92 SEA-SHORE LIFE 
legs are slender and about five inches long. This shrimp ranges 
from New York to Brazil, but is found also among the tropical islands 
of the Pacific. It 
lives among the cor- 
als, the male and fe- 
male swimming side 
by side. The eggs 
are of a delicate 
green color, and are 
carried about at- 
tached to the abdo- 

i minal appendages 
of the female. When 
Fig. 59s HERMIT CRAB. From Life. Showing the d 1 stu rbed t h e sh rimp 
borrowed shell covered with sea weeds and Aydrac- : : 
tinia. Cape Ann, Mass. retreats within the 
crevicesof thecorals. 
The Feather-Footed Shrimp, (Mysis stenolepis, ig. 07), is a 
little translucent brown creature about one-half an inch long and 
may be recognized by the feathery hairs on its legs and antennae, 
large eyes, and spines on the sides of the body. It has no claws, 
and the abdomen is ‘‘ broken-backed,” and somewhat longer than 
the forward part of the body. It is most abundant on our coast in 
winter in shallow muddy or grassy places, and often occurs in great 
swarms. 
HERMIT CRABS 
The Hermit Crabs, (Paguride ). In these animals the abdomen 
is soft and covered only by a delicate skin, but the crab protects 
it by inserting its abdomen within the cavity of some empty 
shell which it drags about in all of its wanderings. This habit of 
occupying shells has profoundly modified the structure of the body. 
The abdominal appendages are reduced or wanting, and the sixth 
pair have become hook-like, allowing the crab to anchor itself with- 
in the shell. The abdomen is twisted so as to fit into the coils of 
the shell, while in some species all of the legs on one side are shorter 
than those of the other, thus giving the body a one-sided appear- 
ance. The front legs and claws of the crab are covered with a hard 
crust, and the eyes are mounted upon long stalks. When disturbed 
