JELLY FISHES. 59 



star-fishes, and mollusks. It is therefore designated &quorea 

 forbesiana, and a man might well feel proud to have so 

 beautiful a creature named with his name. It is a little larger 

 than our figure. Its upper portion is of thick crystalline jelly, 

 coloured with a lovely sky-blue tint lower down. Below the 

 blue region are a number of curved lines of bright crimson 

 the nutrient channels and the four lobes of the manubrium 

 are similarly coloured. There are streaming tentacles around 

 the margin which lay hold of minute creatures that pass by. 

 The early history of this form of Jelly-fish is unknown 

 whether it passes through stages resembling those of Aurelia 

 or of 7*urris, or attains the medusa-form direct from the egg. 

 Any of our readers that may have the opportunity for observing 

 this beautiful creature, should make a point of recording what 

 he sees. It may be of great assistance in working out the true 

 relation of this species to other forms. 



One that must be classed with the " Portuguese Man o' 

 War" as a visitor to our south-western coasts, is called the 

 Sallee Man (Velella scaphoided), a kind of Jelly-raft, upon 

 which is hoisted a little sail, and whose margin is fringed with 

 tentacles. As in Physalia, the under side of this float consists 

 of a colony of many individuals, which from time to time 

 develop into free-swimming jellies. 



But in spite of the colour-glories and imposing size of these 

 larger forms, we have upon our shores swarms of a veritable 

 gem that, in its way, for delicate beauty outshines them all. 

 It is the Globe Beroe (Pleurobrachia fiileus], sometimes called 

 the Sea Gooseberry. In early summer, when the seas are 

 still, and everything for five fathoms or more can be clearly 

 seen through the crystal waters of the Cornish coast, this fairy 

 form may be clearly seen in spite of its short diameter (half- 

 inch) and its perfect transparency. You are lazily drifting in 

 a boat, but your eye catches minute flashes of iridescent colour 

 in the water, and you must lean over the boat's side to see 

 what it is. You then discover a number of these crystal globes 



