BRACHYURI. 161 



It had, itself, in the next place, a narrow escape, having been 

 found almost lifeless from impurity of the water, it could with difficult}^ 

 be preserved. 



These were the chief incidents occurring after acquisition of the 

 female. It was taken on July 22 ; and in the night of the first of 

 August it cast its shell. On the tenth, the male was introduced to 

 its vessel. Their union ensued almost imme^Jiately. On the 17th, the 

 male rejected food, and it had cast its shell on the 19th. 



Next day I found it expedient to separate these animals. 



The survivance of the male was short ; it died within a fortnight. 



A whole year now passed without anything of importance occurring 

 in respect to the surviving female. But in March, or about eighteen 

 months subsequent to the preceding dates, it became very restless, and 

 fed sparingly : and, on the morning of the 14th of that month, I was 

 surprised to see a quantity of detached spawn, in thousands of loose 

 orange coloured ova, scattered throughout its vessel. Its tranquillity 

 was then restored. 



The production of spawn, at the distance of eighteen months from 

 the time that the pair had Ijeen together, was certainly most unexpected ; 

 and apparently adverse to the course of Nature. It was highly impro- 

 bable that ova had required so long an interval to gain maturity : so 

 that, if they did not, these were the produce of an unimpregnated female. 

 I transferred some of them to different vessels, wherein they remained 

 entire for several days, exposing an internal yellow nucleus, witliin an 

 albuminous looking spherule. 



From July 30, the animal rejected food, and persisted in abstinence 

 for a fortnight, when it weakened and died, after having been about 

 two years and a month in my possession. 



It is seen from the preceding observations, that the original colours 

 may be either speedily altered, or obliterated, or that they may be j^er- 

 manently renewed. 



It is not easy to account either for the uniformity, or for the change 

 of colour. There is nothing to sanction anticipation of the fact. But, 



X 



