Flowerlike Forms and Fantasies 



179 



has, nevertheless, some irresistible enemies. On one 

 occasion I observed a roving herd of fiddler crabs de- 

 scend into the water of the pool and strip these diminu- 

 tive gardens bare of every branch and blossom. But 

 their greatest foe in this place undoubtedly is the hermit 

 crab; when this hungry prowler finds them out he will 



clava; a colony of tubularian hydroids. (enlarged.) 



spend hours in plucking off the clusters — plucking off 

 many more, in fact, than he can possibly consume. 



Now in regard to the hermit crab and its appetite, 

 an odd sight sometimes presents itself. Often one of 

 these creatures will be seen searching assiduously for 

 food while the shell which it bears is literally covered 

 with living hydroids. Yet, though its craving may be 

 ever so keen, it will not touch them. These hydroids, 

 too, are tubularians, and are generally of the genus 



