I900.] CuNNiNGTON. — Seashove Crabs. 121 



come amiss. The eggs, which may be laid at any time from 

 spring to autumn, are buried in the sand, and from them 

 emerge — not young crabs — but forms so perfectly distinct as 

 to have originally received a separate name. We are dealing 

 here then, as in most of the crabs and lobsters, with a distinct 

 metamorphosis, a larval form being set free from the ^%%, 

 which sooner or later however, assumes the adult condition. 

 Though differences, of course, exist between the larval forms 

 of different crabs, the plan followed here is really pretty 

 typical. The little organism on emergence is known as the 

 Zoea larva, and certainly is a most grotesque-looking object, 

 with enormous eyes, and a head shield armed with long spines. 

 From this stage, by the shedding of the skin we get another — 

 the Megalopa — which is certainly far more crab-like, and has 

 the pincers and walking legs developed, though the tail is still 

 in the primitive position, and not tucked up. A third moult, 

 and we have once again a young crab differing but little from 

 the adult. 



This Green Crab was at one time extensively brought to the 

 markets as food, but is now seldom eaten, except perhaps by 

 the very poor in some parts. It makes very good bait, 

 however, especially when soft, after shedding its shell, and in 

 certain parts of the coast the fishermen have devised a very 

 simple trap to catch them for this purpose. 



This consists of nothing more than the placing between 

 tide-marks of a number of common half-round roof-tiles. 

 Beneath these convenient shelters, the crabs about to moult 

 naturally creep, so that the fishermen have merely to go at 

 low tide and pick them out. 



Portiums the Fiddler Crab, and Porttminus are among the 

 commonest of the other Irish swimming crabs, and they, of 

 course, have the oval flattened joint to the last leg, which is so 

 noticeable a feature. The name of " fiddler crab " has been 

 given to Poftunus by the fishermen, because of the see-saw 

 motion of the bent and flattened leg-joints, which is supposed 

 to suggest the operation of fiddling. These forms are both 

 good swimmers, but are eclipsed in this direction by Poly bins, 

 which is perhaps the strongest swimmer of all. The other 

 legs here have also become extremely flat and thin, and by 

 aid of them all, the creature skims about, up to the surface of 



