468 THE EDIBLE PRAWN. 



While it lives at some distance from the shore, it cannot be captured in the ordinary shrimp 

 nets. The fishermen call it the Red Shrimp. The spines, or teeth in the upper edge of the 

 long beak, do not spring at once from the substance of the beak, but are simply jointed to it, 

 so that they can be moved slightly by pressure. A large number of species belong to the 

 genus Hippolyte. In these creatures the beak is very large and strong. Several of the ^Esop 

 Prawns belong to this genus. They derive their popular name from the hump-like manner in 

 which the abdomen is raised towards the centre and then bent downwards. COUCH'S JEsop 

 (Hippolyte couchO) is perhaps the most common of these beautiful little creatures, and has 

 the characteristic hump strongly denned. It may be found plentifully in the shore-pools, 

 flitting about the water with a movement much like the flirting and fluttering of a robin 

 in a garden, and displaying its beautiful colors to the best advantage. It is a lovely little 

 being, very variable in color, but always marked with bright and peculiarly pure hues, mostly 

 white, purple, and scarlet. Many of these JEsop Prawns are charming inhabitants of an 



EDIBLE PRAWN. Patasmon serratus. 



aquarium, their pellucid bodies and beautiful colors making them fit inhabitants of the 

 drawing-room or the conservatory. One species, WHITE'S ^Esop PKAWN (Hippolyte whitei), 

 is an especially beautiful creature, being green with a white streak running along the back, 

 and having a number of azure specks scattered over the body. 



Even the large EDIBLE PRAWST (Palcemon serratiis), the figure of which is drawn of 

 natural size, is a beautiful inliabitant of an aquarium. No one who has only seen Prawns on 

 the table, red, opaque, and with their tails folded under them, can form the least conception of 

 their wonderful beauty while living. As they swim gracefully through the water, the light 

 passes through their translucent bodies and their beautifully streaked integuments, rich with 

 transparent browns, pinks, and grays of various depths. Their delicate and slender limbs are 

 ringed with orange and purple, and stained with pale blue. 



At night, when a lamp is brought into the room, the effect produced by the Prawn is 

 really surprising. The large globular eyes glow as if illuminated by some powerful light 

 within ; and as the creature comes out of the darkness its eyes alone are visible, as they shine 

 like two globes of living fire. 



It is very interesting to watch the habits of this beautiful creature. It is extremely 

 voracious, and seems always to be ready for food. I used to feed my own Prawns with the 

 bodies of shrimps, hermit-crabs, and other marine crustacea that had died in the aquaria. All 



