Report on the zoological collections made in the Indo-Pacific Ocean ...

CETTSTACEA. 245margin ; the wrist smooth, its inner margin angulated, the anglewith a fringe of long stiff hairs, its anterior margin and outer andupper surface have also some hairs ; the palm is scarcely longer thanvertically deep, its upper margin (and that of the mobile finger atbase) closely fringed with long stiff hairs, and there arc some shorterhairs on the lower margin ; the outer surface is smooth, with a fewscattered punctulations ; the fingers are scarcely longer than thepalm, denticulated on their inner margins and acute at their apices,with scarcely any intramarginal hiatus. The ambulatory legs areslender and somewhat hairy ; the tarsi styliform, straight, and longerthan the penultimate joints. Colour (in spirit) yellowish white.Length of carapace about 2k lines (5 millim.), breadth about 3 lines(6| millim.).The single specimen (a female) was dredged in the Arafura Sea,32-36 fms. (No. 160).From the preceding species (C. arcuata) this form is at once distinguishedby the very differently shaped, smooth, and transversecarapace, longer basal antennal joint, &c.Ceratoplax ciliata, Stimpson, the type of the genus, from theN. China Sea, has the body transversely semicylindrical, palm ofchelipedes with depressed granulations on its outer surface, &c.M. A. Milne-Edwards has described a genus and species (Notonyxnitidits) from New Caledonia*, which in many of its characters andin external appearance is very like Ceratoplax'i lavis. It is describedand figured, however, as having the carapace, eyes, andchelipedes entirely glabrous, there is apparently no tooth on theupper margin of the arm, and the dactyli of the ambulatory legs arecarinatcd ; the carapace is more quadrate, and the merus of the outermaxillipedes longer, not transverse, with the antero-external angleless prominent.89. Metopograpsus messor (Forskal).This common and widely distributed species is represented in thefirst collection by a male and female from Port Molle, obtained onthe beach (No. 95), and two males from Port Curtis, 0-19 fms.(Nos. 85-92) ; and in the second collection by a small female fromthe beach at Thursday Island (No. 167) and a male and female fromWest Island, Prince of AVales Channel (No. 349). Specimens arein the British Museum from Pacing Island, Port Curtis, obtainedunder stones at low water (J. Macijillivray, H.M.S. ' Eattlesnake ').The other Australian localities whence there are specimens in theMuseum collection are :—Port Essington ;Nicol Bay, N.W. Austraha{M. du Boulay) ; Keppel Islands, from mud among mangroveroots(J. MacqUli'vray) ;Moreton Bay {purchased of Wurunch) ; andShark Bay, W. Australia {F. M. Itayner, H.M.S. Herald ' ').Specimens also are in the collection of the Museum from :he Gulfof Suez {R. MacAndrew, Esq.) ; Red Sea {Major J. Burton) ; Mada-* Nouv. Archiv. Mus. Hist. Nat. ix. pp. 268, 2B9, pi. xii. fig. 3 (1872).