prellaiinary diagnoses of new cephalopods from

PRELLAIINARY DIAGNOSES OF NEW CEPHALOPODS FROM THE WESTERN ^ATLANTIC.

By

S. Stillman Berry, OfRedlands,California.

The

ceplialopods, wholly pelagic forms, which were obtained

by

the UnitedStates Coastand GeodeticSurvey steamer Bache during her cruise in the western North Atlantic in the early

months

of 1914, were submitted to the writer for study and report

by

the Bureauof Fisheries.

The work was

begunatonce,but

was

abruptly interrupted

by

the circumstances attendant

upon

the entry and participation oftheUnitedStatesin the

World

War, anditsresump- tion proved impossible until last year.

As

it appears that the publicationofthefinalreport

upon

thecollection asawholeislikely tobe yet further delayed,^itseemsdesirable topublishapreliminary account of such

new

forms,

some

^of

them

of considerableintrinsic interest, as have thus far

come

to light in the courseofexamina- tion ofthematerial.

More

detailed descriptions andfigures ofeach species willappearin connection with the ultimate complete report above referred to.

The

present figures arefrom drawings

by

J. Stanley Ferguson.

CHIROTEUTHOIDES, newgenus.

Small, loliginiform oegopsids, having the anteriormantle margin

free, the funicular locking cartilages elongate and simple.

Body

elongate, continued between andpast thefins as a minute, needle- like process, probably bearing accessory fins or

membranes when

entire. Ventralarmsgreatly developed as in CJdroteutMsand allied genera, thethird pairthereverse.

Arm

suckersintwo rowsthrough- out.

Type.

—

Chiroteuthoides hastula,

new

species.

CHIROTEUTHOIDES HASTULA, newspecies.

Plate16,fig.3.

Diagnosis.

— ^{Body more}

^orlessC5dindrical, narrow, tapering quite suddenlyandrapidlyjust in front ofthefinstoaminute,needle-like aciculum, consistingmainly of the very attenuate posterior portion of the gladius, which extends between the fins and

some

distance past them. Fins nearlycircular, aboutone-thirdaslongas thesac- likepartofthe mantle, strongly indentedposteriorly; anteriormargins

ProceedingsU.S. National Museum.Vol.58-No. 2335.

294 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM.

less arcuate than the posterior and scarcely notched; traces of a possible"accessoryfin" or

membrane

evidenton themarginsofthe brokenneedle-hke process described above.

Head

small, rounded,

much

compressed dorso-ventrally. Funnel large, thin walled, inflated,reachingabout tothe centerofthe head.

Funnelcartilageslongandnarrow,slightlywidestposteriorly,thence tapering to a point in front; their grooves simple. Eyes large.

Regionofheadinfrontofeyes leadingto armsstout, four-angled.

Arms

well developed; the fourthpair, whichare

much

thelargest andlongest, about two-thirdsas long as the

body

(exclusive offins

and needle-like process), strongly keeled and bearing two rows of small suckersfor their entire length, thedistal onesbecomingvery minute; dorsal andsecondarmssubequal, about half aslong as the Tentrals; third arms strongly compressed, keeled, and excessively small,beingbetweenone-thirdandone-halfaslongastheneighboring secondpair. Suckers minute, in two rows throughout.

Tentaclestalksaboutasthick asthesecond arms; clubsamputated and theirstructurehenceunknown.

No

luminousorgansevident.

Total length (exclusive of tentacles), 16.5

mm.;

lengthofmantle (dorsal), 10-l-mm.

Type.—Cat.No. 338693, U.S.N.M.[S.S.B.6371.

Type localify.~200~0 m., station 10187, latitude 28° 59' N., longitude 69°22' W.; February23, 1914.

Remarks.

— The

inconspicuous specimen

upon

which the

new

genus and specieshereproposedarefoundedhasproven sodifficult to ahgnwithany ofthe described oegopsids thatindependenttreat-

ment

hasseemedtobeunavoidable.

Even

itsfamilyrelationshipsare not altogether certain. In

many ways

ithas quite the aspect of a Ohiroteuthis, particularly in the enormously developed ventral arms and the extreme posterior attenuation of the conus of the gladiiis,

butthepresenceofstalkedolfactory tuberclesisyetto])eestablished, and thefunnelcartilagesare farfrom tj^picallychiroteuthoid.

The

absurdlyminutearmsofthethirdpairare similar to those of noothercephalopod withwhichI

am

acquainted.

ENOPTROTEUTHIS,

newgenus.

Small loliginiform oegopsids having the anterior mantle margin

free, the funicular cartilages being

somewhat

ovate.

Body

con- tinuedposteriorlybetween the enormoussemicircularfinsas a long, extremely slender, needlelike process covering the very attenuate cone of the ghidius, without accessory fins.

Head

prolonged in front oftheeyesinto asquarish snout. Eyeslarge,onstoutstalks.

Arms

moderate, not strongly dissimilar. Tentacles with a minute club bearingbut fewsuckers (intwo rows inpresentmaterial).

Type.

—

Enoptroteuthisspinicauda,

new

species.

2335.

NEW CEPHAL0P0D8 FROM WESTERN ATLANTIC—

BERRY.

295

ENOFTKOTfiUTHIS SPINICAIJDA, newspecies.

Plate16,fig.6.

Diagnosis.

— ^Body

^{very short, vasiform, swollen just behind the}

middle, thence tapering abruptly^to continue between and past the fins and as far again as a delicate, needlelike process consisting principally of the excessively produced and attenuated posterior prolongation ofthe coneofthegladius. Fins almostperfectlysemi- circular,buttheir anteriorandposteriormarginsalittleflattened so that together theyform an immense,^{nearlycircular,transverseellipse,} halfagain aslong as the

body

^proper.

No

^{evidenttracespresentof} an accessory

membrane

offin.

Head

fairly large, oblong, flattened, producedⁱⁿ front as a long, four-sided, snout-likeprocess leadingtothe arms. Funnelmoderate, the funnel cartilages

more

or less ovate. Eyes enormous, pushed forward onshort,heavy,columnarstalks,composedmainly,^itwould seem, ofthe

immense

optic ganglia.

Arms

moderate, thelateral pairs

somewhat

the longest (perhaps two-thirds aslongas the

body

proper),theformulaof relativelength being 2, 3,4, 1, or 2, 3, 4

=

1. Suckersin two rows, quite large in proportiontothe arms.

Tentacles about twice as long as the arms, the club minute, not expanded, bearing butfour suckers arrangedin two rows, the three proximalones

much

the largest.

No

luminousorgansevident.

Total length, about 25

mm.;

length of mantle (dorsal), about 17

mm.

Type.—Ciit.No. 338694,U.S.N.M.[S.S.B.638].

Typelocality.—75-0 m.,station 10188,latitude 28° 51' N., longi- tude 70°08' W.; February24, 1914.

Remarlcs.

—

This extraordinarylittlesquidpossesses acombination of very puzzling features. It has a manifest resemblance ⁱⁿ its generalfacies to

many

^ofthe Chiroteuthidae,andthat therelationship is a

more

thanfancied one is indicated

by

the formof the locking cartilageswhichdoesnotsupportitsreference to

any

other family aswell. Nevertheless there are discrepancies, as thetentacles

show

but two rows of suckers on the club, and the ventral arms fail to exhibitthepredominancesogeneraUycharacteristic of theseorgans inthisfamfly.

The

stalked eyesare also quite peculiar in structure.

Genus

TEUTHOWENIA

Chun, 1910.

AscoTEUTHls,newsubgenus.

Cranchiidsofmoderatesize,with stronglyinflatedmantle,showing evident resemblance to Teuthowenia s. s., butdiffering in the

much

larger, almost semicircular fhis, funnel shorter than the strongly

296 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM.

^{vol. 58.}

developedeyestalks,and the factthat thefirstandsecond

arm

pairs aredistinctlyshorterthanthethirdandfourth.

The

arms andtenta- cles are well developed, the latter very long, with very minute suckers in four rows on the distal portion.

The mouth

region is large andstrongly protruding.

Type.

—

Teuthowenia (Ascoteuthis) corona,

new

species.

TEUTHOWENIA(ASCOTEUTHIS) CORONA,newspecies.

Plate16,fig.7.

Diagnosis.

— ^A

moderate-sized cranchiid with an inflated, cask- shaped or bag-shaped body, tapering rapidly to a sharp point be- tween and slightly past the small,

more

or less semicircular fins.

Texture ofmantle membranous,fairlytough.

Head

inconspicuous, pushing out in front as a stout, columnar snout. Eyes large,rounded, theirstalks stout and well developed,

when

entire considerably longer than the funnel; optic ganglia enormous; ocular photophoresdifficultto distinguish inmaterial at hand. Funnellarge, ^vithawideaperture;

when

extendedreaching barely past thebaseofthe arms.

Arms

welldeveloped,keeled, theirformulaof relativelengthmani- festly3,4, 2,1; thirdpairdistinctly largestandlongest,beingabout one-fifth as long as the mantle. Suckers small, two-rowed.

Um-

brellawanting.

Tentacles very long; club distinctly keeled, otherwise not ex- panded, and bearing four rows of very minute suckers, which con- tinuefor anuncertain distance

down

thestalk.

Buccal region strongly raised and protruding between the arms likea continuationofthe snout.

Total length, about57

mm.;

lengthof mantle (doi-sal), 27

mm.;

lengthoffins, 4

mm.

Type.—Cat. No.338695,U.S.N.M. [S.S.B.618].

Typelocality.

—100-0

m., station 10173, latitude 32°27' N., longi- tude 68°^22'W.; February4, 1914.

Remarks.

—

This interesting cranchiid is evidently nearer to Teuthowenia than it is to any of the other described genera, the differencessofar noticed beingof such a nature that itis here de- scribed asrepresenting a

new

subgenus ofthe oldergroup. It has, however, a certain aspect of its own, recalling Chun's remarkable Crystalloteuthis in

some

respects,while thefinsaresoentirely different fromthose of the typical Teuthoweniabothinshape and

manner

of attachmenttothemantlethatit ispossiblethatAscoteuthis

some day

will haveto be accorded fullgeneric standing. Teuthowenias. s. is likewiserepresented in theBachecollections,

making

possible direct comparisonofthe two.

NO. 2335.

NEW CEPHALOPODS FROM WESTERN ATLANTIC—

^BERRY.

²⁹⁷

Genus

SANDALOPS

Chun, 1906.

SANDALOPS PATHOPSIS,newspecies.

Plate16,^fig.1.

Diagnosis.—

A

^{minute cranchiid with an} elongate, cylindro-conic, almost taoniform body, tapering^atfirstgradually, then

more

rapidly to a point between the fins. Texture of mantle membranous, ^the gladiusevidentasa distinct hyaline streak along thedorsum. Fins minute, each subcircular and about as broad as long; strongly con- stricted at base, where they are distinctlyseparated

by

the hyaline conus.

Head

roughly quadrangular, stronglycompressed dorso-ventrally;

in front passing into a stocky but well-developed columnar snout.

Eyes large, strongly constricted just below the oval bulbus; their transparent stalks enormously elongate, the entire apparatus per- hapsfour timesaslongasthe snoutandoften grotesquely contorted.

A

subcircularbrownish

body

nearly covering the ventralendofeach bulbus is possibly the photogenic organ. Funnel large,

when

ex- tendedreaching atriflepast the base of theeyestalks.

Arms

practically vestigial throughout, bearing hardly

more

than a single pair ofsuckers each; ventralarms andtheirsuckersscarcely distinguishable.

Tentacles long, stout; their clubs minute, hardly expanded and only very weakly keeled. Suckers onclub small, in four rows, yet relativelyfewin

number

owingtotheminutedimensions^ofthe club

;

passing into atwo-rowedcondition onthe carpus, they continue ⁱⁿ rather widely spaced pairs to the baseof thestalk.

Totallength,about 15.5

mm.;

lengthofmantle (dorsal), 8

mm.

Type.—

Cat. No. 338696,U.S.N.M.[S.S.B.624].

Typelocality.—

nOO-0

m.. Station 10166,latitude32°33' N., lon- gitude 72° ^14' W.; January30, 1914.

Remarks.

—

^{Thereare sixspecimensof thismost} absurd appearing littlecephalopod inthecollection, allvery constantinthe characters described.

From

Chun's strange S. melancholicus, the type of the genus, they differin the conspicuously longereyestalks,

more

regu- larly ovaleyes, decidedly elongate and tapering body, and thepres- enceof

weak

keels onthetentacle clubs. Possiblynoneismature.

SANDALOPS ECTHAMBUS,newspecies.

Plate16,fig.2.

Diagnosis.

— A

cranchiid of small size, with an elongate,

more

or less inflated, cylindro-conic body, tapering at first graduafly, then

more

rapidly, toa pointbetweenthefins. Textureof mantle

mem-

branous, thegladiusevident asa yellowish streakⁱⁿthe mediodorsal line. Fins rather small, each probably subcircular and about as

298 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM.

^vol.58.

broadas long; slightly constricted atbase; barely separated

by

the hyaline conus.

Head

small,rounded, well elevated dorsally, passinginfront into a stocky, slightly tapering snout of only moderate length. Eyes large,distinctlyconstrictedbetweenthelarge, spherical opticganglia and the almost spindle-shaped, strongly ventrally produced bulbi;

eyestalks quite stout, transparent, larger than and about twi':-e as long as thesnout. Ocularphotophores not yetcertainly identified.

Funnel moderatelylarge,reachingjustpast thebaseofthe eyestalks.

Arms

normally developed, but small, the third pair, which are largest, but littlelonger than thesnout; formula ofrelative length, 3, 4, 2, 1. Suckers small, round, the two rows well separated, but the suckers rathercrowded inthe row.

Tentacles long and stout, their clubslong, slender, tapering, and not expanded exceptfor a rather wide, delicate,

membranous

keel on the distal portion. Suckers small, numerous, in four rows on club, whence they pass on the carpus into two zigzag rows which extendperhapshalf

way down

thestalk.

Totallength, about43

mm,;

lengthof mantle (dorsal),22

mm.

Type.—

Cat. No. 338697,U.S.N.M. [S.S.B.6271.

Type locality.—100-0 m.. Station 10208, North of Little

Bahama

Bank;

March

21, 1914.

Remarlcs.

—

This strange cranchiid differs from S. melancliolicus

Chun

inthe strongly keeledtentacle clubs, moreelongate andtaper- ingbody,relatively largerfins, and the

somewhat

difl'erentshape of the eyes.

From

the preceding species it is readily separable

by

reason of itsshortereyestalks,strong ventral elongationofthe bulbi oftheeyes, strongkeelsonthetentacle clubs, andlargerfins.

AlthoughtheoriginaldiagnosisofSandalopshastobe considerably modified to permit the reference to it of the two species here de- scribed, they appear to

show

better affinity with this than other cranchiid genera. Indeed one canfeel

by

no

means

confident that

& fullontogenetic series will not

show

all three ofthe

named

forms to bemerely developmentalstages ofa single species.

To

proceed, however, on such a gratuitous assumption, unsupported

by

any direct evidencefrom the specimens themselves, would certainh', in view of the

many

discrepancies manifested, be very unwise. Sepa- rate treatment isobviouslj' thesafest planfor the present.

Genus PYRGOPSISde Rochebrune, 1884.

PYRGOPSIS LEMUR,newspecies.

Plate16,fig.5.

Diagnosis.

—

^Acranchiid ofsmallsize, with an elongate, spindle- shaped body, most inflated near the middle, thence tapering to a sharppoint between andslightlypast the large,nearly semicircular fins. Textureofmantlemembranous, the gladius evidentas ahj^a-

KO. 2335.

NEW CEPHALOPODS FROM WESTERN ATLANTIC— BERRY. 299

line streak in the mid-dorsalline; a longitudinal series ofcartilagi-

noustuberclesoneachside,ventrally,extendingbackfromthe points ofattachmentof the mantle. Finswith anterior andposteriorout- lines

somewhat

flattened, but broadly adherent to the tip of the

body

so that together theyforma robust transverseellipse.

Head

small, conical, prolonged in front as a long, columnar, ob- scurely quadrangular, ventrallyflattened snout. Eyes of moderate

size, pyriform, projected into a point forward and ventrally, dis- tinctly constrictedbetweenthe bulbus and the large rounded optic ganglion; eyestalks long, stout,cyhndrical, transparent, notquite as long as the snout; bulbus withanoblique seriesoffour small pho- tophores onthe inner ventral aspect, and there arepossiblyothers.

Funnellong, reachingwellpast the base oftheeyes.

Arms

smallandslender, theirformulaof relativelength3,4

=

2, 1;

the third pair fully three times as long as the second and fourth, which to an onlyless degree than the dorsals aresmall and weakly developed. Suckerssmall, in twofairly well-separated rows.

Tentacles long,

much

stouter and

more

robust than the arms;

their clubs butslightly expanded, keeled, and bearing fourrows of suckers, the two median of which on the expanded portion of the club areconspicuously the ^largest; two rows of suckers, greatly re-

duced in size, continuing

down

the distal half or two-thirds of the tentacle stalk.

Totallength, 55

mm.;

lengthof mantle (dorsal) 32

mm.

Type.—

C&t. No. 338698, U.S.N.M. [S.S.B.582].

Type locality.—Suri&ce, Station 10161, latitude 35° 27' N., longitude 73° ^14' W., East of Cape ^Hatteras; January 28, 1914.

Remarks.

—

This species seems without doubt to be most nearly allied to the Chilean P. sclmeeMgeni Pfeffer, and

may

conceivably represent onlyanAtlantic raceofthe

same

stock, butthe published descriptions of the latter indicate that certain differences exist.

Chief

among

these are, in the Chilean species, the shorter funnel, not reaching to the base of the eyestalks, the decidedly triangular fins (althoughtheirshape asdescribedisno doubtpartlydueto the conditions ofpreservation), the alleged distribution of suckers only along the distal third of the distinctly shorter tentacle stalks, and therelativelyshorterarms, even the third pair ofwhichisexceeded in length

by

the snout.

Genus

POLYPUS

Schneider, 1784.

POLYPUS SCORPIO,newspecies.

Plate16,fig.4.

Diagnosis.

— ^Body

^small, ovate ^to pyriform, rounded orrounded- conic behind. Mantle opening ample, extending to a point well backofandjustbelowthe level ofthepupil.

300 PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL MUSEUM.

^vol.58.

Head

distinctly narrower than the body, but wide and strongly flattened; delimited from the

body by

anuchal ridge, and covered

by

a loose, transparentskin. Eyes large and conspicuous. Funnel large, thick-walled; freeonly at thetip, whichextends barelyto the baseof the ventral arms.

Arm

^formula 3, 2, 4, 1; dorsal arms small and slender, about a thirdshorter thanthe mantle; ventralarms butlittlelonger;second

arm

pair about a fourth longerthan the mantle andnearly twiceas longasthedorsalarms. Third arms

more

than twice as long as the secondpairand

much

largerand thicker,increasingslightly indiam- eterfromthe base to near the middle, thence diminishing gradually until atthetips they taperoffquite abruptly;

somewhat

compressed dorso-ventrally but not keeled. First three orfour suckers at base ofarmsinasingle (sometimesweaklyzigzag) row;remainingsuckers in two rows, large, circular, well elevated. Umbrella thin, delicate;

very short, especially between the arms of the dorsal and ventral pairs.

Surface nearlysmooth, but dorsal regionof

body

showing a very minute,scattering,granularpapillationundersufficientmagnification.

Colorin alcoholgrayishbuff, except theeyes,whicharedarkbluish or slaty, with a golden iridescence around the pupil. Chromato- phoresfew and scattered, themost conspicuous being asingle pair near themedianlineonthe headjust infrontof the nuchalregion.

Totallength, 22

mm.;

lengthof mantle (dorsal) 4.5

mm.

Tijpe.—Csi.i. No. 338699,U.S.N.M.[S.S.B.682J.

TypeLocality.— 1^-0 m., station 10204, offBiscayneBay, Florida;

March

20, 1914.

Remarks.—

Th.&only species to which this small but verybizarre little octopus seems at all similar is the Octopusgracilis of Verrill (1884).

The

present specimens differmanifestly from Verrill's de- scription in several particulars, notably the stillgreaterenlargement andlengtheningof the third

arm

pair,the relativeshortnessof the dorsal arms, and the minute dorsalpapillation.

Even

though they eventuallyprovetobeconspecific, however,itseemssafe toapply a

new name

totheBache species, asthat chosen

by

Verrill

was

utilized overthirtyyears previously

by Eydoux

andSouleyet(1852), although theirspeciesis

now

referred tothegenus Tremoctopus.

EXPLANATION OF PLATE

16.

FiQ. 1. Sandalops pathopsis. Ventral aspectof type.

2.Sandalops ecthambus. Ventral aspect oftype.

3. Chiroteuthoides hastula. Ventral aspectoftype.

4. PolypusScorpio. Ventral aspectoftype.

5.Pyrgopsis lemur. Ventral aspect oftype.

6. Enoptroteuthis spinicauda. Ventral aspectoftype.

7. Teuthowenia(Ascoteuthis) corona. Ventral aspectoftype.

U.S.NATIONAL MUSEUM PROCEEDINGS,VOL.58 PL. 16

New

Cephalopodsfrom theWesternAtlantic.

For explanationof plate seepage300.