134 LEISURE-TIME STUDIES, 



any hard skeleton ; but if we suppose that such a power 

 existed in these familiar denizens of our coasts, and that, 

 taking lime from the sea- water, they elaborated such material 

 into hard parts of various kind, we should possess a broad 

 but essentially correct idea of the nature of any coral- 

 polype. We thus note the incongruity of applying such a 

 name as a coral " insect " to these animals ; whilst we can 

 also realise the justness of Peysonnel's descriptions. The 

 coral-polype is a little lime-secreting anemone, possessing 

 a central mouth surrounded by arms or tentacles, the 

 latter capable of withdrawal on being irritated. Peysonnel's 

 name of " poulpe," also given to the coral-animals, is seen 

 to be equally applicable ; this name " poulpe " being derived, 

 like the English "polype," from the Latin " polypus," a term 

 meaning " many-footed." The name " poulpe " or " polype" 

 was also given to the cuttle-fishes, these latter animals, 

 like the anemones and coral-polypes, having numerous arms- 

 arranged around a central mouth. 



Such being the relations of the coral-polypes to the sea- 

 anemones, certain of the more important differences they 

 exhibit from their familiar representatives may be noted. 

 The common groups of sea-anemones exist, like most other 

 animals, in a single and simple condition, that is to say, 

 each animal is entirely independent of and disconnected 

 from its neighbours. The reverse, however, is the case 

 with the coral-polypes ; for amongst these animals there 

 exists a marked tendency to produce compound " colonies " 

 or aggregated masses of animals, which, curiously enough, 

 originate from single and simple forms by a veritable process 

 of budding. Some coral-polypes are, like the sea-anemones, 

 single in their nature. No better example of a solitary 

 coral-polype could be cited than the little Devonshire "cup 

 coral" or Carophyllia (Fig. 14), one of the few lingering 

 remnants of British coral-life. The cup coral appears before 

 us as a veritable anemone, possessing the power of elabora- 

 ting an internal living skeleton ; and the foreign mushroom 

 corals or J+ungice may also be cited as representatives of 



