SHRIMPS AND PRAWNS. 149 



amongst the Crustaceans adapted for the Aquarium, come tlie 

 Shrimps and Prawns, which are extremely interesting creatures, 

 and contribute in no small degree to the gaiety aud animation of 

 the pent-up community. Pale and ghostly in appearance, they 

 glide through the water like the dim and shadowy creatures of 

 another world, their beautiful plumed false legs gracefully beating 

 the water as they sweep along. 



But these animals are as valuable in the Aquarium as they 

 are beautiful. Their incessant movements help not a little to 

 produce that constant motion in the water which is so conducive 

 to the health of the establishment. Much more effective, how- 

 ever, is the service which they render in this respect by hunting 

 out and devouring the minute portions of animal matter that 

 lie concealed amongst the sand and gravel at the bottom. It 

 seems that they are guided to these atoms by their sense of 

 smell, which appears to be remarkably acute. Mr. Warington, 

 indeed, states that when either a Shrimp or Prawn cuts with his 

 antennas the column of water through which a piece of food has 

 fallen to the bottom, it becomes immediately cognizant of the 

 fact, and turns to find it ; and we have ourselves seen this 

 gentleman produce quite an interesting display by merely drop- 

 ping a few morsels of food into the centre of a tank containing 

 a number of Shrimps, the little fellows immediately crowding 

 to the spot, and eagerly catching at the food like a flock of barn- 

 door fowls. 



But there is a mistake abroad as to the respective predilections 

 of the Crustacean fraternity, in regard to this matter of feeding. 

 It is commonly stated that the Crab feeds on offal, but that is 

 an error, no animal being more particular in his diet. Piather 

 than devour food which is far advanced in decomposition, the 

 Crab would die of starvation. The fishermen know this fact 

 well, and always bait their crab-pots with fresh meat ; while, for 

 the Lobster, the more highly flavoured the bait, the better it is 

 likely to succeed. It may be received indeed as a general rule, 

 that the short-tailed Crustacea are clean feeders, and that the true 

 depurators, or scavengers, of the waters, are the long-tailed 

 section of the class. 



The common Shrimp (Crangon vulgaris\ for example, is one 

 of the grossest of feeders, and a swarm of them speedily reduces 

 a drowned cat or dog to a skeleton ; a fact which is hardly cal- 



