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Notes on a Sapphirina and a Salpa caught off the Cape of Good Hope

McCance, John 1884 , 'Notes on a Sapphirina and a Salpa caught off the Cape of Good Hope' , Papers & Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania , pp. 240-243 .

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Abstract

When I captured these animals I was a passenger on
board the ship Invercargill, Captain John Muir, then on a
voyage from London to Port Chalmers, N.Z.
Nothing unusual was noticed in the appearance of
the sea, which was calm, until the afternoon, when the water
was filled with brilliant blue stars, floating past the ship in
great numbers. With a small canvas bag I succeeded in
fishing up several of the blue stars, which were a species of
Sapphirina, and two or three other animals, non-luminous,
one of which was a Salpa democratica. I kept them in a glass
of sea water till the 29th, when an unfortunate accident killed
them, and having only a small magnifying glass, I was prevented
from making a full examination of all. I preserved
the sketches I was able to make, and through the kindness of
Mr. Morton, of the Royal Society's Museum, I lately received
from Mr. Haswell, of Sydney, information as to the
species and construction of the animals depicted.
The two small crustaceans correspond so closely with the
descriptions and drawings of the male and female of Sapphirina
gemma, as given by J. D. Dana ("Crustacea," Part II.,
pp. 1252-3; Atlas, Plate 88, figs. 1 and 2), that I am very confident
that they are individuals of that species.
I have not been able to find any detailed account of the
Salpae in the Society's Library, but in the Proceedings of
the Boston Society of Natural History, Vol. XI., p. 17, is a
detailed description, with woodcuts, of Salpa Cabotti, by
Alexr. Agassiz. This is found south of Cape Cod, and very
closely resembles the one I caught, and the description and
investigation into the connection of the chain forms are highly
interesting. Includes illustrations.

Item Type: Article
Authors/Creators:McCance, John
Keywords: Royal Society of Tasmania, Van Diemens Land, VDL, Hobart Town, natural sciences, proceedings, records
Journal or Publication Title: Papers & Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania
Collections: Royal Society Collection > Papers & Proceedings of the Royal Society of Tasmania
Additional Information:

In 1843 the Horticultural and Botanical Society of Van Diemen's Land was founded and became the Royal Society of Van Diemen's Land for Horticulture, Botany, and the Advancement of Science in 1844. In 1855 its name changed to Royal Society of Tasmania for Horticulture, Botany, and the Advancement of Science. In 1911 the name was shortened to Royal Society of Tasmania.

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