THE ABALONES OF CALIFORNIA 



539 



ranged in transverse and longitudinal rows. The teeth are pointed 

 backward, and as the tongue is thrust out and drawn in, the radula 

 rasps a hole in the succulent kelp, carrying the fragments of food to 

 the opening of the gullet. Two chitinous jaws, one at either side 

 within the mouth, but united in the midline, serve as scrapers to hold 

 back in the mouth cavity the particles of food adhering to the radula. 

 This method of feeding abalones individually by hand is of importance 

 in easily earing for the animals in confinement in aquaria or in enclosed 

 pools, or live-boxes in marine farming. 



As food the abalone is one of the best of our marine mollusks. 

 Detached from the shell, the visceral mass and mantle fringe are 

 trimmed off from the large central muscle, which is then cut trans- 

 versely into slices. These small steaks, when beaten four or five times 

 with the flat side of a meat-cleaver and then fried in butter, are tender 

 and delicious. The meat is also equally delectable when served as a 

 chowder or minced. Besides supplying the local market the mollusks 

 may be shipped across the continent, for when individuals are placed 

 one on top of the other, in a sort of a living nest, they will survive for 

 as long as six days without water, feeding upon the organisms and 

 organic slime covering the shells upon which they rest. While the 

 American market is not sufficiently developed to create an active demand 



Dipping Abalones from the Boiling Tank. 



