278 I N A G U A 



wherever there was space. Bryozoans played at being lichens, 

 and their lacy filagree covered eroded spots on the coral and 

 bare spots on the stems of sea fans. Only, unlike the Hchens, 

 these bryozoans contained no commensal algae and had no 

 green coloring. A crab topped the list when it made a show 

 of being an entire garden! I discovered it when a complete 

 set of vegetable-like animals and mosses got up and walked 

 between two lavender gorgonians and then sank down again 

 a foot or so away. If it had not moved I would never have 

 suspected it. Planted on the creature's shell were several small 

 anemones, a dainty finger sponge, and a cluster of yellow 

 seaweed. 



Struggling up the slope again I made my way back to the 

 nook between the brain corals. I had hardly seated myself 

 when I noticed a wave of excitement pass over all the parrot- 

 fish. There were quite a number of these, in assorted groups 

 of red and blue. Up to this time they had been contentedly 

 feeding, munching the algae off the rocks, like so many azure 

 and scarlet cows. The simile of cows is not altogether inap- 

 propriate for parrotfish spend their hours grazing on the algae 

 which they scrape off the rocks with their great white pro- 

 truding teeth. These teeth give them a rather ''horsey" ap- 

 pearance and they wear a stupid bovine expression in keeping 

 with their habits. As one fish they streaked for narrow holes 

 in the coral. I looked to see the cause of the disturbance. Off 

 in the obscure distance was a great gray shape that swam 

 just beyond the point of clear vision. In a moment it had 

 melted into the haze and was gone. A big shark possibly, I 

 do not know, for it did not reappear immediately and before 

 long the parrotfish were back at their interminable munching. 

 In some way they sensed that all was not well and that an 

 enemy was near. Strangely, none of the other fish showed 

 any indication of alarm. 



