Page:Scientific results HMS Challenger vol 18 part 1.djvu/550

342 1. Spongellipsis lævis, n. sp.

Shell ellipsoidal, with smooth surface, its spongy wall scarcely one-tenth as thick as the minor axis of the inner cavity. Spongy framework very compact, with small meshes, three to six times as broad as the bars. Proportion of the major axis to the minor = 3 : 2.

Dimensions.—Major axis (or length) of the shell 0.36, minor axis (or breadth) 0.24.

Habitat.—Pacific, central area, Station 265, surface.

2. Spongellipsis aspera, n. sp.

Shell ellipsoidal, with rough surface, its spongy wall nearly half as thick as the minor axis of the inner cavity. Spongy framework very loose, with large meshes, ten to twenty times as broad as the bars. Proportion of the major axis to the minor = 4 : 3.

Dimensions.—Length of the shell 0.24, breadth 0.18.

Habitat.—North Pacific, Station 253, surface.

3. Spongellipsis aplysina, n. sp.

Shell nearly cylindrical, with rough surface, its spongy wall about one-fourth as thick as the minor axis of the internal cavity. Spongy framework loose, with large meshes, four to eight times as broad as the bars. Proportion of both axes = 6 : 1. (Similar to a spongy cylinder of Aplysina.)

Dimensions.—Length of the shell 0.3, breadth 0.05.

Habitat.—North Atlantic, Station 64, surface.

Definition.—Surface of the shell covered with radial spines.

4. Spongellipsis setosa, n. sp.

Shell ellipsoidal, covered with numerous (sixty to eighty) thin, bristle-shaped, radial spines, about half as long as the major axis. Spongy framework loose, with large meshes, ten to twenty times as broad as the bars. Minor axis of the inner cavity twice as long as the thickness of the spongy wall. Proportion of both axes = 5 : 3.

Dimensions.—Length of the shell 0.2, breadth 0.12.

Habitat.—South Atlantic, Station 325, surface.

5. Spongellipsis spinosa, n. sp.

Shell nearly cylindrical, covered with numerous thorns and thirty to forty larger conical radial spines, somewhat longer than the major axis. Spongy framework compact, with small meshes, four