58 Dr. J. S. Bowerbank on Mr. Carter's Paper VIII. — Observations on Mr. Carter^ s paper " On two new Sponges from the Afitarctic Sea, and on a new Species of Tethya from Shetland ; together with Observations on the Reproduction of Sponges commencing from Zygosis of the Sponge-animal" By J. S. BOWEKBANK, LL.D., F.R.S.,&c. Mr. Carter's frank and straightforward, though not very courteous style of criticism, emboldens me to adopt a like free-and-easy style in making a few observations on the sub-jects of his paper published in the ' Annals and Magazine of Natural History,' No. 54, June 1872. Let me ask him, then, why he designates his proposed new genus Rossella, without giving us the slightest idea of its generic characters, as the author himself states, p. 415, " All that I have to offer re-^specting this sponge is the description of two forms of spi-cules ;" and these organs are essentially specific characters. If he had described these spicula without going to the extre-mity of founding a new genus and species to account for them, it would, I think, have been quite sufficient for all scientific purposes. The term Rossella does not seem to be a happy one, and would certainly have been perfectly incomprehensible without his reference to Ross. In the first place we have already two genera named Rossia, one of birds and one of mol-lusca ; so that a third founded on the same name appears to be rather superfluous ; and, as constructed by the author, it is very possible that our French friends would understand the genus, from its name, as having been founded in honour of Rossel, the eminent communist who was summarily disposed of some time since by the milit ary tribunals of Paris. Tethya antarctica, Carter. The specific characters of the sponge (upon which its whole history, both actual and imaginary, is based) are given from a single specimen of a gemmule apparently somewhat dis-torted ; but this distortion gives the author an imaginary basal anchoring character, which, however, is quite a new habit among the Tethece in their adult and natural condition. The supposed new species is illustrated in a diagrammatic series of dots and lines, which may afibrd effective recollections to the author, but will certainly serve any other purpose rather than that of leading future students to the identification of the species, which, I have a strong idea, is, in reality, Tethea simillima, from the South Sea, in the museum of the lloyal College of Surgeons, and registered in the catalogue of "Contents of the Museum," part i. 1860, p. 128, B. 176, " from Tongatabue ;" and he will see, in the last paragraph,
VIII.—Observations on Mr. Carter's paper "On two new sponges from the Antarctic Sea, and on a new species of Tethya from Shetland; together with observations on the reproduction of sponges commencing from Zygosis of the Sponge-animal
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