JULY. 129 



also ate small pieces of meat and liver freely. But the 

 most remarkable thing about them was their activity. 

 Formerly they apparently could not hold on to the glass 

 walls of their prison, but once their moult had taken place 

 they ran up the sides quite easily, and in spite of the lid, 

 which was more closely fastened on, they all managed to 

 escape within a week. 



Young people here do not go in for pets so much as is 

 done in the Old Country more's the pity. For those who 

 do, if their mothers will let them, I recommend a case of 

 lizards as a very interesting object lesson. Only remember 

 the cat is rather fond of lizard. 



II. 



There is an extremely interesting zone of life represented 

 in that border line between sea and land which exists on 

 all rocky shores, the zone of the rock-pool, as it might be 

 termed. It is not particularly well represented near 

 Dunedin, but is well seen at Brighton and some other 

 points on the coast where reefs of rock project to some 

 distance from the shore. On these the sea continually 

 breaks, and as the tide recedes it leaves pools in all the 

 cracks and hollows. In such localities, where the water is 

 always highly aerated and saturated with dissolved oxygen, 

 and where there is the maximum amount of light with 

 sufficiency of moisture, marine plant life grows to the 

 greatest perfection. On these sea -washed rocks grow 

 seaweeds of all kinds and colours, delicate red and pink- 

 fringed forms ; stiff grey, lilac, and pink kinds, having 

 their cells hardened with chalky matter to give them 

 rigidity sufficient to withstand the dash of the waves ; 

 bead-like forms varying from delicate green thread to large 

 nearly black beads ; and most common of all the large 

 green, olive -green, and brownish tangles, which include 

 among them some of the largest plants known. All these 

 belong to the group of plants known as Algse, a group 

 of comparatively low organisation as compared with many 

 pther forms of plant life, and comprising an immense 

 variety of organisms. One of the commonest seaweeds 

 I 



