William S. Furneaux

“ When seen for the first time in its natural haunt one naturally wonders what the moving mass may be. Crawling sluggishly over incrusted stones, or remaining perfectly still in a muddy puddle that has been exposed by overturning a stone, it looks like a little mound of mud itself, about four or five inches long, and its general colour and surface so closely resembles that of its surroundings that an inexperienced collector may never even suspect that the mass is a living animal form. ”

“ Here it is that we find the most rugged and precipitous cliffs, bordering a more or less wild and desolate country, now broken by a deep and narrow chasm where the resonant roar of the sea ascends to the dizzy heights above, and anon stretching seaward into a rocky headland, whose former greatness is marked by a continuation of fantastic outliers and smaller wave-worn masses of the harder strata. ”

“ Then, when we approach the water’s edge, we find a delight in watching the approaching waves as they roll over the sandy or pebbly beach, or embrace an outlying rock, gently raising its olive covering of dangling weeds. ”

“ The charming vegetation of the tranquil rock-pool receives but a passing glance, and the little world of busy creatures that people it are scarcely observed; while the wonderful forms of life that inhabit the sheltered nooks of the rugged rocks between the tide-marks are almost entirely unknown except to the comparatively few students of Nature. ”

“ Here we are exposed to the full force of the frontal attacks of the Atlantic, and it is here that the dashing breakers seek out the weaker portions of the upturned and contorted strata, eating out deep inlets, and often loosening enormous blocks of the hardest material, hurling them on the rugged beach, where they are eventually to be reduced to small fragments by the continual clashing and grinding action of the smaller masses as they are thrown up by the angry sea. ”

“ This strange creature habitually rests on the bottom of the sea, disguised by its filamentous appendages and adaptive colouring, dangling the expanded extremity of its first dorsal filament just over its upturned cavernous mouth. It does not swim much, indeed it is at the best but a bad swimmer; and when it moves it simply shuffles its heavy body along the bottom, gliding between the stones and rocks, where it may remain unobserved, its movements being produced by the action of the tail, and of the paired fins, which are better adapted for walking than for swimming. ”

“ Yet it must be observed that he whose sea-side occupation is merely that of a collector, and whose work at home is simply the mounting and arranging of the objects obtained, can hardly be considered a naturalist. Natural history is a living study, and its devotee is one who delights in observing the growth and development of living things, watching their habits, and noting their wonderful adaptation to their environments; and it is to encourage such observation that we so strongly recommend the young collector to keep his creatures alive as far as it is possible to do so. ”

“ In some cases the contact of the pollen of a flower with its own stigma will even act as a poison, causing the whole to shrivel and die; and truly wonderful are the varied means by which flowers contrive to secure a cross-fertilisation. It is here that the work of the wind and insects proves so valuable to flowers; but, in addition to this, a very large number of flowers are absolutely incapable of self-fertilisation, for the anthers and the stigma are not mature at the same time, or they exist in separate flowers, either on the same plant or on distinct plants of the same species. ”

“ As we ramble along a beaten track at the edge of the cliff, new and varied features of the coast are constantly opening up before us. Each little headland passed reveals a sheltered picturesque cove or a gentle bay with its line of yellow sands backed by the cliffs and washed by the foaming waves ”

“ We have occupied so much of our time and space in explanation of the movements of the tides not only because we think it desirable that all who delight in sea-side rambles should understand something of the varied motions which help to give such a charm to the sea, but also because, as we shall observe later, these motions are a matter of great importance to those who are interested in the observation and study of marine life. ”

“ If we place a homeless hermit crab in a rock pool, the behaviour of the creature immediately suggests a feeling of uneasiness—a sense of danger—for it moves about in a very erratic fashion that is quite different from the straightforward and deliberate action of the same animal when properly protected; and very amusing results may be obtained by making it the subject of a few harmless experiments. For instance, drop down before it an empty whelk-shell that is much too large to properly accommodate its body. ”

“ South-west Wales is said to be the headquarters of this pretty sea flower, but we have found it abundant on parts of the north Devon coast, especially in places between Ilfracombe and Lynton. Like the last species, it may be termed a cave-dweller, for it delights to hide in corners and crevices that are so overhung with rocks and weeds that the light is never strong. ”

“ It is very interesting to observe some of the general differences between the roving and the sedentary species—differences which illustrate the principle of adaptation of structure to habit. The roving species are provided with a lobe that overhangs the mouth, bearing feelers and eyes, and are thus enabled to seek out any desired path and to search for their food. They are provided with bristles and other appendages by means of which they can travel freely over the surfaces of solid objects, and are able to swim well either by undulations of the body, or by fringed appendages, or both. ”

“ So general is this apparent lack of interest in the things of the shore that he who delights in the study of littoral life and scenes but seldom meets with a kindred spirit while following his pursuits, even though the crowded beach of a popular resort be situated in the immediate neighbourhood of his hunting ground. The sea-side cottager is too accustomed to the shore to suppose that he has anything to learn concerning it, and this familiarity leads, if not to contempt, most certainly to a disinclination to observe closely ”

“ The majority of living plants require carbonic acid gas as a food, and, under the influence of light, decompose this gas, liberating the oxygen it contained. This is true of many of our common sea-weeds, and thus it is possible to establish in a salt-water aquarium such a balance of animal and vegetable life that the water is maintained in its normal condition, the carbonic acid gas being absorbed by the plants as fast as it is excreted by animals, and oxygen supplied by the plants as rapidly as it is consumed by the animals. ”

“ And this is not all; for, when fishing with rod and line on such a coast, it frequently happens that we land some species of crab that has been attracted to our bait. The ordinary angler would regard such crab as an intruder, and, we are sorry to say, would often consider it his duty to crush the unfortunate crustacean beneath his foot. But it is far different with the naturalist. He favourably regards all creatures from which something may be learnt, and is as anxious, as a rule, to gather information concerning the habitats of one class as of another. ”

“ Passing over several orders of insects which do not seem to have any marine representatives, we come to the Diptera or two-winged insects, of which the familiar house-fly is a type, and here we have to deal with those troublesome creatures that literally swarm in the neighbourhood of the matter washed up to the highest level of the tide during the whole of the summer months. But although these insects are so very numerous, we do not find among them a particularly large number of species, their abundance being due more to the extreme prolificacy of those that occur. ”

“ Their legs move in the plane of their flattened bodies, and as they glide among the confervæ and other low forms of life that encrust the stones of the beach they feel their way by, and are possibly also guided by the sense of smell located in, their long outer antennæ, while the close fringes of their claws and foot-jaws form admirable sweep-nets by means of which the little animals that form their food are swept towards the mouth. ”

“ They may be seen off the south coast, swimming in shoals over sandy bottoms, and when disturbed they descend and burrow into the sand with remarkable agility. They approach the shore so closely that they are often washed up by the waves, but immediately disappear into the sand; and large numbers commonly remain behind as the tide recedes, burying themselves to the depth of a few inches, and are dug out by fishermen for bait.
The smaller species is by far the more common, and is taken in large numbers by means of the draw net to be sold as food. ”

“ When we stand on a beach of fine sand on a very calm day watching the progress of the ripples over the sand as the tide recedes we frequently observe whitish lines marking the limits reached by the successive ripples as they advance toward the shore. If, now, we scrape up a little of the surface sand, following the exact course of one of these whitish streaks, and examine the material obtained by the aid of a good lens, we shall in all probability discover a number of minute shells among the grains of sand. ”

“ There are very many marine objects that are exceedingly pretty and also very instructive, even when studied apart from the life with which they were associated in the sea. Thus, a well-preserved sea-weed may retain much of its original beauty of form and colour, the shells of numerous molluscs and crustaceans exhibit a most interesting variety of features well worthy of study, and a number of the soft-bodied animals may be preserved in such a manner as to closely resemble their living forms. ”

“ If we examine the common five-finger star that is so often stranded on the beach, and so frequently found in rock pools between the tide-marks, we see that each arm has a large and conspicuous groove running along its centre on the under side, and on each side of these are the rows of tube-feet, arranged in such a manner that they have suggested the appearance of an avenue of trees on each side of a garden walk, and have consequently earned the name of ambulacrum. ”

“ One thing more remains to be done while the tide is well out, and that is to examine the weed-covered rocks near the water’s edge. Lift the dangling weeds and carefully search the rocks for those low forms of animal life that form incrustations on the surface, as well as for new species of anemones, sea firs, &c. Lastly, look well into the dark and narrow chinks of the rocks, for here several species of lowly animals that are hardly met with elsewhere may be found, and also certain crustaceans that delight to squeeze their bodies into the remotest corner of a sheltered niche. ”

“ If the day is calm, and the water clear, the sea angler will often be able to watch various fishes as they swim, and to bring the bait gently within their reach; and here we find the advantage of the rod as compared with the hand line. Sometimes quite a shoal of small fishes may be seen sporting near the surface, and, as a rule, there will be no difficulty in obtaining one for identification and study. These are generally best secured by means of small hooks, with but very little bait, and will often bite freely at the tiniest fragment of worm on an almost naked hook. ”

“ Some of the marine animals obtained from our shores feed entirely on the minute and invisible organisms that are always present in the sea water, and others subsist principally on certain of the weeds. Many, however, of a more predaceous disposition, capture and devour living prey, while some, and more especially the crustaceans, are partial to carrion. If, therefore, the observer desires to study the ways in which the various creatures secure and devour their food, he should introduce into his aquaria live marine worms and other small animals, and also small pieces of fish or flesh. ”

“ The long, heavy rod and strong tackle of the sea angler and professional fisherman are not at all essential to our purpose, for our work will be confined almost exclusively to shallow water, and the fish to be caught will be chiefly of small size. True it is that one may occasionally find his light tackle snapped and carried away by the unexpected run of a large fish, for cod and other large species often approach close to the shore, and bite at baits intended for the smaller fish that make their home among the partly submerged rocks of the coast ”

“ On examining the shell we find that it is the home of a species of crab, and that the animal within it is completely hidden with the exception of its head, stalked eyes and long, slender antennæ, one very large claw, and a few walking legs.
To remove the creature from its home is no easy matter as a rule. To pull it out by means of its legs or its antennæ would probably be to sever some portion of its body; but if you thrust the creature, shell and all, among the spreading tentacles of a large anemone, it will at once grasp the peril of the situation ”

“ Some of these creatures are very common on our rocky coasts, and yet their nature is such that they are liable to be overlooked by those who are not acquainted with their appearance and habits. The shell is oval or oblong, often so coloured as to closely resemble the rocks and stones over which they crawl; and the animal is so inactive when left exposed by the receding tide, and its flat under surface so closely applied to that on which it rests, that it looks merely like a little convexity of the rock. ”

“ The edible mussel, which forms such an important article of diet, especially among the poorer classes in our large towns, may be easily distinguished from similar species of another genus by the very pointed umbones, and the coarse and strong fibrous byssus by which it clings to any solid object. It is found most abundantly on muddy coasts, and on mud banks in the estuaries of rivers, generally in such situations as are uncovered at low tide. The fry abound just below low-water level, and grow so rapidly that they reach their full size in a single year. ”