spines rather long; first cirrus, anterior ramus longer by only about
two segments than the posterior ramus; second cirrus with anterior
ramus, with very broad transverse rows of bristles; spine-bearing
surfaces considerably protuberant; caudal prominences smooth, rounded.

_Size._--The largest specimen which I have seen had a capitulum two
inches in length; the longest, including the peduncle, was sixteen
inches.

_Colours._--Calcareous valves already described. Edges of the orifice
bright scarlet orange; basal edges of the scuta, and sometimes of all
the valves, with a torn border of orange membrane. Interspaces between
the valves dull orange-brown. Peduncle darkish purplish-brown, with the
lower part sometimes pale; chitine membrane itself tinted orange; in
young specimens, peduncle pale, the colour first appearing in the
uppermost part, close under the capitulum; this upper part is often
darker than the other parts, and never orange-coloured, as in _L.
Hillii_ and _L. anserifera_. _Sack_ internally dark purplish
lead-colour, sometimes with a tinge of orange, darkest under the
growing edges of the valves; body of animal pale purplish lead-colour.
The four posterior cirri blackish purple; the second, and often the
third cirrus, appear as if the colour had been laterally abraded off;
these latter cirri have sometimes a tinge of orange. In very young
specimens, the cirri are only barred with purple. The ova and the
contents of the ovarian tubes are of a beautiful azure blue, becoming
yellow in spirits.

In museums a vast amount of difference is seen in the colours of this
species, caused by the method of preparation: if dried without having
been in spirits, and subsequently kept dry, the orange tint round the
orifice is preserved; if kept long in spirits, this is quite lost; but
sometimes in specimens in spirits the colour of the membrane of peduncle
is preserved and rendered pinker. The colours of the sack and animal are
either quite discharged or rendered extremely dark. The valves
themselves also often become more opaque. In some specimens well
preserved in spirits, the sack and cirri were purplish-brown or
lead-colour, tinted with dirty green, or orange, or bright yellow, or
brick-red.

_General Remarks._--From the foregoing description it will be seen how
extremely variable almost every part of this species is. I find, in the
British Museum, ten distinct specific names given by Dr. Leach to
different varieti