132 THE HAUNTS OF LIFE 



as we should like. In a general way the 

 answer is that most of the deep-sea animals 

 are derived from shore-animals that migrated 

 gradually following the drifting food and sea- 

 dust down the slope into the abysses. There 

 are no very ancient types in the Deep Sea ; 

 there are much more old-fashioned creatures 

 in shallow water. It does not seem likely that 

 any of the present-day deep-sea animals were 

 established there before the Triassic Age. 

 Many are probably much more recent. 



HUNGER AND LOVE IN THE DEEP SEA 



There can be no doubt that there is often 

 very strict rationing in the Deep Sea. This 

 is unmistakably shown by the enormous gape 

 in many of the fishes, by the webbing of the 

 arms in some cuttlefish to form a capacious 

 funnel, by the big, soft mouth of sea-anemones, 

 and by many other hints of hunger. 



But the other note is also sounded. The 

 Challenger explorers found a sea-cucumber 

 with its fully formed young ones attached to 

 the skin all along the upper surface. There 

 are numerous expressions of a kind of parental 

 care among brittle-stars, especially in the 



