60 ITABTTS OF THE CEPHALOPODA. 



do not bother themselves with spreading their nets for them ; 

 they catch a femak', when tlie others immediately ftill upon her, 

 grasp and enlace their arms. This effort of tlieir love ceases not 

 till the fishers have raised them into their boat ; even then they 

 remain united." A somewhat similar account is found in 

 Verany's work on tlie Cephalopods of the Mediterranean, wliere 

 it is possibly derived from the verses of Oppian. 



The deposition of the eggs occurs some days after fecundation. 

 I have been a witness to the deposition of three or four eggs, but 

 I was not able to distinguish the method of the operation. A 

 female laid about one hundriMl eggs, about fifty in a corner of the 

 aquarium, and fifty on tlie op])osite side. These eggs were 

 enrolled by their peduncles aroiuid the long leaves of Zoslera 

 marina. The larger ]iart of tlu' eggs were laid in the night, for 

 I remarked tlieiu in the moniing for the fii'st time ; they were 

 already black. 



When the Sepia is laying, she embraces the leaf of Zostera 

 with her tentacles, and a few instants afterwards tlie cir^i, is 

 attached. The female removed herself but little from her eggs, 

 but she appeared to me to be sick, exhausted ; she died three 

 days after having commenced oviiiosition, and only a few hours 

 after having attached her last eggs. I do not know wlietlier the 

 death of the animal is attributable to parturition ; l)iit on this 

 hypothesis I cannot help thinking of Oppian's recital of the death 

 of the Poulpe : " The fatal marriage of the Poulpe and its cruel 

 death rapidly succeed each other. No sooner does he quit the 

 female, than he falls exhausted on the sands. Tlie female dies 

 also from the pain of the laborious efforts of parturition." Aris- 

 totle also says : " The Sepia lays her eggs near the earth, among 

 the algiv. She only lays them at several efforts, as though the 

 operation is ])ainful to her." 



I oi)ened the female which died during parturition, and found 

 the ovary filled with a considerable quantity of eggs in all stages 

 of development ; tlu' most advanced were already furnished with 

 a white and opaiiue c()veriiig. but none of them were black like 

 those attached to tlie Zosteras. The black color, then, is 

 acquired at the moment of deposition, and it is probably due to 

 a secretion of the glands which surround the oviduct. The 

 coloration of tlie eggs has not escaped the observation of 



