SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM Bulletin 84 A CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF OPHIURANS OF THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM RENE KCEHLER Professor of Zoology, University of Lyon, France WASHINGTON GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE 1914 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM Issued April 9, 1914. ADVERTISEMENT. The scientific publications of the United States National Museum consist of two series, the Proceedings and the Bulletins. The Proceedings, the firet volume of which was issued in 1878, are intended primarily as a medium for the publication of original, and usually brief, papers based on the collections of the National ^luseum, presenting newly acquired facts in zoology, geology, and anthropology, including descriptions of new forma of annuals, and revi^sions of lunited groups. One or two volumes are issued annually and distributed to libraries and scientific organizations. A limited number of copies of each paper, in pamphlet form, is distributed to specialists and others interested in the different subjects as soon as printed. The date of publication is prmted on each paper, and these dates are also recorded in the tables of contents of the volume. The Bulletins, the first of which was issued in 1875, consist of a series of sepa- rate publications comprismg chiefly monographs of large zoological groups and other general systematic treaties (occasionally in several volumes), faunal works, reports Tlie of expeditions, and catalogues of type-specimens, special collections, etc. majority of the volumes are octavos, but a quarto size has been adopted in a few instances in which large plates were regarded as indispensable. Since 1902 a series of octavo volumes containing papers relating to the botanical collections of the Museum, and known as the Contributions from the National Iler- harium, has been published as bulletins. The present work forms No. 84 of the Bulletin series. Richard Rathbun, Assistant Secretary, Smithsonian Institution, In charge of the United States National Museum. Washington, D. C., February 27, 191J^. m TABLE OF CONTENTS. ' FagA. Introduction ^ Family Ophiodermatidae ^ Ophioderma appressa (Say) 3 brevicauda Liitken ^ brevispina (Say) * cinerea Miiller and Troschel •• 6 rubicunda Liitken 7 variegata Liitken ' clypeata, new species 7 species ° Ophiarachnella angulata (Lyman) 9 Bathypectinura tessellata (Lyman) 9 Family Ophiolepidie 9 Opliiolepis elegans Liitken 9 paucispina (Say) ^^ Ophiozona impressa (Liitken) H nivea var. compta Verrill H Ophiomastus secundus Lyman 11 Ophioglypha convexa Lyman 12 coronata, new species 12 elevata Lyman 16 falcifera Lyman 1^ fasciculata Lyman 1' inornata Lyman 18 irrorata Lyman 18 lepida L)-maQ 20 Ijungmani Lyman 21 lymani I,juugman 22 robusta (Ayres) 23 sarsii (Liitken) 23 BculptiUs Lyman 24 Ophiomusium eburneum Lyman 24 lymani AV)'\'ille Thomson 26 planum Lyman 26 rugosum, new species 26 eculptum Verrill 28 serratum Lyman 29 testudo Lyman 29 vaUdum Ljungman 31 armigerum Lj-man 31 Ophiomisidium, new genus 32 gpeciosum, new species 34 pulchellum (W>-\-ille Thomson) 37 Ophiocten haatatum Lyman 37 VI TABLE OF CONTENTS. Page. Family Amphiuridae 38 Ophiopholis aculeata (Linnaus) 38 Ophioetigma isacanthum (Say) 38 Hemipholis elongata (Say) 39 Ophiactis asperula (Philippi) 40 dispar (Verrill) 40 duplicata (Lyman) 40 miilleri Lutken 41 savignyi (Miiller and Troechel) 41 Amphilepis norvegica (Ljimgman) 42 Ophiopliragmus wundermani (Lyman) 42 Ophiocnida filogranea Lyman 42 loveni (Ljungman) 42 scabriuscula (Lutken) 43 Amphilimna olivacea (Lyman) 43 Ophionereiq reticulata (Say) 44 squamuloea, new name 44 Ophiopsila riisei Liitken 45 maculata (Verrill) 45 Amphiura flexuosa Ljungman 45 latispina Ljungman 48 rathbuui, new species 50 kinbergiensis, new species 52 palmeii Lyman 55 fibulata, new species 56 kiikenthali Kcehler 59 complanata Ljungman 59 otteri Ljungman 61 grandisquama Lyman 63 stimpsoni Lutken 64 magellanica Lyman 05 diducta, new species 65 Amphipholis squamata (Delle Chiaje) 66 tenuispina Ljungman 66 gracillima (Stimpson) 66 Amphiodia erecta, new species 67 lutkeni (Ljungman) 09 pulchella (Lyman) 70 Amphioplus abdita (Verrill) 71 cuneata (Lyman) 71 Family Ophiomycetidae 72 Ophiomyces mirabilis Lyman 72 Family Ophiacanthidse 72 Ophiacantha aculeata Verrill 74 anomala Sars 77 aspera Lyman 80 bidentata (Retzius) 80 echinulata Lyman 81 enopla Lyman 83 fraterna Verrill 83 granulifera Verrill 86 ILneata Koebler 87 pentacrinus Lutken 88 meridionalis Lyman 91 TABLE OF CONTENTS. VU Family Ophiacanthida;—Continued. Page. Ophiacantha vepratica Lyman 94 viv-ipara Ljungman 96 (Ophiopristis) permixta, new species 96 (Ophiotreta) affinis, new species 99 (Ophiotreta) sertala (Lyman) 102 (Ophiotreta) valencicnncsi Lyman 102 Ophiomitrella americana, new species 103 levis, new species 105 tevipellis (Lyman) 106 porrecta, new species 107 Ophiomitra robusta, new species 108 valida Lyman 110 Ophiopora bartletti (Lyman) Ill Ophiolimna littoralis Koehler Ill Ophioleda minima Koehler Ill Ophiotrema gracilis, new species 112 Ophiocamax austera Verrill 114 fasciculata Lyman 114 Ophiologimus socundus, now species 115 Ophiochiton grandis Verrill 116 Family Ophiocomidte 116 Ophiocoma alexandri Lyman 116 echinata (Lamarck) 117 pumila LUtken 117 riisei Liitken 118 Family Ophiothridd;i> 118 Ophiothrix angulata (Say) 118 lineata Lyman 120 oerstedii Liitken 121 suensonii Liitken 121 con^oluta, new species 122 Family Ophioscolecidse 124 Ophioscolex glacialis Miiller and Troschel 124 Ophioleptoplax atlantica, new species 124 Ophiobyrsella quadrispinosa, new species 125 Family Ophiochondridae 127 Ophiochondrus granulatus, new species 127 armatus (Koehler) 129 Family OphiomjTddse 132 Ophiomyxa flaccida (Say) 132 Ophiodera stimpsonii (Lyman) 132 Family Hemieuryalidae 133 Sigsbcia coniiera, new species 133 sexradiata, new species 135 Fanaily Astrochemidae 137 Astrochema elongatum, new species 137 Bibliographical References 141 Explanation of Plates 143 Supplementary list of West Indian Ophiurans 147 Index 167 A CONTRIBUTION TO THE STUDY OF THE OPHIURANS OF THE UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. By Rexe Kcehler. Professor of Zoology, Universiti/ of Lyon, France. INTRODUCTION. The United States National Museum has been kind enough to entrust to me the study of a considerable collection of ophiurans commg chiefly from the Caribbean Sea, and including both littoral and deep-sea forms.' Thia collection contains a certain number of new species additional to those already discovered by the United States Coast Survey steamer Blal-e in the same waters. Among the species which are already known, many are very common and offer no special interest, but there are also a good many others the charactei-s of which have not been indicated by the authors m a satisfactory manner, so that I have found it necessary to study them in detail. Among them, I have particularly devoted my attention to the species of AmpMura and Ofhiacantha, both genera being understood in the widest sense. It seemed to me useful not to limit my observations to the species repre- sented in the collection which had been entrusted to me, but to extend them to certain neighbormg forms, the knowledge of which was likely to help toward an understanding of the former. I will describe and illustrate these forms in the present paper and I think that I shall not be reproached with having made it too long through such additions. For such a comparative study, I had to have recourse to the examination of a certain number of type-specimens, the most important and most numerous of which had been described either by Liitken or by Ljungman. These types, which are kept in the Stockholm Museum and in the Copenhagen Museum were most kindly communicated to me by Professor Theel and my very good friend Doctor Mortensen, to whom I beg to tender my best thanks for their kindness. The United States National Museum communicated to me also a few of Professor VerriU's species. The collection which has been handed to me includes in all 129 species, of which 24 are new. Here is a list of them: Family OPfflODERMATID.E. Ophioderma appressa (Say). Ophioderma variegata Lutken. Ophioderma brevicauda Lutken. Ophioderma clypeala, new species. Ophioderma bremspina (Say). Ophioderma, species. Ophioderma cinerea Miiller and Troschel. Ophiaraehnella angulata (LjTnan). Ophioderma rubicunda Lutken. Batkypectinura tessellata (Lyman). ' To complete the published records of West Indian ophiurans in the United States National Museum a list is appended of specimena identified by the Hon. Theodore Lyman but never reported on. BULLETIN UNITED STATES NATIONAL MUSEUM. Family OPHIOLEPID^E. OpMoUpis elegans Liltken. Ophioglypha robusta (Ayres). Ophiolepis paucispina (Say). Ophioglypha sarsii (Liitken). OpMozona impressa (Ltitken). Ophioglypha sculptilis Lyman. Ophiozona nivea var. compta Verrill. Ophiomusium ehurneum Lyman. Ophiomastus seniiidus Lyman. Ophiomusium lymani Wyville Thomson. Ophioglypha convexa Lyman. Ophiomusium planum Lyman. Ophioglypha coronata, new species. Ophiomusium rugosum, new species. Ophioglypha elevata Lyman. Ophiomusium sculptum Verrill. Ophioglypha faldfera Lyman. Ophiomusium serratum Lyman. Ophioglypha fasciculata Lyman. Ophiomusium testudo Lyman. Ophioglypha inornata Lyman. Ophiomusium validum Ljungman. Ophioglypha irrorata Lyman. Ophiomusium armigerum Lyman. Ophioglypha lepida Lyman. Ophiomisidiuvi speciosum, new species. Ophioglypha Ijiingmani Lyman. Ophiomisidium pulchellum (Wyville Thomson). Ophioglypha lymani Ljungman. Ophiocten hasiatum Lyman. Family