CHANGES OF THE LOBSTER. 181 



coming harder and harder, and finally completely calcareous. 

 In this way the animal before long finds itself free from all con- 

 nection with its old envelope, and it has only to make its escape. 

 This last operation is announced by symptoms of inquietude. 

 The creature rubs its legs one against the other, and then, throwing 

 itself upon its back, begins to shake itself, and puffs itself out so 

 as to tear the membrane which connects the carapace with th<? 

 abdomen, and to raise the carapace itself. After sundry intervals 

 of rest and agitation, of shorter or longer duration, the carapace 

 is raised completely, and the animal extricates its eyes, its head, 

 and its antennae. The operation of freeing its extremities ap- 

 pears to be the most difficult, and would even be impossible, did 

 not the covering of these parts split longitudinally. The abdo- 

 men is the last division of the body which clears itself of the old 

 envelope. It may easily be supposed that, after such a violent strug- 

 gle for freedom, the lobster is not a little exhausted. Feeling his 

 weakness, and aware of the very insufficient protection afforded 

 him by his soft covering, which requires a day or two to convert 

 itself into a firm calcareous shelf similar to the one which has 

 just been cast off, he prudently retires from all society, until he 

 feels himself able to meet his old friends again on terms of equar 

 lity, for he well knows how inclined they are to bite and devour 

 a defenceless comrade. 



Like the sea-stars, the crabs and lobsters enjoy the faculty 

 not only of reproducing limbs accidentally lost, but also of volun- 

 tarily casting off not only their legs but even their heavy claws, 

 when under the influence of terror. This curious process of 

 self-amputation seems to be effected very easily, and without 

 apparent pain, as they run off upon their remaining legs as if 

 'nothing had happened. The separation is soon followed by the 

 formation of a cicatrice, from the surface of which sprouts out 

 a small cylindrical appendage ; this shortly after presents dis- 

 tinct articulations, and resembles, in miniature, the organ it is 

 destined to form ; but its growth is slow, and it does not for 

 some time attain its full size, and thus specimens are fre- 

 quently met with having one forceps much larger than the 

 other. 



It is evident how important this power of reproduction and 

 self-amputation must be to animals whose fragile limbs are so 

 liable to be snapped off by an enemy, and how greatly they must 



