FEEDING HABITS OF NEREIS VIRENS, SARS 
429 
well as extracts and ground-up messes of marine worms, crus- 
taceans, molluscs, fish, etc., would not tempt even a semistarved 
individual to eat. Though Nereis never utilized the animal 
substances provided as food, it ate freely of the sea lettuce which 
had been introduced into the dishes to aerate the water. Think- 
ing that possibly laboratory conditions had so altered the physio- 
logical conditions of the worms, that its feeding habits were 
abnormal, observations were made in the field. In no case 
was a Nereis seen to prey upon living animals, but many were 
observed to eat vegetable matter. To substantiate these obser- 
\'ations examinations were made of the intestinal contents of a 
number of worms collected from various situations in several 
localities as shown in the following table: 
TABLE 1 
LOCALITY 
Naushon Island, Woods 
Hole, Mass. 
Juniper Point, Woods Hole, 
-Mass. 
Eel Pond and Buzzards 
Bay, Mass. 
Lynn Beach, Lynn, Mass. 
New Meadows River (salt), 
Brunswick, Maine 
NUMBER 
OF WORMS 
EXAMINED 
35 
10 
38 
12 
20 
COXTENTS OF THE ALIMENTARY TRACT GIVEN IN 
APPROXIMATE PERCENTAGES 
Eel-grass, 75 per cent 
Various algae, 15 per cent 
Sand, mud and miscellaneous material, 
10 per cent 
Nemaleon (an alga), 75 per cent 
Sphacelaria (an alga), 15 per cent 
Sand, egg masses and miscellaneous 
material, 10 per cent 
Roots and blades of eel-grass, 95 per cent 
Sand, mud, sponges, Bryozoans and mis- 
cellaneous material, 5 per cent 
Eel-grass, 55 per cent 
Algae, 25 per cent 
Sand and mud, 15 per cent 
Miscellaneous material, 5 per cent 
Rock weed, 95 per cent 
Mud and miscellaneous material, 5 per 
cent 
The results of this examination show conclusively that Nereis 
virens is not an animal feeder, but is primarily a vegetarian. 
THE JOURNAL OF EXPERIMENTAL ZOOLOOY. VOL. 32. NO. 3 
