CHAPTER III. 



TRANSPLANTATION OF BIVALVES. 



Bivalves frequently lie with their shells slightly apart, 

 and, as is well known, quickly close upon objects which 

 happen to be introduced between the valves. Birds, 

 wading about at the muddy and sandy margins of 

 ponds or rivers, and aquatic or amphibious animals of 

 various kinds sometimes accidentally insert their toes, 

 and the mollusc, in such a case, closing quickly and 

 often holding on for a considerable time, is liable, if not 

 too heavy, to be carried away and to be set down, per- 

 haps, in a new home, possibly at a great distance from its 

 original habitat. Accidents of this kind, there is reason 

 to suppose, happen much more frequently than might 

 at first seem probable, for numerous instances have 

 been recorded, and probably not more than one in 

 a thousand comes under the notice of an observer, and 

 the number recorded must be small as compared with 

 the number actually observed. 



A few facts serving in a general way to illustrate the 

 liability of bivalves to be carried away upon objects 

 chancing to come between the valves are perhaps 

 worth giving. Rural folk who make cream-skimmers 



