90 NOTES OF TWO DAYS' TRAWLIN(; AND 



conveyed it to Maldon — but it died after a day there, of a surfeit of 

 alcohol. As you will see, the beautiful violet colour has entirely 

 gone. Aiirelia and Cydippe also occurred, and I tried to preserve a 

 specimen of the latter, C. poini/ormis, alive. It is like a globular and 

 translucent mass of crystal, and is called by Gosse "a gem of the 

 sea," but it does not preserve well. The rapid and graceful move- 

 ment of this small creature is produced not by contraction of the 

 disc as in most jellyfish, but by a series of square plates down the 

 radial lines which overlap and moving to and fro, as they catch 

 the light cause an appearance of iridescence. 



Amongst the Zoophytes, we recognised most of those which we 

 had seen here before ; species of Sertularia, Hydrallmania, (S:c., the 

 fresh record being the very common Halecium ha/eci/iu/n, and a 

 species of Tnbularia {? atfenitata), which I have not, as yet, been 

 able to identify with any published figures. The polype bears two 

 circles of pale crimson tentacles, and it looks like a miniature 

 flower. 



We also took one mass of Alcyoniuin digitatum, " Deadman's 

 fingers," or •' Cow paps." In these the translucent polypes containing 

 eight ciliated tentacles are embedded in the mass ; and when fully 

 extended they exhibit a very delicate appearance. 



The parasitic Hydractinia echinata was of course in evidence on 

 various shells. In one instance the shell of Natica monihfera was 

 eaten up by the living Hydractinia, and it was also the abode of a 

 young hermit crab. 



This form of zoophyte is common all round the English coast, 

 and I know extends to Norway. Other species occur in tropical 

 waters. H. arborescens is a very branch-like form, and occurs not 

 only in the fjords of Norway, but I have a shell of Siphonalia from 

 Japan, which is entirely destroyed by it. 



Sponges. Species of Halichondria, Gra7tiia, Chalina, and Ciiofie 

 occurred as before, but none that have not been previously recorded. 



On examining the debris in one of my jars, I was glad to find that 

 it contained three species of Foraminifera, a class of which none 

 had been observed on the previous occasion ; but they are mostly so 

 small that, unless carefully searched for, they are likely to be overlooked 

 and thrown away with the dirty washings. One of these is the test 

 of Peneroplis planatits, a flat discoidal form ; another is Milioli7ia 

 {seminulum ?), and the third is the Lagoia vulgaris, var. striata. 

 The form of the latter is like a Florence flask, the neck and lip 



