38 



NASSA. 



ribs to a whorl, and fine spiral sculpture, is now con- 

 sidered as a variety of the species mendica. 



Nassa perpingnis, Hinds, per-pin'-guis, Fig. 19, is 

 our last species of the interesting group of 

 Basket Shells. It resembles the first one, 

 whose shell is shown in Fig. 16, but it is 

 much smaller, being less than an inch 

 long. Its whorls are beautifully rounded 

 and cut into little squares. The shell is 

 thin, light brown in color, with a trace of 

 orange inside. It is chiefly found on the 

 coasts. The name, perpinguis, simply 

 means fat, while mendica, the name of another species, 

 means lean. Can you not see from the cuts why these 

 names were applied ? 



Fig. 19. 



southern 



