MARCH, 1882. 155 



not seen a skate egg here. The dog-fish seeem to be of 

 a most cautious, unbelieving character, as well as to have 

 a powerful instinct to provide for the secure hatching of 

 their young, as the way these eggs have their long 

 tendrils wound round and round the seaware is most 

 remarkable. It would take some minutes to unwind the 

 tendrils of one egg, so as to free it from its hold ; and 

 we have no doubt the ware is much more frequently 

 thrown ashore to which it is attached than the egg itself 

 thrown loose from its hold. The seaweed chosen is 

 usually a short, tough, strong species, and not the long- 

 fronded, weak-stemmed classes that are commonly found 

 among the gathering on shore. 



We came at length to a grand sweep of the fine bay, 

 which has now been so left by the sea that a graceful 

 curve of green Zoster a marina borders it, tying the sandy 

 stretch together, and making a pleasant path to-day. 

 Here and there scattered along it are to be seen bunches 

 sticking up out of the grass, as if a small branch had 

 been washed ashore and caught in the mud and grass. 

 These turn out to be bunches of serpulae tubes, from six 

 inches to near a foot in height, growing straight up, or 

 with but a slight curve from the stone or shell to which 

 they have attached themselves. They have clearly taken 

 possession of this locality, and monopolise it to the 

 exclusion of most other life, as we find to be so 

 commonly the case with every class of creatures. We 

 must have a nice bunch to watch its progress, so we 

 gather bunch after bunch, only to discard them in 

 succession as a finer one comes in view. Their foot- 

 holds being sunk in the mud, we do not see them until 

 dragged forth, and several of the finest bunches prove to 

 be affixed to well-buried >nodiol ) or large horse mussels, 



