PROFESSOR BROOKS ON BURROWING 285 



highly polished, and without carinte or spines. The 

 female is much larger than the male, of an opaque olive 

 brown, almost black colour, while the male is of a trans- 

 parent grey. Professor Brooks gives an interesting ac- 

 count of its habits : 



1 It is found in the sand of the ocean beach just below 

 low-tide mark, where it is exposed to the full force of the 

 ocean swell, and it inhabits a very deep cylindrical burrow 

 which is nearly vertical and goes down for several feet. 

 While watching for its prey the animal stations itself at 

 the mouth of the burrow, which is arched over with sand, 

 so that only the tips of the eyes are exposed. The food 

 consists of small Crustacea, fishes, and other small animals, 

 and when one approaches within reach the Coronis [Lysio- 

 squilla] darts out of the burrow, knocking away the loose 

 sand, and seizing it in its raptorial claw it darts backwards 

 with it and retreats to the bottom of the burrow. When 

 hungry it often captures prey at a distance of six or eight 

 inches, but, as a rule, it waits until it is near enough to 

 be caught without leaving the opening. The food which 

 is captured is usually stored away at the bottom of the 

 burrow, and the animal returns to the mouth and resumes 

 its watch. In excavating its burrow the animal begins 

 by stretching its body out on the sand, which is then 

 swept away from under it by the action of the abdominal 

 appendages, until all of the body except the eyes and 

 telson are buried. It then forces its head into the loose 

 sand which has been stirred up by the action of the 

 abdominal appendages, and dragging its body down it 

 quickly becomes buried vertically, head downwards, and it 

 continues to burrow until it reaches the hard undisturbed 

 sand, when it bends upon itself, and passing the head up 

 on the ventral side of the swimmerets it reverses its posi- 

 tion and works upwards to the surface, hardening and 

 compressing the sand by the pressure of the dorsal surface. 

 After the upper end of the burrow is thus rendered firm 

 and circular, it again doubles upon itself, and going to 

 the bottom gathers an armful of sand, which is clasped 

 against the ventral surface of the body between the large 



