NATURAL HISTORY SOCIETY OF GLASGOW. 73 



the animal itself from deep water, by any means at our command, 

 owing to its liabit of darting- suddenly into its tube on the 

 slightest alarm. 



The precaution taken by Mr E. Edward, of Menai Bridge, for 

 its capture, gives a good idea of the animal's vigilance. He says, 

 "The plan I take is to surround it with two or three spades, 

 each acting at the same moment, so as to undermine it in an 

 instant, and press the ground, which makes its escape more 

 difficult." 



I believe the chief means by which the animal escapes from its 

 pursuers is the great length of its tube. The great disproportion 

 between the length of the tube and the animal has not, so far as 

 I know, been hitherto noticed. The animal itself, in its con- 

 tracted state, rarely exceeds two inches in length, and I have dug 

 out more than fourteen inches of the tube without finding its 

 termination. 



Halcampa clirysanthellum. — This small anemone is also new to 

 Scotland. It was taken at Cumbrae in the sand at low water. 

 What makes the discovery of this little zoophyte in the Clyde 

 province more interesting is, that it has not been met with before 

 further north than Cornwall. 



Ophiocoma brachiata. — I found this star-fish, in sand near low 

 water, Little Cumbrae. The late Professor Forbes, in his work 

 on British Star-fishes, gives no Scotch habitat for this species. Yet 

 I believe it is by no means rare. Mr Keddie and I dredged it 

 this summer on the north-east side of Cumbrae, and had several 

 of its stray members from Loch Long and the Holy Loch. 



Synaptic inhcerens I find between tide mark in muddy sand. 

 Little Cumbrae, and in sandy gravel, Holy Isle, Arran. The 

 Eev. Alf. M. Norman tells me that it is this species which is met 

 with at Belfast. At Little Cumbrae I find it associated with 

 Synapta digitata (Chirodota digitata of Montagu), which seems to 

 be more widely distributed than S. inhcerens. Previous to this 

 summer, I had dredged two or three specimens of Synapta digitata 

 when in company Avith Dr Grieve and Mr Keddie. Dr Scouler 

 had it from Loch fine, and the Rev. A. M. Norman from Dublin and 

 Shetland. Still they have been considered hitherto rather rare. 



Professor E. Forbes, when speaking of this species, says, " he 



had never seen a living example." Nevertheless I found them 



this season at Little Cumbrae in great abundance, and of large 



K 



