THE NAUTILUS. 83 



dozen or more Ptrronolus festivus, about three inches long, and they 

 were in the bottom of the pond, under two or three feet of water. 



Moiwcerox engonatam and Conux californuau were raked out of 

 the mud near the edge, though not in great numbers. 



I had always thought Muricidre were rock shells, and I won- 

 der what they were doing here in this vile mud. Conus I have 

 found in pools among the rocks, but only one in a place and never 

 but four. 



Which is their home, the muddy bottom of a bay, or the clear 

 pure pools among the rocks? I confess to being disappointed in 

 the creatures I found living in such a degraded way. Yet they 

 had beauty of color and of form ; perhaps are more pleasing than 

 the same number of the prettiest shells I could select from those I 

 got among the rocks. 



Crepidulu rugoxa was there in great numbers, built into towers 

 and knots upon some old valve of a Pecten, or even upon an old 

 shell of their own kind. They are not a very dignified mollusk, 

 but I had never found any alive before, so was glad to find them 

 and learn their mode of co-operative house-keeping, of which I was 

 in ignorance. Doubtless every shell friend I have knew this habit 

 of the Crepidula, knew it so well as never to think of mentioning 

 it, though freely giving me the shells. 



* # * A friend has awakened my interest in ' strays," so I will 

 mention two which came under my observation on this trip. One 

 was a Fusus, three or more inches long, which Mr. S. picked up on 

 the ocean beach near the wharf. It was yellow but had been white, 



1 think. 



The other was a large Area, which a lady who lives where we 

 were stopping picked up on the bay shore. It was dead, but the 

 two valves lay close together ; was quite perfect but the epidermis 

 was all worn away. It measured 82 inches ill circumference one 

 way, and nine inches the other way, and the straight hinge line was 



2 inches. I have nothing like it, so do not know its name. This 

 lady had lived there for years but had never found any other like 

 it. She was quite ignorant of habitat, so had no idea she had found 

 anything of peculiar interest. 



At Arch Beach I have found two or three small Area valves 

 among the drift, and this past summer found one valve about an 

 inch long, which is similar to an Area fasciuta from Australia. 



