36 A NEW ZEALAND NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. 



open at both ends. Usually each of these cases contains 

 a transparent glass-like shrimp (Phronima), which makes 

 use of the empty shell as a convenient dwelling place. 



For anyone who is merely interested in looking casually 

 at this class of seaside objects, even without the trouble of 

 studying them, there is no better way than to go out with 

 a stout tumbler in the hand. "Whenever a specimen is met 

 with on the beach or in a rock pool pop it into a tumblerful 

 of clear sea water. What may seem a limp sand -encrusted 

 bit of dead matter lying on the beach often becomes a 

 beautiful moving organism when restored to its native 

 element. Very few people but those who have taken the 

 trouble to look at them know the beauty of many of these 

 seaside organisms. They cannot be appreciated by holding 

 them in the hand for excimination ; but see them surrounded 

 by limpid water, in which they may float freely, and their 

 organs expand, and they become things of beauty. A sea- 

 slug is not particularly attractive when rolled up into a 

 shapeless mass, but place it in a transparent vessel of 

 clear water, where it opens out its plume-like gills, and 

 it is transformed into a marvellously beautiful structure. 

 Again, a green worm creeping among the stones or through 

 the seaweed is not the sort of thing that fascinates the 

 average individual, but looked at through the safe medium 

 of a layer of glass, its movements in the water are both 

 interesting and beautiful. Rock pools often contain 

 shrimps, hermit crabs, various kinds of small fish, numerous 

 shellfish, barnacles, serpula?, and other kinds of small fry : 

 and if you want to know what they are really like imprison 

 them for a short time in a glass vessel for examination. 

 'Phis note will have been worth writing if it induces any 

 visitor to the seaside to try the experiment I have sug- 

 gested ; to many it will open a new field, and help to 

 dissipate the ennui from which even holiday-makers are 

 apt to suffer. 



