71 



THE TRUE STARFISHES. 



asteriam:, 



OR CIRRIJIGRADE ECHINODERMATA. 



The beauty and symmetry of the true Starfishes at- 

 tracted the attention of such observers of nature as dwelt 

 by the sea-side from a very early period, and several kinds 

 are noticed by ancient authors. No separate treatise, 

 however, was devoted to their history until the year 1733, 

 when a splendid folio volume, containing- figures of a great 

 many species and varieties, with short descriptions attached, 

 was published by John Henry Link, an apothecary at 

 Leipsic. Link was a fellow of the Royal Society, and 

 studied botany as well as zoology. He wrote an account 

 of the coffee-tree ; and Micheli dedicated a genus of plants 

 to him in honour of his botanical acquirements. He died 



