128 Natural History Bulletin. 



and aperture brilliantlv colored. A species of Octopus, or 

 devil-fish, was quite common in the shallow water. It would 

 be difficult to imagine a more utterly repulsive animal than 

 this. It is so slimy! There is something so stealthy and in- 

 sinuating in the crawling, gliding motion of the long and snake- 

 like tentacles, that even the naturalist, who has for years 

 contemplated without special repugnance all sorts of animals, 

 can hardl^• repress a feeling of aversion while handling these 

 creatures. The power of adhesion possessed by the suckers 

 is ver}^ great, sufficient, in fact, to permit of the suckers them- 

 selves being torn from the arms before their hold is released. 

 A favorite resort of this species seemed to be the closely 

 branching heads of Poritcs so abundant in the shallows around 

 the islands. 



A great majority of the moUusks were gastropods, of which 

 twenty-odd species were secured. Many were among the 

 largest known, e. g.. Fasciolaria gjgantca Kiener. When 

 alive, this species is rendered very striking by the brilliant 

 red color of its immense foot, which is very conspicuous when 

 the animal is fully expanded. Several other species collected 

 here were similarly marked. It is significant that, so far at 

 least as I have obsarved, these brilliant colors on the fleshy 

 parts of mollusks are possessed only by members of those 

 groups which have functional eves, a fact which would indi- 

 cate a definite connection between the possession of sight and 

 brilliant coloration and suggest, at least, an application of the 

 principle of sexual coloration. It will be remembered that 

 most strikingly colored mollusks are among the Prosobranch- 

 iata, which have separate sexes. 



The following genera of gastropods were represented in the 

 collection from the Tortugas: Miircx, Fasciolaria. Coliiin- 

 hcUa, Strombus, Cyprcea, Trivia. CvfJwnia. Cerilhiuni^ Tec- 

 tarius, Peloronta, Livonia, Fissiirclla and Strophia. Probably 

 the most conspicuous and abundant of all was Stronibns qigas^ 

 Linn., the common '-conch" of the West Indies. The exquisite 

 hues on the lip and aperture of these shells would cause them 

 to be eagerh' sought after for cabinet specimens w^ere they 



