Tentacles. Equal in number with the intersulci, with which they cor- 
respond, in two rows, the inner row to the marginal teeth, the outer inter- 
mediate. Sub-equal, conical, pointed, usually radiating horizontally. 

Mouth. Not raised on a cone. 


CoLour. 


Column. Dull uniform olive: each intersuleus having a blackish spot 
near its summit; and each tooth is silvery white. 

Disk. Yellow-olive; but invariably more or less studded with very 
minute grains of white sand, which seem fixed, and look like sil¢er-filings. 
Aggregations of these grains specially occur at the bases of the secondary 
tentacles, omitting the primary ones. 

Tentacles. Perfectly colourless and transparent, with spherical granules 
of yellow-brown pigment, set like pavement on the interior surface of the 
wall, generally in contact, yet here and there leaving large spaces alto- 
gether unoccupied. The colour of the column and disk is evidently 
formed by similar granules, but in uninterrupted contact. 


304 ZOANTHIDA. . 


Size. 


Column about one-eighth of an inch high, and one-twelfth wide. 


LOcALITY, 


Torbay ; on rock, between tide-marks, 


This very distinct and interesting little Zoanthus 
occurred in a large colony at Broadsands, near Brixham, 
in March, 1859. They were spread on a rock of soft 
red sandstone, and so numerously, that, in the fragment 
which came into my possession, I counted sixty polypes 
in a space of one-and-a-half inch square. At first 
their character was much disguised by the crowded sand- 
tubes of a very minute Zerebella, out of the tangled masses 
of which the Zoanthi were peeping. When these were 
cleared away by the careful application of a needle-point 
and a hair-pencil, the basal expansion was apparent, an 
irregular broad band, with several polypes abreast, as 
described above. The texture of the band appears less 
compact than in the preceding species, with which I com- 
pared it, having a more cellular appearance; the grains of 
sand too are coarser. 

The species is hardy, my specimens being healthy at 
the present time, after three months’ captivity. They are 
evidently diurnal in their habits and predilections, gene- 
rally expanding under the stimulus of sunlight, but always 
closing at night. When the polype is irritated it shrinks 
nearly to the epidermis, and from the whole summit throws 
off a mucus, which presently becomes membranous, and 
seems identical with the epidermis. 

Couchii. 
[Solanderi. | 
SULCATUS. 

Phellia. 


1 acide ens 5 tie 


— 


en 
ee Bo” ee ee 


ee —" 


score as 


I a 


YOPHYLLIACEA. ZOANTHID 4. 


THE WRINKLED CREEPLET. 
Zoanthus Alder?. 


(Sp. nov.) 
Prate IX. Fig. 8. 3 - 


Specific Character. Polypes free from sand ; set in single file, obconic, 
transversely wrinkled. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Basal band. Narrow, smooth, irregularly branching, free from sand. 

Column. Inversely conical, the summit being two or more times as 
broad as the base ; summit (in the button state) swelling, flat, depressed 
in the centre, with many (about twenty ?) radiating strie, indicating the 
marginal teeth. Surface smooth, without any investment of sand, but 
marked throughout with.close-set transverse or annular wrinkles. 

Disk and Tentacles. Unknown. 


CoLouR. 


Basal band and column. Opaque milk-white. 


Srze. 


Height of column about two lines; greatest diameter about half a line. 


LocaLiry. 


Northumberland: on a stone, at extreme low-water. 


The slight acquaintance that I possess with this species 

I owe to Mr. Joshua Alder, who has sent me a drawing 

and description of a specimen found by him at Cullercoats, 
x 


306 ZOANTHIDA. 


at a very low spring-tide, in the summer of 1857. My friend 
favours me with the following note of the capture:—“It was 
soft and fleshy, without trace of corallum ; the individuals 
connected by a creeping fibre running over the under sur- 
face of the stone. I chipped a piece of it off, which fell 
face-downwards, and I fancy got injured in consequence ; 
as it never showed any signs of life after I put it into my 
bottle. I kept it two or three days in expectation that it 
might recover, but, as it began to decay, I secured the 
remainder by putting it into spirit.” 

There were about a dozen polypes in the wolbiy; all of 
the same size, which seems to be good evidence that they 
had attained adult dimensions. 


Couchii. 


ALDERI. 
? 


Sarcodicty on. 


307 


FAMILY Ill—TURBINOLIAD &. 


In this, and all the families which have now to come 
under consideration, the tissues secrete calcareous matter, 
which unites into a solid internal skeleton of stone, known 
as the CORALLUM. The stony substance is chiefly deposited 
—1. in the integuments of the base and column, forming 
the WALL (murus); 2. in the septa, forming a series of 
perpendicular PLATES (/amelle), which radiate inward from 
the wall; and, in some cases, another circle, or circles, of 
similar plates, PALULES (palz), which do not reach the 
wall; and 3. (as I believe) in the ovarian mesenteries, form- 
ing a series of plates, generally twisted, in the bottom of 
the cavity, called the coLuMELLA. The hollow centre, 
formed by the upper edges of the plates, is called the 
CALICE (calyx). Sometimes the exterior of the wall is 
furnished with longitudinal RBs (cost), which correspond 
to the plates. 

The plates are arranged in CYCLES: those of the first 
eycle project furthest inwards; those of the second bisect 
the interspaces ; those of the third bisect the interspaces 
thus formed, and so on. The whole of the plates developed 
in one primary interspace constitutes a SYSTEM. 

In the TURBINOLIADZ the corallum is solid (not porous), 
simple, with the lamellar interspaces reaching to the 
bottom of the cavity, and perfectly free. The plates are 
highly developed, simple, and generally have a granular 
surface. The ribs are well-marked. 


> ap 


308 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH GENERA. 


With palules : adherent. 
Palules in a single circle : colwmella of many slender 
twisted plates . : 
Palules in several circles : 
gular inform . 


Without palules : free. 


Columella a single plate . . . . «© « . « « + «+ Sphenotrochus, 
Columella absent . . 2 & te se ee ts «=~ Olocyathus. 


Loe ee ee ee + Caryophyllia, 
columella broad and irre- 


- + « Paracyathus. 


= vont ¢ 

cy ~ 
ra ees 

BAUS 27 


fan 


309 


GENUS I. CARYOPHYLLIA (Lamarcsg). 
Cyathina (EHRENB.). 


Corallum simple, generally obconic, often with an 

expanded base, permanently adherent ; outline ovate 

or circular. 
- Columella composed of several thin, narrow, twisted, 
vertical plates. 
Palules broad, entire, in a single circle. 
Plates straight, broad, projecting, and forming six 
systems. 
ibs straight, developed only towards the summit, 
_ granulated. 
___ _The animal (for so we may conventionally term the 
soft tissues, though it is to be remembered that the 
corallum is an essential part of the living body) is, so 
far as we know it, translucent, the column very exten- 
sile, the disk protrusile, the tentacles set in several 
_ rows, diminishing in size from the outer row inward, 
each consisting of a stem with a globular head. 


I know but one British species, C. Smith. 


CARY OPHYLLIACEA. TURBINOLIADZ. 


THE DEVONSHIRE CUP-CORAL. 
Caryophyllia Smithii. 
Puatr X. Figs. 12, 13.* 


Specific Character, Plates in five cycles; base broad; outline generally 
ovate; height not exceeding the long diameter. 


Caryophyllia Smithii. Svoxes, Zool. Journ. iii. 481; pl. xiii. figs. 1—6. 
BuckiLanD, Bridgew. Tr. ii. 90; pl. liv. figs. 9— 
11. Jounston, Br. Zooph. Ed. 2,198; pl. xxxv. 
figs. 4—8. Couon, Corn. Fauna, iii. 72; pl. xii. 
fig. 3. Gossz, Dev. Coast, 108 ; pl. v. figs. 1—5. 
M. Epwarps, Hist. Corall. ii. 14. 
cyathus. Fiemine, Brit. Anim. 508. 
sessilis. |Brtuamy, So. Devon, 267; pl. xviii. 
2 Turbinolia borealis, FirMina, Brit. Anim, 509.j 
Oyathina Smithii. Dana, Zooph. 371. M. Epwarps and Harme, Ann. 
Sci. Nat. Ser. 3, ix. 288. Gossz, Man. Mar. Zool. 
i. 33 ; fig. 50, 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


CORALLUM. 


Corallum. Simple, constricted in various 
degrees; the base generally wider than 
the summit, and the central region being 
often less than half the diameter of the 
latter. Outline sometimes circular, but 
generally more or less elliptical. Height 
in general less than the long diameter. 

Ribs. Well-marked on the upper half, 
less distinct on the lower, studded with 
fine granules. 

Plates. Forming five cycles, and six 
systems, but the plates of the fifth cycle 


CARYOPHYLLIA SMITHII 
(slightly magnified), 
Section of corallum. 


* Marked in the Plate “ Cyathina Smithii.” 


THE DEVONSHIRE CUP-CORAL. 311 


are wanting in some of the systems. They are broad, granular on 
both surfaces, with the upper edge very salient and rounded in outline. 
Those of the third and fourth cycles subequal between themselves, and 
much smaller than the first and second, which also are mutually subequal. 
Columella. From twelve to twenty thin plates much twisted, with 
sinuous edges; the summits much lower than the palules. 
Palules. Well-developed, more flexuous than the septa, of which they 
correspond to the third cycle. 
- Colour: In general pure white, but in some specimens tinged with 
a lovely permanent rose-tint. 


ANIMAL. 
’ Form. 


Column. Cylindrical, very extensile, smooth, membranous, invected 
towards the summit, each invection becoming a tentacle, without any 
distinct margin. 

Disk. Fiat, but readily assuming a conical form. No trace of gonidial 
radii, tubercles, or groove. 

Tentacles. About fifty in number, arranged in three subequal rows: 
stem conical, membranous, translucent, studded with transverse oblong 
warts ; head globose, opaque, covered with palpocils. (Plate xii. fig. 4.) 

Mouth. A lengthened ellipse or a slit. Lip coarsely furrowed, like the 
lips of a cowry-shell. Stomach fiat when empty, as in Anemones. 

_ All the tissues can be enormously distended with water. 


CoLour. 


Column. A very faint bay or fawn colour, with longitudinal lines of 
chestnut. Be 

Disk. Transparent white, with a broad Vandyked circle of rich 
chestnut surrounding the mouth. 

Tentacles. Stem-wall colourless, with the warts deep chestnut; head 
opaque, pearl-white, sometimes slightly tinged with rose. 

Mouth. Pure white. 


Sze. 


Corallum. Fine specimens attain a diameter of three-fourths of an inch, 
and a height nearly as great. 
- Animal. The column when distended frequently stands an inch above 
the corallum, and exceeds it in breadth by a sixth of an inch on every 
side; the tentacles augment the height still further by nearly half an inch. 


LocaLiry. 


On various parts of our coast in deep water, attached to stones and 
shells: Devon and Cornwall, on rocks between tide-marks. 


312 TURBINOLIADA, 


VARIETIES. 


a, Castanea. As above described. 

B. Esmeralda. The chestnut here replaced by vivid green in like 
intensity, except the border of the mouth, which is pale red. 

y. Clara. Translucent white. 


On the perpendicular surfaces of cliffs with a northern 
aspect, in narrow wall-sided fissures, and on the under 
sides of fallen fragments of rock forming natural arches, 
and in dark overhung tide-pools, I have found this beau- 
tiful Coral in abundance on the coast of both North and 
South Devon. It is only at the great recesses of the 
equinoctial spring-tides that it is exposed, though in per- 
manent pools of ample dimensions it occasionally occurs at 
the half-tide level. For the most part gregarious in habit, 
it occurs more in colonies than singly, and twenty, thirty, 
and even more, are occasionally taken by the collectors 
from a single pool. 

It is deservedly a favourite with aquarians; for if 
removed from the rock with care by a proper use of the 
chisel, scarcely any species is more hardy, more beautiful, 
or more changeable in its aspects. I have been informed of 
a specimen which had been preserved two and a half years, 
and was then in health. It is free in expanding in 
captivity ; perhaps its most common condition being that 
in which the mouth is somewhat open, and the tentacle- 
heads just peeping from beneath the half-closed margin of 
the column; but occasionally, and especially at night, the 
animal expands to the full, and rears its lovely form far 
above the level of its stony walls. This condition may, 
however, at any time be induced by a proffer of food; an 
atom of raw flesh cautiously laid on the half-exposed disk 
is a temptation too great to be resisted. The protrusile 
lip slowly but evenly expands to embrace the food, and 
then closes over it, meeting in a puckered knot in the 


ee 


THE DEVONSHIRE CUP-CORAL. 313 


centre. The unyielding stony margin of the omachal 
eavity preventing the morsel from being drawn down, as it 
would be in an Actinia, the whole disk projects perpen- 
dicularly, like a thick pillar, from amidst the tentacles, 
displaying the dark mass through the pellucid walls. 

Now presently a great change takes place: the whole 
of the soft tissues become distended with water, and take 
on an exquisite translucency and delicacy ; the column 


- swells out to twice the width of the corallum, the tentacles 


are like transparent bladders full of water, each crowned 
by its little white globule, and the whole appearance is 
most beautiful. I have seen under these circumstances 
the animal extended to more than an inch and a half above 
the level of the plates. The lip often projects like a thin 
oval wall, or like the brickwork surrounding a well; 
marked with thick perpendicular ridges of opaque white, 
distinctly defined, separated by interspaces of equal width. 
This is well expressed in the figures (5 and 6) given by 
Johnston, after Alder, which are very accurate: figs. 7 and 
8 of the same plate, like too many of the zoophytic deli- 
neations of Forbes, I can only call caricatures. 

Ihave elsewhere* given many details of the structure 
_and economy of this Coral, to which I can here only refer 
the reader. Among them will be found some curious 
examples of reproductive power; one, in the formation of 
anew disk, mouth, and tentacles, at the lower end of the 
corallum, which had been broken from its base; and 
another, of the replacement of a large number of the 
septa, which had been broken away. 

Of the generation and development of the species I can 
say nothing from personal observation ; the smallest I have 
seen having been about one-sixth of an inch in diameter, 
with a well-formed corallum of half a line in height. 

* Devonshire Coast, pp. 108—127. 


314 TURBINOLIADA. 


Mr. R. Q. Couch, however, says, “ In the youngest state 
the animal is naked, and measures about the fifteenth of an 
inch in diameter, and about the thirty-second of an inch in 
height. In the earliest state in which I have seen the 
calcareous polypidom there were four small rays, which 
were free or unconnected [¢.e. without any wall] down to 
the base; in others I have noticed six primary rays, but 
in every case they were unconnected with each other. 
Other rays soon make their appearance between those first 
formed ; they are mere calcareous specks at first, but after- 
wards increase in size. The first union of the rays is 
observed as a small calcareous rim at the base of the 
polype, which afterwards increases both in height and 
diameter with the age of the animal.’’* 

From a valuable series of observations made by Mrs. 
Thynne,} it would appear that the Caryophyllia discharges 
its ova in spring, which in about two days become rotating 
infusorioid animalcules. In a week or two these affix 
themselves, and develop tentacles and a disk, and gradually 
grow to the size, and even far more than the size, of the 
parent, with all the characteristic colours and marks, but 
without the least trace of a corallum. During the progress 
of this condition, the individuals increase rapidly by 
spontaneous fission, the separated portions immediately 
becoming independent animals. It is difficult to suggest 
any flaw in the evidence of identity; but it is to be 
regretted that the experiments terminated without any 
sign of the development of a corallum. 

Double and even triple specimens are not uncommon ; 
and I have seen at least two examples (one of which I now 
possess) that are fourfold.t The appearance of such speci- 
mens is exactly that of a branching coral; and, strange to 


* Quoted in Johnston’s Br. Zooph. i. 199. 
+ Ann. N. H. for June, 1859. 
+ Such a specimen I have figured in my Dev. Coast, pl. v. fig. 5. 


a 


—— 


THE DEVONSHIRE CUP-CORAL. 315 


say, if one alone of the disks be fed, the rest will presently 
become equally distended, as if partaking of a common 
life. On breaking one of these double skeletons, however, 
no communication is found to exist between the cavities ; 
and hence we must conclude that such instances are due to 
the accidental fixation of two or more gemmules in close 
proximity to each other, and the coalescence of the cal- 
careous walls in process of growth. 

The name Caryophyllia is formed of «dpvov, a nut, and 
vAnror, a leaf,—g.d. “a nut of leaves’ = plates. The 
specific name is in honour of Thomas Smith, who appears 
to have first observed it on the south coast of Devon. 

A curious little Barnacle (Pyrgoma Anglicum) is para- 
sitic on this species, affixing itself to the outer edge of the 
plates ; two are sometimes found on the same coral. 

- The corallum is very hard. An hour’s rubbing of one 
on a slab of marble rough from the saw, with a view to a 
longitudinal section, produced little effect on the coral, 
though it effectually polished the marble. 

_ The following list of habitats show that the species is 
widely scattered around our coasts. 

Shetland (deep-water), Fleming: Moray Firth (d. w.), 
W. G.: Guernsey (low-water), T. D. H: : Torquay (1. w. 
abundant, d. w. rare), P. H. G.: Dartmouth (1. w.), 
E. W. H. H.: Cornwall (1. w. abundant), R. Q. C.: 
Ilfracombe (1. w. abundant), P. H. G.: Oban, J. A.: Larne 
(d. w.), G. D. (B.) = Lambay, R. Ball: Dalkey Sound (1. w.) 
R. B.: Wexford Bay, W. M‘ Calla: Nymph Bank (d. w.), 
W. T.: Youghal, #. B.: Bantry Bay (1. w. common), 
E. P. W.: Connemara, W. M‘C.: Bundoran, R. B.: Lough 
Swilly (d. w.), G. D. (B.): Lough Foyle (4. w.) @. D. (B.) 

‘Corynactis. 
SMITHII. 
[cyathus]. 


516 


GENUS II. PARACYATHUS (M. Epw. & Haime). 


Corallum simple, subturbinate or cylindrical, with 
an expanded base, permanently adherent. 

Columella very broad, terminated by a papillous 
surface, and formed by processes that appear to arise 
from the lower part of the inner edge of the septa. 

Palules of divers orders, forming two or more 
circles ; in general lobed at the summit, narrow, tall, 
and appearing also to arise from the lower part of the 
inner edge of the septa, their size diminishing as 
they approach the columella. 

Plates nearly equal, very slightly salient, and 
closely set ; their lateral surfaces strongly granulated, 
and sometimes presenting traces of imperfect dis- 
sepiments. They form four or five cycles, and the 
systems are equally developed. 

ibs nearly equal, straight, closely set, projecting 
very little, and delicately granulated. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


Plates forming five imperfect cycles: cup elliptical . . . Tasxilianus. 
Plates forming four imperfect cycles: cup circular . . . 
Ribs obsolete below +. "9 FOR. VAR we Thulensis. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. TURBINOLIADZ. 


THE MORAY CUP-CORAL. 


Paracyathus Taxilianus. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Puate X. Fig. 6. 


Specific Character. Plates in five imperfect cycles ; calice elliptical ; ribs 
notched above, granulous below. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Slightly turbinate, adhering by a base broader than any 
other part, a little diminishing towards mid-height, and widening gently 
above and below. Wall thin. Height about equal to the medium diameter. 

Ribs. Distinct from base to margin; on the 
upper half prominent, thin, with a rather sharp, 
but irregularly notched edge, separated by inter- 
costal furrows of about twice their width; on 
the lower half forming low rounded ridges, 
crowned with conical granules, set in two or three 
irregular longitudinal rows; all are nearly alike 
in every respect. 

Calice. Elliptical; the axes as 24 :31. ‘isaasiaed\. 

Plates. Forming five cycles and six systems ; woeniee > 

orming cy sy > A portion cut away to 
but those of the fifth cycle are wholly wanting show the plates. 
in three systems, and present in both halves of 
the other three. Not very close-set, not very salient, thin, very little thick- 
ened externally, the highest point of their edge a little within the margin, 
whence it slopes very slightly inward and downward, in an undulate line, 
ending with an abrupt angle, whence the inner edge descends perpendicu- 
larly: the entire edge rises into irregular eminences and blunt points, 
and both surfaces are roughened with coarse granules. 

Columella. Formed of two or three much twisted lamelle, with broad 
rounded lobes, rising from the united palules. 

Palules. Thin, waved, lobed and granulate, like the septa ; those of 
the tertiary septa large ; the others inconspicuous, and only here and there 
discernible ; united in the centre into an irregularly waved and perforated 
horizontal plate. 


318 TURBINOLIAD&. 


Sze. 


Diameter of long axis, ‘31 inch; of short axis, ‘24; height ‘21 to ‘14, 
unequal because the corallum is built partly on a shell and partly on a 
Serpula tube adhering to it. 


ANIMAL. Unknown. 


Locatity. 
The Moray Firth; deep water. 


It is with some doubt that I refer this and the two 
following species to the genus Paracyathus. Generally 
agreeing with its characters, they all have the peculiarity 
of the union of the palules into a horizontal perforate 
platform, which does not appear to be the case with any of 
the hitherto described species. 

The single specimen on which the above description is 
founded was forwarded to me by my kind friend, Mr. 
Gregor, of Macduff, who obtained it from deep water. 
It is affixed to the inside of an old valve of Cyprina 
Islandica, and has the appearance of being recent. 

The only species of Paracyathus with which this is likely 
to be confounded is the fossil P. crassus of the London Clay ; 
but from this it may be distinguished by the union of the 
palules, by the ribs being proportionally thinner and more 
remote, and by the diversity of their upper and lower 
portions. 

Paracyathus is derived from mapa, near, and xaos, a 
cup (the element of Cyathina). I have assigned a specific 
name from TYawiliwm, the ancient appellation of the pro- 
montory now called Kinnaird’s Head, off which the specimen 
was taken. | 

Caryophyllia. “ 
Taxilianus. 
crassus. 


i le a ee ee ne a 


CARYUPHYLLIACEA. TURBINOLIAD&. 


THE SHETLAND CUP-CORAL. 


Paracyathus Thulensis. 
(Sp. nov.) 
Pirate X. Fig. 8. 


Specific Character. Plates in four imperfect cycles; calice circular ; 
height equal to half the diameter. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Slightly turbinate, adhering by a base, which, though broad, 
is the narrowest part. Height about half the diameter. 

Ribs. Prominent on upper half, becoming ob- 
solete below; their edges set with tooth-like coni- 
cal tubercles; separated by intercostal furrows, 
which on the whole equal the ribs in width, but 
both are i . 

’ Calice. Circular, shallow. 

Plates. Forming four cycles and six systems ; 
those of the fourth cycle wanting in the halves of 
four systems, and present in both halves of the 


othertwo. Rather wide apart, moderately salient, fin agnified ). 
rather thick, scarcely thickened externally; out- Vertical aspect of 
line of their upper edge forming a flattened arch, corallum. 


but not uniformly, in some the highest point being at the margin, in others 
far within ; inner edge nearly perpendicular: entire edge set with irregular 
eminences and blunt points: both surfaces studded with coarse granules. 
_ Columella, Asingle fiexuous plate with a somewhat tri-radiate summit, 
united below to the palules. 

Palules. Indistinct, being confluent, and sending off horizontal traverses 


to the septa, so as to form an irregular perforated horizontal lamina, 
whence the columella rises. 


Siz. 
Diameter *19 inch ; height ‘1. 


AnmaL, Unknown. : 


320 TURBINOLIADA. 


Locatiry. 


Shetland Isles; Moray Firth ; deep water. 


Looking over the cabinet of Dr. Howden, of Montrose, 
last winter, my eye fell on this little Coral, which seemed 
new to me. Its owner was so kind as to transfer it to 
my possession, when, on careful examination, it proved 
to be an unrecognised species, with the characters above 
enumerated. It may be distinguished from P. caryophyllus 
by the relative proportion of the height to the diameter, 
and from all other described species by the number of septal 
cycles. 

Dr. Howden dredged the specimen off Ord Head in 
Bressai Sound, Shetland, in thirty or forty fathoms, on a 
bottom of small stones, to one of which it is attached. 

In March of the present year Mr. Gregor sent me, on a 
valve of Lutraria, a specimen, which appears to be of the 
same species, but of younger age. It is not more than 
half the size of the former, but in other particulars agrees 
sufficiently. On my putting it into sea-water on its arrival, 
the pellucid flesh came up and filled the intersepts, giving 
satisfactory evidence of its freshness. Unfortunately it 


had been sent through the post, packed dry ; it was probably _ 


alive when despatched. The whole corallum in this speci- 
men is of the purest translucent whiteness. It came up 
on a fisherman’s line from the Moray Firth, in about forty 
fathoms, hard bottom. 

The specific name is from Thule, the ancient designa- 
tion, as presumed, of the Shetland Isles. 


Taxilianus. 
THULENSIS. 
pteropus. 


a 


aie 


core, 4 


ee eee ee ee ee ee 


oe 


CARYOPH YLLIACEA. TURBINOLIADZ. 


THE WINGED CUP-CORAL. 
Paracyathus pteropus. 
: (Sp. nov.) 
Piate X. Fig. 7. 


Specific Character. Plates in four imperfect cycles; calice circular; 
ribs very salient, dilating into wings below; height less than half the 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Cylindrical, adhering by the entire breadth; height less 
than half the diameter. 
_ Ribs. Thin, nearly straight, sub-equal, separated by intercostal spaces 

about thrice their width, very salient throughout, but from the middle 
downward developing into triangular buttresses, the long lower edges of 
which are adherent to the support, so that the area inclosed by their 
points is far wider than that inclosed by the wall: their whole surface, as 
well as that of the intercostal spaces, has a slightly carious, but glossy 
appearance, not exactly granular. 

“Calice. Circular, shallow ; the margin in the same plane. 

Plates. Forming four cycles and six equal systems, those of the fourth 
_ eycle wanting in half of each system. They are wide apart, being separated 
by twice or thrice their own thickness, thin, salient, but unequally so, 
some of the primaries and secondaries rising to twice the height, above the 
_ wall, of the tertiaries, but others are more nearly equal; their planes are 
more or less waved, and their surfaces set with scattered blunt eminences : 
upper edge truncate, nearly horizontal, but slightly declining inwards, and 
_ rising with an abrupt blunt point at the inner edge, which then descends 
perpendicularly. 

Columella. A single flexuous plate, united 
_ below to the palules. 

Paluies. Distinct, united to the inneredges | 
of the primary and secondary plates, and to = 
_ some (not all) of the tertiary : they are thick, 
very sinuous, their surfaces set with rounded 
eminences, and their upper edges much 


P. PTEROPUS 

lobed ; they are united by their inner edges (corallum magnified ). 
into an irregular horizontal platform, out of the centre of which rises the 
columella. 


Y 


322 TURBINOLIADA. 


Size. 
Diameter from wall to wall ‘13 inch: height °05. 


AnmaL, Unknown. 


LocaLiry. 


The Moray Firth, deep water. 


For this very distinct and remarkable little Coral I am 
indebted to Mr. James Macdonald, of Elgin, who obtained 
it from Lossiemouth, in October, 1858, attached to a valve 
of Cyprina, from the deepest part of the Moray Firth. 
There is no other species with which it can possibly be 
confounded, the expansions of the ribs presenting a very 
striking character. They remind me of the immense but- 
tresses which surround the base of the giant Ceiba of the 
Jamaican forests. To this feature I have alluded in the 
specific name, which is formed from wrepdv, a wing, and 

gods, a foot. 

My friends, Messrs. Macdonald and Gregor, speak of 
other Corals having at various times come under their 
notice, but they had always been set down, like these now 
recorded, as Caryophyllia Smithit. It is by no means 
improbable that further research may considerably aug- 
ment the list of our living Corals. 


_ hulensis. 
PTEROPUS. 


323 


GENUS III. 
SPHENOTROCHUS (M. Epw. & Haime). 
Turbinolia (Lamazor), 


Corallum simple, free, with no trace of adherence, 
wedge-shaped, the superior extremity wider in all 
directions than the inferior ; transversely elliptical. 

Columella, a single lamina, occupying the greater 
axis of the calice: its upper margin flexuous and 
bilobate. | 

Palules entirely wanting. 

Plates extending to the columella, or meeting in the 
centre of the visceral chamber ; broad, slightly salient, 
forming three cycles, and six systems. 

Ribs broad, not very prominent, in general crisped, 
or represented by a series of papillous tubercles. 


ANALYSIS OF BRITISH SPECIES. 


 Corallum uniformly diminishing downward ; ribs smooth . Macandrewanus. 
Corallum pedicellate, with swelling nodes; ribs crisped . Wrightii. 


¥ 2 


COARYUPHYLLIACEA, Lez TURBINOLIAD&. 


THE SMOOTH-RIBBED WEDGE-CORAL. 


Sphenotrochus Macandrewanus. 


Puate X. Fig. 4. 


Specific Character. Corallum uniformly diminishing downward; ribs 

smooth, not salient ; edge of calice plane. 

Turbinolia milletiana. THompson, Annals N. H. Ser. 1. xviii. 394. 
Jounston, Br. Zooph. Ed, 2, i. 196; pl. 
xxxyv. figs. 1—3. HE. P. Wricut, N. H. 
Rey. vi. 122. -Gossz, Man. Mar. Zool. i. 
32 ; fig. 49. 

Sphenotrochus Andrewianus. M. Epwarps and Harmm, Ann. d. Sci. Nat. 
Ser. 3. ix. 243; pl. vii. fig. 4. 

Macandrewanus. M. Epwarps, Hist. des Corall. ii. 70. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. An inverted cone, compressed, lengthened, straight, with 
the inferior extremity forming a wedge-like blunt point, 

Ribs. Perfectly straight, smooth, nearly equal throughout, or slightly 
enlarged above, separated by intercostal spaces about twice as wide as 
themselves, moderately prominent, continued round the edge of the scar 
where the corallum was originally attached. 

Calice. The edges on the same horizontal plane; outline elliptical, in 
the ratio of 100 :-120. } 

Plates. Twenty-four; in three complete and well-developed cycles, 
‘close-set, straight, thick at the margin, and gradually thinning towards the 
centre of the calice; salient, arched at their upper edge, with a surface very 
slightly granulose, The primaries and secondaries are subequal and similar, 
and hence the appearance of twelve systems; each of these is united with 
the columella by two diverging lamine, as if the plate were split atits inner 
edge, and the two halves separated. 

Columella. A single, thin, vertical lamina. 


SIzE. 


Height half an inch ; diameter of calice one-fourth of an inch by one-fifth. 


THE SMOOTH-RIBBED WEDGE-CORAL. 325) 
AnmaL. Undescribed. 
LOCALITY. 


The coasts of Cornwall and Galway : deep water. 


Il am sorry that I can give no information about this 
species additional to what is already known, viz., that it 
exists in a living state on our coasts, and that the skeleton 
is preserved in cabinets. That in the British Museum is 
the only one that I have seen. As long as naturalists con- 
tent themselves with merely preserving the skeletons of the 
animals they meet with, but little progress can be made in 
a knowledge of their history.* 

The present species is said to have been dredged alive 
off Scilly, by Mr. MacAndrew, after whom it has. been 
named, and off Arran, on the west coast of Ireland, by Mr. 
Barlee. The generic name is from o¢yv, a wedge, and 
Tpoxos, a top, in allusion to the form of the corallum. 

S. milletianus, with which this has been confounded, is 
a fossil of the miocene period, with a thicker point, and 
a more elliptical calice. 


intermedius (foss.). 
MACANDREWANUS. 


[Roémeri (foss.).] 


* M. Milne Edwards has fallen (Hist. Corall. ii. 70) into the 
inadvertence of supposing that the figure given by Johnston (Br. Zooph. 
Ed. 2, pl. xxxv. fig. 7), of the living animal, belongs to this species ; 
though the text distinctly says it is a Caryophyllia Smithii. The figure is 
poor enough, it is true. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. TURBINOLIAD. 


THE KNOTTED WEDGE-CORAL. 
Sphenotrochus Wrightii. 
Pirate X. Fig. 3. 


Specifie Character, Corallum pedicellate, with swelling nodes; ribs 
papilliferous on the body, and crossed with zig-zag folds on the pedicel. 


Sphenotrochus Wrightii. Goss, Nat. Hist. Review, vi. 161; pl. xvii. 
figs. 1—4. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Simple, straight (or else with the base considerably curved 
laterally), compressed above (the axes of the disk being 60 : 42 im general ; 
in one example, however, 60 : 50), but rounded in the lower two-thirds, 
pedicellate; the body and the pedicel varying exceedingly in their rela- 
tive proportions, the former being to the latter as 1 : 5 in one example ; 
in another, as 1: 1; in another, as 1 : 1:°2,—no two of the four specimens 
in my possession being alike in this respect. The pedicel is surrounded 
by four to six constrictions, varying greatly in their relative distance : 
these separate nodes are more or less swollen, of which one, a little above 
the base, is usually more ventricose than the rest; the pedicel generally 
enlarges upwards, but its distinction from the body is marked by an 
abrupt shoulder. 

Ribs. About as wide as the interspaces, distinctly traceable only as far 
down as the termination of the body; their course is irregularly angular ; 
the primaries and secondaries terminate at the shoulder in 
prominent knobs. On the pedicel only the six primaries are 
distinguishable, and these are then crossed by numerous 
strongly indented zig-zag folds, of which the higher angle 
is on the rib, the lower in the interspace, All the ribs of 
the body-region are’studded with irregularly projecting points 
or papillary eminences. 

Base. A small but distinct circular cavity, into which the 
extremities of the six primary ribs project. 

S. WRIGHTII Calice. Considerably arched, the eat axis being much 
(magnified), the higher ; rather deep. 

Plates. Twenty-four, in three cycles; the lateral primaries 
and secondaries more developed than the terminal ones; moderately close- 
set, irregularly bent in their planes, thick exteriorly, suddenly diminishing 


THE KNOTTED WEDGE-CORAL. 327 


just within the wall, and thence gradually becoming thinner. The primaries 
and secondaries equal in height and breadth ; the tertiaries much lower ; 
all salient, the upper edge obliquely truncate, sloping down from the 
margin inward. The two plates which form the short axis are united 
to the columella by diverging lamine; but this structure appears to be 
wanting in the others. The surfaces of all the plates are rough, with 
scattered papillary points. ; 

Columella, Bent at each end towards one (the same) side; its upper 
_ edge thickened in irregular swellings. In some specimens it is not visible 
from above. 


Size (of four examples). 


NO. LONG AXIS. SHORT AXIS. HEIGHT. 
ge OO08inch . . . 0062 . . . . 0-155 
eh. GU gf Ge ODES CAs ere 
-s » C0625 6S GAs embe eS S ene 
4 BO ps cek cian OGRE. 6 co, CIM 


Aymat. Unknown. 


LocaLity. 
North-cast coast of Ireland : deep water. 


This species resembles S. crispus in its zig-zag folds, 
but has more agreement with S. mixtus in its general 
characters. In its tendency to a curved form, however, 
as well as in its pedicellate character, and especially in 
the presence of a well-formed basal area, which appears 
to have been a point of adhesion, it displays so much 
affinity with Ceratotrochus (according to the diagnosis of 
M. Milne Edwards) that I was at first disposed to assign 
it to that genus. 

The four specimens that I have above described have 
been entrusted to me by my kind friend, Dr. E. Perceval 
Wright, of the Dublin University, with whose name I have 
honoured the species. They were dredged by G. C. Hynd- 
man, Esq., among shell sand, from a turbot bank off the 
coast of Antrim, in 1852. 

I have introduced the tiny form into this work, believing 
it to be an existing, and not a fossil species. Professor 


328 TURBINOLIAD A. 


Milne Edwards, indeed, considers the Sphenotrochi’ with 
papillate and crisped ribs to be in no case later than the 
eocene deposits; while those with smooth ribs he looks 


upon as invariably belonging to higher strata, and reaching | 


to the present period: but this is a canon. which a new 
species may at any moment overturn, if it be not already 
subverted by the S. nanus (Lea) of the eocene of Alabama. 
Dr. E. P. Wright mentions, as a suspicious circumstance, 
that many pleistocene shells do exist in the bed of shelly 
sand, where these specimens were found. But this does not 
confirm Professor Milne Edwards’s rule; for, so far as 
that could decide the question, it would prove not only 
that this crisped Coral is not recent, but that it is a4 
as old as the miocene. 

Dr. Wright says:—‘ I have reason to eee however, 
that they are not fossil; and the same is my own impres- 
sion, though I can scarcely assign any definite grounds for 
it, except the fresh appearance of one or two of the speci- 
mens. Some of them are rubbed, and one is polished 

externally. 

The uniformity in size of the individuals, sal the. full 
development of the plates, indicate a probability that, 
minute as they are, they have attained adult age. 


[mixtus (foss.). | 
[erispus (foss.). | 
WRIGHTIL. 
[Ceratotrochus (foss.).] 


a 


— ee 


329 


GENUS IV. ULOCYATHUS (Sars). 


Flabellum (Grax). 


Corallum simple, free, turbinate, with traces of 
adherence (in the young state) on a very short wedge- 
shaped crooked pointed base. 

Columella and palules entirely wanting. 

ids not at all prominent, sometimes obscure. 

Plates very thin, high, very salient above the margin 
of the cup, distinct throughout their length. 
~ Calice very deep; the margin sinuous and crisped. 


ANIMAL resembling that of Caryophyllia. 


Only one species has been recognised, UW. arcticus. 


ULOCYATHUS ARCTICUS 
(after Sars) slightly magnified. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. TURBINOLIA DZ. 


THE SCARLET CRISP-CORAL. 
Ulocyathus arcticus. 


Specific Character, Base triangular and flat, bounded by a sharp edge: 
ealice round. ' 


Ulocyathus areticus. Sars, Fauna Litt. Norv. ii. 73; pl. x. figs. 
18—27. 

Flabellum MacAndrewi. J. E. Gray, Proc. Zool. Soc. May, 1849: pl. ii. 
figs. 10, 11. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
CORALLUM. 


Corallum. Simple, free, but with traces of having been adherent in 
infancy: the base with a great inferior surface, triangular, flat, often 
concave, separated from the superior surface, which is equally triangular 
and convex, by a sharp edge on each side. 

Ribs. Large, often indistinct, unequal; the primaries sometimes armed 
with minute tubercles. 

Calice. Very wide and deep; the edge almost circular, crisped with 
minute sinuosities. 

Plates. These are so irregular that it is difficult to count the cycles, 
but they are at least four. Those of the first and second are more than 
twice as high as the rest, and reach to the centre of the cup, where they 
unite, but irregularly: the others are lower and shorter in gradation, the 
lowest projecting little within the margin. All are perfectly separate 
throughout, extremely thin, sharp-edged, the surfaces set with minute 
granules often running in curved lines : the free edge of all is arched, and 
their greatest width is one-third from the summit. The primaries and 
secondaries are very salient, and the edge of the calice seen in profile 
forms eleven or twelve triangular lobes. 

Columella and palules wholly wanting. 


ANIMAL. 
Form. 


Column, Actinia-like, without any trace of gemmz. 

Disk. FRadii fine, distinct. 

Tentacles. About 140, in four rows, close-set, irregular; the innermost 
three or four times as large as the outermost: stem cylindro-conical, 


THE SCARLET CRISP-CORAL. 331 


covered with large round prominent warts; head globose, smooth, imper- 
forate; very contractile, but not retractile. 

Mouth. A wide slit in the direction of the long axis: lip crenate, with 
forty to sixty-five deep furrows. 

Corour. 

A brilliant orange-scarlet; a little lighter on the inner tentacles: the 

furrows of the lip intense blood-red. 
Size. 

Corallum. About one aad a half inch in diameter, and a little less in 
height. 

Locaity. 

The coasts of Norway and Shetland: deep water. 

Of this species, by far the largest and noblest of the 
simple European Corals, a specimen was dredged by Mr. _ 
MacAndrew about twenty-five miles off East Shetland, in 
ninety fathoms. The individual was broken by the dredge, 
and only a portion of the corallum was secured, which is 
now in the British Museum. There can be no doubt, 
however, of its identity. 

A considerable number of examples have been obtained 
by Mr. Sars at Oxfjord, close to North Cape, the extreme 
northern point of Europe. It lives at an amazing depth, 
even from 150 to 200 fathoms, where the pressure of the 
superincumbent water must be immense. Clear as are 
the waters of the northern seas, so vast a volume of water 
must surely absorb nearly the whole of the rays of light, 
and the rich hues of the animal are therefore the more 
remarkable. It lies free on the mud or clay, never having 
occurred with evidence of recent attachment. 

The generic name is formed from oddos, crisped, and 
xvabos, a cup. 

[Desmophyllum.] 
ARCTICUS. 
[Flabellum.] 


FAMILY IV.—OCULINADA. 


The corallum in this family is solid (not porous), com- 
pound, increasing. by gemmation so as to take a form more 
or less branching and tree-like. The stony tissue is very 
compact, the surface smooth, delicately striate near the 
calices, or but slightly granular. The walls of the corallites 
(or stony skeletons of the individual polypes) are not per- 
forate, not distinct from the common tissue (cwnenchyma), 
and increase by their inner surface, so as gradually to 
fill up the cavity from below upwards. ‘The interseptal 
chambers are only imperfectly divided by a few dissepiments, 
or horizontal projections of stony matter shot across. The 
plates (septa) are entire, or have the upper edge slightly 
divided ; they are well developed, and are few in number. 


We have but one native representative of this family, 
the genus Lophohelia. 


GENUS I. LOPHOHELIA (M. Epw. & Ham). 


Madrepora (Lrsx.). 
Oculina (LAMARCE). 
Lithodendron (ScHWEIGGER). 


Corallum tree-like, or forming a branching thicket, 
the branches coalescing; the form results from a 
gemmation irregularly alternate and sub-terminal. 
There is no true cenenchyma, but bo walls are very 
thick, scarcely ribbed. 

Calices having a deep cavity, with a reverted 
lamellar edge. 

Columella and palules wanting. 

Plates entire, salient, unequal, the principal ones 
amnited towards the lower part of their inner edges, 
at the bottom of the visceral cavity. 


There is but one known British species, Z. prolifera. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. OCULINAD 4, 


THE TUFT-CORAL, 


Lophohelia prolifera. 
PuatE X. Fig. 1 (reduced). 


Specific Character. ° Corallites cylindrical. 


Madrepora prolifera. Linn. Syst. Nat. Ed, 12, 1281. Exurs and 
SotanpER, Zooph. pl. xxxii. figs. 2—5. 
Esper, Pflanz. i, 104; Madr. pl. xi. 

Lithodendron proliferum. Scuwrracrr, Handb. der Nat, 416. 

Oculina prolifera. | Lamanck, An. s. verteb. ii, 286. Lamour. 
Exp. méth, 64; pl. xxxii. figs, 2—5. 
Dana, Zooph. 393. 

Lophohelia prolifera, M. Epw. and Harmg, Ann. des Sci. Nat. Ser. 3. 

xiii, 81. M. Epw. Hist. Corall. ii. 117. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Forming a massive, compact, many-branched tree, rising 
from a slender base, permanently attached to rocks. 

Corallites. Free laterally, in general budding only once or twice, 
cylindrical, or but slightly expanding at the summit, moderately long. 
Exterior surface covered with very minute close-set granules, without ribs, 
except very faint marginal traces. The margin is often surrounded by a 
thin lamellar expansion. sWERSLIA 

Plates. Systems generally unequal and irregular, being formed of 
seven, or five, or three derived plates, but easily recognisable by following 
the development of the primaries, which are far greater than the others. 
The plates themselves are thick in the centre and towards the margin, but 
are thinned off to a sharp edge, which is irregular in outline, but not 
notched; their surfaces covered with minute granules. The principal 
ones, from eight to twelve in number, are stouter and far more salient 
than the rest, 

Walls. Very thick and dense, gradually filling up the bottom of the 
cavities, 


Sizz. 


The individual corallites are from one-fourth to half an inch in height 
and diameter. The dimensions of the compound mass vary according to 


THE TUFT-CORAL. 335 


age: the specimen figured is about ten inches in height, and seven in 
diameter. 
Anmat. Undescribed. 


LocaLity. 
The north-western coasts of Europe: deep water. 


The figure in Plate X. is taken from a noble specimen, 
undoubtedly British, reduced to half the natural size. I 
am indebted for the opportunity of delineating it to the 
kindness of Professor Dickie, of Belfast, who was at the 
pains of having several photographs taken from it for my 
use, and favoured me also with many fragments including 
perfect corallites. Dr. Dickie informs me that it was 
obtained from deep water off Skye, in 1852, by means of 
the deep-sea lines of a fisherman, who presented it to him. 
He mentions having seen another British example, in the 
possession of Professor Fleming, the same that the latter 
exhibited before the Royal Society of Edinburgh in 1846, 
and which had been taken in the previous summer, by 
fishermen whose lines had become entangled with it in the 
sea between the islands of Rum and Eig. This specimen, 
which weighs six pounds, is preserved in the Museum of 
King’s College, Aberdeen. A third example is alluded to 
by Johnston, who was informed by E. Forbes that certain 
published figures of the species “ had recalled to his mind 
a very large specimen in the possession of Dr. Edmonstone 
of Orkney.” It is to be regretted that we possess no 
information of the living animal of so fine a Coral, the 
only British example of the truly dendroid species. 

The name Lophohelia is formed from Xo¢gos, a tuft, and 
HAwos, the sun; g.d. “a tuft of suns,” ab fa to the 
radiating plates of the corallites. 

[Acrohelia.] 
LOPHOHELIA. 
[Amphihelia.] 


336 


FAMILY V.—ANGIADZ. 


The visceral cavity of the corallun. in this family is 
not obliterated, nor even subdivided ; the interseptal dis- 
sepiments being merely rudimentary. There is no canen- 
chyma, and the wall is imperforate. ? 
The plates have notched edges, but not very conspi- 
cuously. 

The corallum is massive. It increases by gemmation ; 
the buds being developed on stolons, or on basal membrani- 
form expansions. : 

The corallites are not united by their sides, except 
accidentally by means of their walls, and they remain 
short. 


But one British genus is known, Hoplangia, 


337 


GENUS I. HOPLANGIA (Gosssg). 
Phyllangia (Gosse). 


Corallum incrusting foreign bodies. 

Corallites rather short, formed by buds which 
spring from an expansion around the base of the 
parent, permanently united to it (but not to each other) 
by the inferior portions of their walls. 

Wall surrounded by a thin porcellanous coat (ep7- 
theca), which permits the ribs to be traced through it ; 
granulate. 

Ribs thin, sharp, low, very unequally distinct. 

Columella a broad surface of rough papille, 
merging into the plates. 

Palules wanting. 

Plates thin, scarcely salient, unequal, straight, 
granulose, toothed on the edges, except the upper 
edges of the primaries, which are nearly entire. 


There is but one species, H. Durotrizx. 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. ANGIAD&. 


THE WEYMOUTH CARPET-CORAL. 


Hoplangia Durotriz. 
(Sp. nov.) 


Pratt X, Fig. 9.* 


Specific Character. Plates in four imperfect cycles. 
Phyllangia Americana. Gossn, Annals N. H. Ser, 3. ii, 349. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Corallum. Compound, increasing laterally on all sides; low, not rising 
above the height of the individual corallites; incrusting rocks. 

Corallites. Formed by budding from a permanent, thin, calcareous, 
carpet-like expansion, which spreads around the base of the parent, to 
which each is permanently united by the inferior portion of the wall. 
(In the specimen in my possession, four corallites of sub-equal size are 
grouped around a parent, which has been long dead, for the inner portions 
of its plates have been worn away.) They are cylindrical, deep, about 
twice as high as wide, slightly inclining outwards from the common 
centre. : 

Wall. Invested by a thin porcelain-like coat of calcareous matter, 
which appears identical with the basal carpet. It terminates above “with 
a perfectly defined, slightly everted edge, above which the wall is beau- 
tifully white and clean, while the epitheca is dirty white, and coated with 
‘a minute sponge. The epitheca shows traces of periodic growth, by a 
succession’of such everted edges not totally obliterated ; and while in one 
corallite the edge is level with the summits of the plates, in another there 
is at least one-fourth of the total height above the epitheca. Hence 
I infer that the wall with the septa makes a periodic growth above the 
last level of the epitheca, while the latter remains dormant, and that then- 
the epitheca is deposited’ at once around the new growth; the wall and 
the epitheca thus growing alternately. The wal! is covered with minute 
seattered granules, and these as well as the ribs can be discerned through 
the thin epitheca. 

Ribs. Thin, sharp, low, in some places discernible only at the very 
summit of the wall, in others nearly throughout; in the former case they 
appear again from the edge of the epitheca a little way downward. 


* Marked “ Phyllangia Americana” in some copies. 


ee ee 


THE WEYMOUTH CARPET-CORAL. 339 


Columella, The floor of the cavity is covered with papillary emi- 
nences, which are very rough, with irregular points, and are identical with 
the lower edges of the principal plates, by the convergence of which they 
seem to be formed. 

Plates. Thin above, but increasing in thickness below, scarcely salient, 
unequal, straight, the surfaces set with irregular granular tubercles, which 
become increasingly rough and prominent below. - ; 
“The edges are strongly but irregularly notched 
and toothed, especially below; but the upper 
edge of the primaries is for the most part sub- 
entire; the form of the outline varies much. 
There are normally four cycles in six systems: 
but the fourth cycle is always wanting either 
in the whole or in half of some of the systems ; 
the amount of defection varying much in dif- 
ferent corallites. The development is very un- HOPLANGIA 
equal, and the plates of the third or fourth (magnified). 
cycle are occasionally larger than those of higher rank, even in the sam 
system. 


S1ze. 


Individual corallites one-eighth of an inch in diameter, and nearly one 
fourth in height. 


Animmau. Undescribed. 


Locatiry. 
Weymouth Bay: deep water. 


When this neat and interesting little Coral first came into 
my hands, I thought, notwithstanding some peculiarities, 
that it must be referred to the Phyllangia Americana, a 
native of the West Indian seas, and so announced it. 
But I see that there are incongruities which prevent its 
_ identification with that or any other recognised genus, and 
I have therefore founded a new one to receive it. It has 
much in common with Angia, as well as Phyllangia, but 
the above diagnosis will, I think, warrant my decision. 

In forming a generic name, I have followed the plan of 
M. Milne Edwards in using a common element for the 
genera of a given family ; though perhaps a little heterodox 
for stanch Linneans, it has advantages. Taking then the 

Zz 2 


340 ANGIADA. 


element angia, from dyyos, a cup, I have completed the 
word from d7Aov, armour; with a double allusion to the 
mail-like epitheca, and the toothing of the plates. The 
English name commemorates the manner of gemmation ; 
and the specific, the locality in which it was found; the 
Durotriges having, according to Ptolemy, anciently in- 
habited the coast of Dorset. 

In September, 1858, a dealer from Torquay, dredging 
in Weymouth Bay, brought up a piece of the bottom, 
about a foot square, evidently the edge of one of the 
oolite ledges, torn off by the lip of the dredge. On this 
were from fifty to a hundred specimens of this little Coral, 
clustered in many groups. It was presumed to be Caryo- 
phyllia Smithit, and no special notice being taken of it, 
the mass was broken up and dispersed; and a small frag- 
ment accidentally fell under my eye, and was secured. I 
was not so fortunate as to see the animal alive, my 
specimen, though in the flesh, being in an advanced state 
of decomposition ; but the discoverer, who is pretty familiar 
with C. Smithit, at least as to its general appearance, spoke 
of the Hoplangia as resembling that species, and told me 
that he remarked green and white hues. He observed 
also numerous tentacles, but did not notice whether they 
were knobbed. 

[Angia. | 
HOPLANGIA. 
[Phyllangia. | 


341 


FAMILY VI—EUPSAMMIADZ:. ° 


The stony tissue is here deposited in such a manner that 

the corallum, instead of being compact, is porous, but not 
So open as to have a spongy texture. The wall is thick, 
and constitutes the chief part of the whole; it is perforate, 
and either almost or quite naked, with a granulate ver- 
miculate surface. 
_ The plates are numerous; those of the last cycle always 
deviate from the radius of the calice, their planes approach- 
ing the bisection of their system, so that the whole septal 
arrangement assumes the form of a six- or twelve-rayed 
star; by which very remarkable peculiarity this family 
may be infallibly recognised. The plates are perforate. 
The interseptal chambers are completely open to the bottom, 
or divided only by a few incomplete partitions. 


There is only one British genus known, Balanophyllia. 


342 


GENUS I. BALANOPHYLLIA (Woop). - 


. Corallum simple, adherent, sub-pedicellate, cylin- 
drical, or sub-conical. 
- Columella well-developed, but not projecting at the 
bottom of the calice; of a sponge-like appearance. 
Plates thin, close-set ; those of the last cycle well- 
developed. 
ibs distinct, narrow, nearly equal, crowded. 


The Anrmat is actinia-like, richly coloured, with a 
protrusile mouth, not conspicuously furrowed, and 


bluntly-pointed, warted tentacles, without terminal 
knobs. 


There is only one British species, B. regia. 


a 


CARYOPHYLLIACEA. EUPSAMMIAD#. 


THE SCARLET AND GOLD STAR-CORAL. 
Balanophyllia regia. 
Puate X. Figs. 10, 11. 


Specific Character. Corallum sub-conical, circular: epitheca expending 
to margin : plates in five imperfect cycles. 


Diiscelyllis vai. GossE, Dev. Coast, 399; pl. xxvi. figs. 1—6. 
Isp, Man. Mar. Zool. i. 33 ; fig. 51. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


CORALLUM. 


Corallum. Conico-cylindrical, rising like the trunk of a tree from a base 

much broader than the column ; height rarely exceeding, often not equal- 
-ling, the diameter. 

Calice. Circular or nearly so: varying much in depth. 

Wall. Rather thick, porous, but scarcely spongy, invested with an 
epitheca, which in general extends to the margin, but not always, and occa- 
sionally (as in a specimen in my possession) seems wholly wanting. 

Ribs. Continuous (not formed of separate granules) but very sinuous, 
and in some parts branching, the branches so confluent as to form a rough 
network : they are often distinct through the epitheca. 

Columella. Much developed, forming a large spongiose mass (or more 
like the crumb of well-raised bread), often rising almost to the level of the 
margin, but more commonly to about half that height. 

Plates. Well developed, thick, here and there perforate, with a frosted 
surface and minutely toothed edges, not salient, the upper edge sloping 
downward and inward. The star is six-rayed, and is always distinctly 
formed, and generally symmetrical. There are five cycles, but some of 
the fourth and fifth are wanting in each system. The gradation in deve- 
lopment is pretty regular downward from the first to the fourth; but the 
fifth are exceedingly irregular and unequal. The two plates of the fifth 
cycle in each system, which stand next to the primaries (that is, those of 
the sixth order*), are developed to an extent much exceeding even the 


* Hist. des Corall. i. 45. 


344 EUPSAMMIADA. 


primaries themselves, from which they diverge at such an angle that they 
mutually meet and coalesce at a point about midway between the origin 
of the secondary of that system and the axis 
of the calice, but at a level much lower than 
the margin; the two united plates thence pro- 
ceed in the intermediate line to join the 
columella. In many examples, however, this 
continuation of the united quinaries is obsolete 
in each ‘alternate system. The quinaries that 
are contiguous to the secondaries (the 7th 
order) are also much developed, but not so 
as to equal the secondaries, with which they 
often cohere. 


ANIMAL. 
Form. 


Column. Cylindrical, extensile, smooth, or somewhat invected. 

Disk. Protrusile, in the form of a high truncate cone, on the summit 
of which is the mouth, without any thickened or furrowed lip. No trace 
of gonidial radii, tubercles, or grooves. 1 

Tentacles. About fifty in number, large, conical, obtusely-pointed, with- 
out terminal knobs: their walls are translucent, and studded with opaque 
transversely-oblong warts, which become confluent towards the tip. 


CoLour. 


Column and Disk. Vivid scarlet in adults, orange in young individuals, 
opaque, 
Tentacles. Gamboge yellow: the hue residing only in the warts. 


Size. 


Diameter of corallum one-fourth of an inch at margin, and occasionally 
twice as much at base; height from one-sixth to one-fourth. The animal 
in full expansion may reach one-third of an inch in diameter, and one-half 


in height. 
Locariry. 


The coast of North Devon: on rocks at extreme low water. 


This showy little Coral, interesting not merely for its 
beauty while alive, but for its peculiar structure when dead, 
was discovered by myself in 1852. I had been spending a 


THE SCARLET AND GOLD STAR-CORAL. 345 


summer at Ilfracombe, and the chills and storms of autumn 
were already warning the migrant inhabitants away. It 
was a spring-tide in September, and the water had receded 
lower than I had seen it since I had been at the place. I 
was searching among the extremely rugged rocks that run 
out from the Tunnels, forming walls and pinnacles of dan- 
gerous abruptness, with deep, almost inaccessible cavities 
between. Into one of these, at the very verge of the water, 
I managed to scramble down; and found round a corner 
a sort of oblong basin, about ten feet long, in which the 
water remained, a tide-pool of three feet depth in the 
middle. The whole concavity of the interior was so 
smooth that I could find no resting-place for my foot in 
order to examine it; though the sides, all covered with 
the pink lichen-like Coralline, and bristling with Laminarie 
and Zoophytes, looked so tempting that I walked round 
and round, reluctant to leave it. At length I fairly stripped, 
though it was blowing very cold, and jumped in. I had 
examined a good many things, of which the only novelty 
was the pretty narrow fronds of Flustra chartacza in some 
abundance, and was just about to come out, when my eye 
rested on what I at once saw to be a Madrepore, but of an 
unusual colour, a most refulgent orange. It was detached 
by means of the hammer, as were several more, which were 
associated with it. Not suspecting, however, that it was 
anything more than a variation in colour of that very vari- 
able species, Caryophyllia Smithii, I left a good many 
remaining, for which I was afterwards sorry, since they 
proved to belong to this new and interesting form before 
us. All were affixed to the perpendicular side of the pool, 
above the permanent water-mark : and there were some of 
the common Caryophyllie associated with them. 
I afterwards found the same species in considerable 
number, especially during the very low springs of the 


346 EUPSAMMIADZ. 


October new moon, among the rocks off the Tunnels, all in 
the vicinity of the spot where I found the first. They were 
always in the same circumstances, crowded in colonies; 
one cavity, just large enough to turn in, containing perhaps 
a hundred, speckling the walls with their little scarlet disks, 
near extreme low water. Not one that I took presented. 
the least variation from the characters I had jotted down 
already ; but one specimen had adhering to its base two 
very young ones, one about a line in diameter, the other 
not more than one-third of a line. Examination with a 
lens revealed no difference either in form or colour between 
these and the adult; the condition of their skeleton is un- 
known, as I did not choose to destroy the infant specimen, 
much to my present regret. 

Since that time it has been found in considerable abund- 
ance along the same line of coast; and it has become 
common in our aquariums. It is always attractive from 
its brilliancy, and is moderately hardy, though it appears 
rather more difficult to keep than Oaryophyllia. 

The integuments are opaque, even when distended: 
indeed they never become filled with water to anything like 
the extent which makes the species just named so beautiful. 
The plates are never visible, during life, in any degree of 
contraction, the red flesh lying as an opaque cushion over 
them even when all the tentacles are withdrawn. I am 
not sure that the disk is ever wholly covered by the inver- 
sion of the column ; even when the tentacles are quite con- 
cealed beneath the margin, the large mouth-cone still pro- 
trudes from the central orifice. Sometimes the tentacles 
sink to very low warts or minute yellow eminences on 
the scarlet plain that constitutes the disk. 

I have said that the epitheca is not unvarying; and I 
think that the flesh does not extend externally below its 
edge. One in my possession, however, had the exterior of 


THE SCARLET AND GOLD STAR-CORAL. 347: 


the corallum wholly clothed with the scarlet integument, 
even down to the base. The covering was exceedingly 
thin, for with a needle-point I could feel the stony corallum 
without any sensible indentation of the surface, and the 
points at the margin were projecting. 

I have no information about the reproduction of the 
species, except such as may be gathered from the following 
observation. In the month of September, in a vase in 
which several specimens were kept, and which contained 
nothing else to which I could reasonably attribute the 
phenomenon, I found several clusters of ova. Each cluster 
consisted of about a dozen, loosely aggregated, and all con- 
nected by a kind of twisted cord, which formed a footstalk 
for each. The eggs were perfectly globular, j,th of an 
inch in diameter, of a pellucid orange-yellow hue. One of 
them under the microscope showed the contents granular, 
and receding from the chorion, with a definite outline. 
None of them developed the embryo to my knowledge. 

The genus was established by Mr. Wood in 1844, to 
receive a fossil species from the Red Crag of Sutton. It 
now contains eleven species, most of them fossil, but one 
exists in the Italian seas, and two others elsewhere. There 
is none with which B. regia can be confounded. The 
generic name is derived from SdXavos, an acorn or nut, 
and @vAXov, a leaf, and the specific alludes to the royal 
colours in which the animal is arrayed. 

Ilfracombe, P. H. G. ; Lundy, C. K. 


REGIA. 
[cylindrica (foss.). ] 


348 ; LUCERNARIAD&. 


(#) PocILLOPoRa INTPRSTINCTA (Miller). 


Ata meeting of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (Trans. 
March, 1846), Dr. Fleming exhibited a characteristic draw- 
ing of a Pocillopora presumed to be of this species, which 
was obtained by Dr. Hibbert in the Shetland Seas. Dr. 
Fleming had expected that a detailed description of this 
would have been published before the appearance of his 
“History of British Animals,” in 1828. It is, however, I 
believe, still a desideratum. 

The genus is marked by the following characters: 
Corallum massive or sub-tree-like, with thick, imperforate 
walls. Visceral chambers divided by well-developed hori- 
zontal partitions, or floors, in successive stages. Plates 
rudimentary. Calices shallow, with a thick ring at the 
bottom of each, forming a sort of columella. 


LUCERNARIAD 2. 


Contrary to my original intention, I have determined to 
exclude this family from my work. ‘Their true affinities 
are with the Hydrozoa and Meduse. The gelatinous tex- 
ture, the expanded umbrella, the ovaries in the substance 
of the umbrella, the four-lipped mouth placed at the end of 
a free peduncle,* and the quadripartite arrangement, are all 
Medusan characters. The tentacles in marginal groups are 
found in Bougainvillea, and their form,—knobs at the tip 
of long footstalks,—agrees more with Slabberia than with 
Corynactis and Caryophyllia. 


* See my fig. of Campanularia, in Devonsh, Coast, p. 296, pl. xviii. 


le ll 


PLATE Xt 


W.DICHES, SC. 


ANATOMICAL DETAILS. 


_ PHSOSSE BEI 


APPENDIX. 


I. 


SPECIES DISCOVERED TOO LATE FOR DESCRIPTION IN THEIR 
. PROPER PLACES IN THIS VOLUME. 


ASTRZACEA. SAGARTIADA. 


THE LATTICED CORKLET. 
Phellia Brodricit. 
Prate VIII. Fig. 2. 


Specific Character. Epidermis free at the margin, dense, transversely 
corrugated. Tentacles marked with a latticed pattern. 


Phellia Brodricti. Gossz, Annals N.H. Ser. 3. iii. 46. 


GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 
Form. 


Base. Adherent to rocks ; considerably exceeding the column. 

Column. Flat and wrinkled when completely contracted: rising to a 
tall, somewhat slender pillar, studded with low warts on its upper portion, 
but covered on its lower two-thirds with a tough, firmly adherent epi- 
dermis, the upper edge of which is free, with a ragged foliaceous margin, 
not forming atube. The surface of this is transversely corrugated, but 
not warted. The animal frequently expands in its low condition, when 
the flower occupies the summit of a very low cone, and is not half the 
diameter of the base. A slight margin, much wrinkled in semi-contraction, 
and forming a star of radiating furrows in closing. 

Disk. Flat or slightly concave ; outline circular. 

Tentacles. Arranged in five rows, viz. 6, 6, 12,24, 48—=96; short and 
slender, diminishing from the first row outwards; in ordinary extension 
not longer than one-fourth the diameter of the disk; generally carried 
arching over the margin, the tips occasionally turned up. 

Mouth. Elevated on a strongly marked cone. 

Acontia. Not emitted, even under strong irritation, while in my posses- 
sion. Mr, Brodrick, however, has seen them projected from the mouth. 


350 APPENDIX. 


CoLour. 


Column. Exposed part pellucid white, with the warts opaque white. 

_ £pidermis. Ochreous drab, slightly darker in some parts, with longi- 
tudinal white lines proceeding from the base, and vanishing a little way 
up. Central star of button formed of alternate whitish and blackish rays. 

Disk. Drab: each primary and secondary radius marked with two 
parallel lines of dark chocolate-brown ; each tertiary radius is similarly but 
more faintly marked, and the space inclosed is in these latter radii drab 
on their outer and white on their inner moiety, the divisions of the two 
colours being marked by a black spot. The space immediately bounding 
the foot of each primary tentacle dark brown. 

Tentacles. Pellucid whitish; the lower half opaque white on the front, 
crossed by four transverse bars of dusky, the whole (except the lowest one) 
being connected by three longitudinal lines of the same colour, which 
impart a latticed or window-like pattern to the tentacle, 

Mouth. Lip white; throat white, with black furrows. 


S1zz, 


Diameter of base nearly an inch, of extended column half an inch, of 
flower from one-third of an inch to an inch ; height one inch. 


~ Locauiry. 
Lundy Island: on rocks at low water. 


My acquaintance with this species I owe to the courtesy 
of William Brodrick, Esq., of Ilfracombe, with whose 
name I have honoured it. He kindly sent me a specimen 
in November, 1858, which had at that time been in his 
possession about sixteen months, having been taken with 
another individual in the summer of 1857. Its habit is to 
remain on an exposed stone, without any disposition to 
roam: it is generally closed by day, or if open the column 
is contracted; but it elongates in darkness. It is very 
timid, and cannot on this account be fed: the slightest 
touch of the tentacles [ found to be followed by an instant 
closing. The light of a candle, concentrated by a lens, 
presently causes it to shrink and contract, 

gausapata. 


Bropricu. 
troglodytes. 


re 


SET RE Fos gt 


ASTR&ACEA. ; j BUNODID#. 


THE RINGED DEEPLET. 
Bolocera eques. 
(Sp. nov.) 
ee Prare IX. Fig. 6. 
Specific Character. Tentacles wholly retractile ; white, encircled with a 
GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 


Form. 


Base. Adherent, scarcely exceeding the column. 

Column. Cylindrical; very changeable in shape; very distensible ; 
surface covered with numerous slightly indented, close-set, longitudinal 
strie; studded, on the upper two-thirds, with numerous minute warts, 
increasing in number to the margin : these are either prominent or level, 
‘at the pleasure of the animal, and they have the power of attaching frag- 
ments of extraneous matter, which, however, seems rarely exercised. 
Substance lax and pulpy, with thin integuments. Margin forming a 
thick parapet, the summit obtusely edged, and notched with close-set 
-denticulations, which are not warts, but are the terminations of the striz. 

Disk. Fiat, smooth, with very delicate and inconspicuous radii; outline 
expansile beyond the column. 

' Tentacles. Sub-marginal, set in six rows: 6, 6, 12, 24, 48, 48—=144; 
short, thick, conical, but versatile in form, in contraction being slender, in 
distension often ovate, or when this is partial, ovate with a slender point 
(mucro); constricted at foot, and in contraction marked with longitudinal 
sulci, both of which are very readily obliterated ; the tip perforate. They 
are subequal, about an inch and a half in length, and when distended, 

.upwards of one-third of an inch in diameter; are flexuous, and thrown in 
various directions ; are strongly adhesive; they are perfectly and readily 
retractile, but in a peculiar mode; the margin contracts, till its edges meet 
over the tentacles; but it never involves itself. 

Mouth. Occasionally protruded in form of a wide cone. Two gonidial 
grooves, each with its pair of tubercles, and its broad, though faintly 
marked, radius. Lips thickened. Stomach-wall capable of being pro- 
‘truded in great bladder-like lobes. 


CoLovr. 


Column. A rich light orange-scarlet, rather ‘duller towards the base; 
the strie marked by slightly paler lines; the warts white, each inclosed in 


352 APPENDIX. 


a ring a little deeper than the general hue; the region below the warts 
studded with much more minute and more crowded whitish specks, 

Disk. Pale buff or drab, unspotted ; pellucid. 

Tentacles. Pellucid white; a broad scarlet ring, bounded below by a 
narrower one of opaque white, surrounds the middle of each tentacle. 

Mouth. Lip as the disk. Gonidial tubercles white. Stomach-wall 
marked with alternate lines of pellucid and opaque white. 

SIZE. 

Height of column, when distended, four inches, diameter nearly the 

same; expanse of flower about seven inches. 


Loca.iry, 

North Sea: deep water. 

The acquisition of the magnificent animal above de- 
scribed, for which I am indebted to the kindness of Mr. 
D. Ferguson, of Coutham, not only enables me to augment 
the genus Bolocera, and at the same time the British Fauna, 
with another species, but also makes me better satisfied 
with the establishment of such a genus. Equal in dimen- 
sions to B. Tuedie, and presenting much in common with 
that species, there are peculiarities in this specimen which 
compel me to consider it specifically distinct. These are 
the brilliant hue of the column, its striate surface, the 
thinness of the integuments, the much feebler sulcation 
and constriction of the tentacles, and the rings of positive 
colour which adorn them, together with their power of 
complete retractation. All these characters make the pre- 
sent species a decidedly nearer approximation to Zealia. 
Indeed, when fully expanded, so remarkable is the resem- 
blance in form, size, and colour, to a fine 7’ crassicornis, that 
I have little doubt the reason of its having been hitherto 
overlooked, is that it has been passed over as that familiar 
species. Yet the minute warts, the (really though slightly) 
constricted and furrowed tentacles, and the non-retractility 
of the margin, determine its place in this genus. 

The nobleness of its tout ensemble, and especially the 


ae ee ee 


APPENDIX. 353 


rings on its many fingers, suggested to me a specific appel- 
lation, in allusion to old Rome’s coxcomb chivalry, whose 
gold rings were no less characteristic than their valour. 

My friend informs me that the specimen was procured 
on the 17th of December, 1858, in twenty-eight fathoms’ 
water, about ten miles east of the mouth of the Tees. The 
fisherman who obtained it (a carefal collector) had never 
seen one like it, though he had been very familiar with 
T. crassicornis, from the circumstance of some hundreds of 
specimens having been sent to Mr. Teale, from Redcar, 
when that gentleman was engaged in his important re- 
searches into its anatomy. It lived upwards of three weeks 
with its first possessor, and after that a fortnight with me. 

The greater portion of this latter period it passed in 
a large tank, where it attached itself, expanded and dilated 
most gorgeously, presenting a grandeur of beauty which all 
who beheld it could scarce sufficiently admire. But for 
a few days before its death it loosed the hold of its base, 
and began to rupture the integuments, displaying the cras- 
peda. Then the stomach-wall protruded, at first in a vesi- 
cular manner, and then by the inordinate recession of the 
lip, so that the plicate and corrugated stomach occupied 
the whole place of the disk. Then the tentacles lost their 
power of distension, and resumed their flaccid and con- 
tracted condition, when the longitudinal su/ci became 
again conspicuous. And so the illustrious stranger died. 

I subsequently received another specimen from Banff, in 
every respect like the former. It survived but ten days. 
Tuediz. 

EQUES. 
T. crassicornis. 


354 APPENDIX. 


IL. 


SPECIES DESCRIBED AS BRITISH, BUT WHICH I AM NOT ABLE 
TO APPORTION TO THEIR TRUE PLACE, FROM THE LACK 
OF PERSONAL ACQUAINTANCE WITH THEM. 


Alderi (Cocks). ‘‘ Body cylindrical, hyaline, smooth; numerous grass- 
green longitudinal strie ; tentacles twelve, short, obtuse, with.a continu- 
ation of the green line on the posterior surface of each. Disk and mouth 
crimson, the latter marked with eight spots of same colour, but. much 
darker; edge of disk entire; suctorials minute, numerous, imbedded.” 
Deep water, off Falmouth. 

Pellucida (Cocks). ‘‘ Body cylindrical, smooth, opalescent; numerous 
white longitudinal grooves; suctorials minute; tentacles short, filiform, 
transparent, plain; mouth small; disk circular, flat, crossed: by opaque 
white lines; edge entire.” Falmouth. 

Yarrellii (Cocks). ‘ Body conoid, hyaline, with twenty-four longitu- 
dinal semi-opaque white strie; suctorials numerous, minute, imbedded. 
Three rows of tentacles, short, obtuse (rather clavate), spotted all over 
with white. The ovarian filaments, &c. distinctly seen through the trans- 
parent tunics.” Falmouth. 

Bellii (Cocks). “ Body cylindrical, hyaline, spotted with yellow; 
twelve longitudinal opaque white strie; mouth bright orange-red ; two 
yellow patches extending from the angle on each side to the base of the 
tentacles; tentacles twenty, long, filiform, dotted anteriorly, and tipped, 
with yellow.” Falmouth. 

Hastata (Wright). “ Base adherent to rock; not exceeding column. Column 
. smooth ; height about equal to breadth (one inch). Disk hollow, hardly 
equalling diameter of column. Tentacles numerous; in five or six rows, 
set close to margin; nearly equal; very conical and short; thickly 
crowded. Mouth set on a cone; lip tumid, furrowed. Column and disk 
sienna-brown, or salmon colour. Tentacles light brown, with two white 
bars across the base, tip slightly white or translucent. Lips orange. or 
brick-red.” Berehayen, Co. Cork. 

N.B. The above five species seem all referrible to that group of the 
genus Sagartia, which I have provisionally named Thoe. 

Intestinalis (Fabrie.), “ Body cylindrical, the upper half suddenly con- 
tracted and narrow.”—* When contracted, the body seems like two broad 
rings, of nearly equal breadth, and about half an inch in diameter; when 
expanded to nearly two inches, the body consists of two cylindrical por- 
tions of different dimensions, smooth, pellucid, yellowish; a few longi- 
tudinal white streaks; disk not expanded; tentacles about eighteen, 
filiform, in two rows.” (Fleming.) Shetland. 


APPENDIX. 355 


I. 


ADDENDA. 


Sagartia bellis. The Act. Johnstoni of Mr. Cocks is a variety of this 
species; two specimens have come under my notice. 


— miniata. A friend (Z. W. H. H.) thinks that the Act. elegans of 
Dalyell is this species (see supra, p. 100). Ifso, my name must give place 
to his. 

—— ornata. I have taken this at Torquay. It has been also found 
_ at Mizen Head, and sent me from Banff. The markings are true to the 
description, and leave no doubt of its distinctness as a species. 


—— pallida, Sent me in some numbers from Banff. A consider- 
able colony has also been found at Torquay. 


— coccinea. Abundant in deep water, Torbay. 
—— parasitica. Found, at Jersey, between tide-marks. 


Phellia gausapata. I have since seen numerous specimens ; the species 
is quite distinct from P. murocincta. A very large specimen has been 
taken from deep water in Torbay. 


—— picta. Other specimens have been sent me from Banff. The epi- 
dermis is very thin and deciduous; and altogether the species seems inter- 
-mediate between the true Phellie and such Sagartie as coccinea. 


Adamsia palliata. Some interesting facts concerning this species and 
its connexion with the Hermit-crab will be found in a paper of mine, 
“On the Transfer of Adamsia palliata from Shell to Shell,” published in 
the Zoologist for June, 1859. 


Sphenotrochus Macandrewanus. This has occurred more abundantly 
than the text seems to imply. Both Dr. Cocks and Mr. Alder inform me 
of having seen numerous specimens, chiefly from the Cornish coast ; and 
the latter has kindly presented me with two specimens. 


—  Wrightit. Dr. Wright has sent me a fifth specimen from the same 
bank as the other four, differing considerably in form from all. 

Lophohelia prolifera, 1 have omitted to mention a fine British specimen, 
preserved in the Museum of Newcastle ; and another mentioned by Lands- 
borough, from Barra, one of the Hebrides. 


Balanophyllia regia. Two living specimens have been dredged in Ply- 
mouth Sound, by Mr. T. H. Stewart of the Roy. Coll. Surg. 


356 APPENDIX. 


IV. 
GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION. 


In the following attempt to distribute our Sea~-Anemones 
geographicaily, I divide the whole British Coast into ten 
provinces, thus (somewhat arbitrarily) defined. 


1. The Shetland, including the Orkneys, and Scotland as far as 
Kinnaird’s Head. 


5 The North Sea, including the coast from Kinnaird’s Head to Spurn 
ead. 


3. The Eastern ; from the Humber to the Thames, a flat low shore. 


4. The South-east; from the Foreland to St. Alban’s Head; chiefly 
chalk cliffs. 


5. The Devonian; from St. Alban’s to St. David’s Head; a rugged 
rocky coast. 


ae The Irish Sea, to the Mull of Cantyre, including Man, and the Irish 
re. 


7. The Hebridean, from Cantyre to the Orkneys. 
8. The South Irish, from Carnsore Point to Mizen Head. 
9. The Atlantic, from Mizen Head to Rathlin Island. 

10. The Channel Islands. 


A glance at the table will show that the Devonian dis- — 
trict is by far the richest in species, including two-thirds of 
the whole. Next in fecundity to this extreme south comes 
the extreme north, numbering, however, less than two- 
thirds of the Devonian total. The Irish Sea, the Atlantic 
coast of Ireland, and the Channel Isles, each claims about 
two-thirds of the Shetland total. The province of the North 
Sea holds about two-thirds of this last number; and then 
come in succession the South-east, the Eastern, and South 
Trish, and finally the Hebridean. 

These numbers represent, of course, the state of our 
knowledge rather than the fact. I look for additions in 
the Devonian province, and far more in the Shetland and 
Hebridean, of which last I know almost nothing. The 
Atlantic province will doubtless be farther enriched, and 
that of the Channel Isles. But I do not look for many 
species to be added to the North Sea; and few if any to 
the Eastern and South-eastern provinces ;—mud and chalk 
being essentially ungenial to Sea-anemones. 


“ap ung |e, . . . “ore : ig 
‘onuryy. | Ge * ° ie 
—USHT“og | ; : a 
‘UBOPLIGO Ey . 4 . . i) 
“BOG YS] . ’ « . . . . . . 18 
“uPTuUOAaCT . . . . . . . . . 7 . . - . . . 7 . . |S 
*48Uq-'08 : a 
___ Udog ser bs ra 
‘W9g ‘ION . . . . e < 
*‘pavpoug . . . . . . . ° . ° -) . 3 3 

43 eae Se a4 So Bad eg 2 stati i} 
a: a : * © : 3 oF 
DEUSEDRESIALIREOLODEEIRERROEOREIOEE 
“sy ‘ue . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
‘OruRyy a Ee ‘ are ° . eS Se . . at e 
“Us}]-"0g : er. : 
“uvopLIqoTt . . . 
‘wog ystiy | « . . Py ry ° . . . . . ° 
“UBL UOAO(T . . . . . . . . . * . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
“yaRiy-og . . . . . . . . 
“U19ejse4 eur, . . 8 
“Bog ‘ION |. 7 . . . . . . . . 
_ “puelous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 
3 
3 


358 APPENDIX. 


V. 


NAMES OF AUTHORITIES EXPRESSED BY INITIALS. 


Miss Church. J.D.H. — (A misprint for T. D. H.) 


A. B.C. 
A.M.M. Mrs. Murray Menzies. J.G. Rey. James Guillemard. — 
A. R. Mr. A. Robertson. J. G. D. Sir John G. Dalyell. 
AM. Mr. James Macdonald. — 
C.K. Rev. Charles Kingsley. J.M. J. Mr. J. M. Jones. 
C.W.P. Mr. Chas. W. Peach. Sicikes Mr. J. Price. 
Je Bo G. Prof. J. Reay Greene. 
D. B. Miss Barnie. J.R. M. Mr. J. R. Mummery. 
D. F. Mr. D. Ferguson. J. T. Mr. John Templeton. 
D. L. ‘Rev. David Landsborough. | J. 7.H. Mr. James T. Hillier. 
Dz R. Mr. David Robertson. 
M. E. G. Miss Guille. 
E. C. H. Mr. E. C. Holwell. M. V. Miss Vigurs. 
E. F. Professor Edward Forbes. . 
E. L. W. Mr. E. L. Williams, Jun. PG. Mr. P. H. Gosse. 
£. P. W. Dr. E. Perceval Wright. 
E.W.H.H. Mr. E. W. H. Holdsworth. | 2. B. Dr. Robert Ball. 
R. C.J. Prof. R. C. Jordan. 
F.H. W. Mr. F. H. West. oes ME: Mr. R. Howse. r. 
F.L.0. Rev. F. L. Currie. RP. Mr. Robert Patterson. | 
F.N. B. Mr. F, N. Broderick. R. Q. C. Mr. Richard Q. Couch. 
G. B. Mr. G. Barlee. S. ZH. Mr. Sydney Hodges. 
G. C. H, Dr. G. C. Hyndman. S. W. Mr. S. Whitchurch. 
G. D. Dr. G. Dansey. 
G. D.(B.) Professor Dickie. T. D.H. — Dr. Thos. D. Hilton, 
G. @. Mr. G. Gatehouse. 7.8. W. Dr. T. Strethill Wright. 
G.G.(V.) Mr. G Guyon. a 
GOH. L. Mr. G. H. Lewes. W.A. ZL. Mr. Wm. Alford Lloyd.” 
G. J. Dr. George Johnston. W. F. S. Rey. W. F. Short. 
G.J.A. Professor Allman. W. G. Rey. Walter Gregor. 
OFf; Rey. George Tugwell. W. Rev. Wm. Houghton. 
W.M‘C. Mr. W. M‘Calla. 
Al. H. D. Rev. H. H. Dombrain. W.P.C. Mr. W. P. Cocks. 
H. 0. Mr. H. Owen. W. T. Mr. Wm. Thompson (B 
fast). 
JwA. Mr. Joshua Alder. W.7.(W.) Mr. Wm. Thompson (W 
J. C. Dr. John Coldstream. mouth). . 
JOC. G. Miss Gloag. } 


MAGNIFIED. 


PHELLIA PICTA. 
ZOANTHUS SULCATUS. 
EDWARDSIA CARNEA 


. CARYOPHYLLIA (A TENTACLE /. 


5. ZOANTHUS ALDERI. 
6 HALCAMPA MICROPS. 
7. GREGORIA FENESTRATA 
8. PHELLIA MUROCINCTA. 


INDEX. 


Acontia, xxii. 
Actrnta, 174. 
ACTINIA DZ, 171. 
ActTINOLoBA, 11. 
Actryopsis, 150, 170. 
Apamsta, 124. 
Addenda, 355. 
Arprast, 151. 
albida, 264. 

Alderi, 305. 

? Alderi, 354. 
Fema 289. 


Anemone, Cave-dwelling, 88. 
Cloak, 125. 


Fish-mouth, 57. 
Gold-spangled, 119. 
Pallid, 78. 
Parasitic, 112. 


Rosy, 

Sandalled, 73. 
Scarlet-fringed, 41. 
Snake-locked, 105. 


Anemones, enemies of, 168. 
food of, 103, 164, 193, 272. 
voracity of, 215. 

ANGIADZ#, 336. 


ANTHEA D&#, 148. 
ARACHNACTIS, 263. 
_arcticus, 330. 
ASTRZACEA, 8. 
a, 283. 
[aurantiaca], 12. 


Anemone, origin of the name of, 14. 


N.B. The names inclosed within brackets are such as are not adopted in this work. 


AURELIANIA, 282. 
[aurora], 88. 
Authorities, Names of, 358. 


BALANOPHYLLIA, 342. 

Ballii, 198. 

Bantry Bay, riches of, 64. 

[Bai eet], 297. 

Base, 1. 

Beadlet, 175. 

[Beautempsit], 262. 

Bee, mistake of, 213. 

? Bellii, 354. 

bellis, 27. 
bimaculata], 209. 

Ipisertatisl 152. 

Botocera, 185, 351. 

{borealis}, 310. 

Brodricii, 549. 

Bunopes, 189. 

BUNODIDZ, 183. 


callimorpha, 255. 
(candida), 73. 


- Capyea, 279. 


CAPNEADZ, 278. 
Capstone Hill, 31, 74. 
[carciniopados], 125. 
carnea, 259. 
Carpet-coral, 338. 
CaRYOPHYLLIA, 309. 
CARYOPHYLLIACEA, 276. 
Cavity, 4. 

[cerasum}], 175. 
cereus, 160. 

[Cereus], 205. 
CERIANTHUS, 267. 
[chiococca), 175. 
CHRYSOELA, 123. 
chrysanthellum, 247. 
chrysosplenium, 119. 
Churchie, 222. 
Cinclides, xxiii. 
[elavata], 198. 


360 INDEX. 
Cnide, xx. xxvii. EUPSAMMIAD&, 341. 
Cnide, chambered, xxviii. [ explorator }, 88. 
tangled, xxx. Eyelet, 146. 
spiral, xxxi. 
globate, xxxii. [felina], 209. 
coccinea, 84. Senestrata, 146. 
Colour, change of, 180. da], 209. 
Column, 2. | Forskallit], 175. 
Concealment, instinct of, 212. { fragacea], 175. 
[corallina|, 175. 
[coriacea ], 209. Gapelet, 222. 
Corklet, Walled, 135. Gardens of Anemones, 51, 62, 64, 
Mees or 68, 71, 164, 214. 
ainted, 145. USE, 140. 
Latticed, 349. SAAS 190. 
coronata, 202. [gemmacea], 209. 
Corynactis, 288. Geographical distribution, 356. 


Couchit, 152. 

Couchii, 297. 

Crab, Hermit, 115, 128. 

Craspeda, xxi. 

crassicornis, 209. 

Crawling, mode of, 81, 164, 253. 

Creeplet, Sandy, 297. 
Furrowed, 303. 
Wrinkled, 305. 

[Crriprrma], 205. 

Crisp-coral, Scarlet, 330. 

Crock, 280. 

Crookhaven, cavern of, 214. 

Cup-Coral, Devonshire, 310. 
Moray, 317. 
Shetland, 319. 
Winged, 321. 

Cyataina], 309. 

cyathus|, 310. 

2, cylindrica 245. 

Cytista, 123. 


Deeplet, 186. 
Ringed, 

dianthus, 12. 

digitata, 206. 

Disk, 3. 

Division, spontaneous, 19, 46, 66, 

86, 110, 168, 291. 
Durotriz, 338. 


Ecthorzum, xxix. 
Cvamyte 160. 
DWARDSIA, 254. 
‘eta |, 112. 
ine , discharge of, 97, 100, 117, 
225, 314, 347, 223. 


Germs, discharge of, 101, 132, 139, 
238, 273. 

[glandulosa], 190. 

Globehorn, 289. 

[graminea], 175. 

Grecoria, 145. 

2? Greenei, 216. 


Hatcampa, 246. 
, 235. 


[Holsatica), 209. r 
Hopianeta, 337. 
Hormatuia, 218. 


ichthystoma, 57. 

ILYANTHID &, 227. 

ILYANTHUS, 229. 

Imperial, Crimson, 283. 
Yellow, 285. 

? interstincta, 348. 

? intestinalis, 354. 


[judaical, 12. 


[lacerata}, 105. 

nife, tenacity of, 96, 118. 
Dloydii, 268. 

LopHOHELIA, 333. 
[LUCERNA RIA DA}, 348. 


. 


Necklet, 219. 
nivea, 66. 
nodosa}, 219. 


Ocutina], 333. 
OCULINAD 24, 332. 


Opelet, 160. 
Organs, rc ee of, 251. 


fornata], 41. 


palliata, ag 


ipersoa, 300. 
ae 


aaa 316. 


Petit Tor, 31, 68, 136, 260. 
- PHELLIA, 134, 349. 
(Payiiancta |}, 337. 
Pimplet, Gem, 190. 
Diadem, 202. 
Glaucous, 195. 
Red-specked, 198. 
Pintlet, Sand, 247. 
Rock, 252. 


Hy, 12. 
Plumose Anemone, 12. 
Foo ana 348. 
oisoning power, XxXvi. 
prolifera, 334, * 
pteropus, 321. 
Pterygia, xxx. 


INDEX. 361 


Pufilet, painted, 255. 


[purpurea], 176. 

regia, 343. 

rosea, 48. 

[rufa], 175. 

Sacartta, 25. 
subdivision of, 121. 

SAGA RTIA DZ, 9. 


sanguinea, 280. 
[Scotantuus], 254. 
Scoticus, 230. 


Scyputa, 123. 
Screw, xxix. 

senilis 12. 

senilis}, 209. 
Septa, xi. 

sessilis}, 310. 
SrprsraJ, 300. 
Srpponactinia], 236. 
Smithii, 310. 
rysber: what? 50. 

? spectabilis, 226. 
Spermatozoa, 99, 225. 


Sprawlet, 264. 

Star-coral, Scarlet and Gold, 343. 

Stinging power, 136. 

Stomach, protrusion of, 32. 

Srompnta, 221. 

Strawberry, 177. 

Strebla, xxix. 

{sudeata], 160. 

sulcatus, 303. 

Swimming, mode of, 165, 265. 

System, tegumentary, x. 
muscular, x. 
nervous and sensory, xii. 
digestive, xiii. 
circulatory, xvi. 
respiratory, xvi. 
piepbecrort So. xix. 
teliferous, xx. 


[tabella], 175. 

Taxilianus, 317. 

Tears, 205. 

[Templetonii], 27. 

Tenby, Caves of, 61, 70, 92. 
Tentacles, branching of, 109, 168. 


BB 


362 INDEX. 


Tentacles, 3. 

elongation of, 16,34, 44, 70,101. 
Terms, explanation of, 1. 
[Thalia], 195. 
thallia, 195. 
THOR, 122. 
Thulensis, 319. 
Tide-pools, 31, 62, 68, 162, 344. 
Torquay, rocks at, 44. 
triphylla, 243. 
troglodytes, 88. 
Trumplet, 152. 
? tuberculata, 217. 
Tuedia, 186. 
Tuft-coral, 334. 
[ TURBINOLIA |, 323. 
TURBINOLIAD&, 307. 


ULocyatuus, 329. 
[undata], 105. 
undata, 239. 


venusta, 60. 


| ? vermicularis, 274. 
verrucosa], 190. 

vestita), 268. 
Vestlet, 268. 
[viduata], 88. 
viduata, 105. 
[vinosa], 48. 
viridis, 289. 


Wartlet, Dahlia, 209. 
Marigold, 206. 
Watcombe, 32. 
Wedge-coral, Smooth-ribbed, 325. 
Knotted, 326. 
Woolhouse Rocks, 43, 51, 61. 
Wrightit, 326. 


| ? Yarrellit, 354. 
Young, birth of, 36, 46, 71, 80, 99, 
118, 193. 


ZOANTHID &, 295. 
ZOANTHUS, 296. 


ERRATA. 


Page 10, line 4. =e see eye 


Page tl, line 20) 00 ho ess 
Page 12, seccnd line from bottom 
Page 13, line 10 


Page 90, Tine 9 oe: wee ee 


Add the qualifying phrase ‘‘in general,” to 


the character that there is but a single 
mouth-angle and pair of tubercles. 
for ‘‘ Always,” read ‘‘ generally.” 


Read ‘‘ lowest part of each tentacle full 


orange.” 


R. CLAY, PRINTER, BREAD STREET HILL. 


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UNIVERSITY OF TORONTO LIBRARY 


Gosse, Philip Henry 
Actinologia Britannica 


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