THE MINK'S HUNTING GROUND 



defenseless caddice worm is passed un- 

 noticed. He is snugly rolled in silk 

 within his rough house and moves about 

 by cautiously putting out a leg or two 

 and crawling with the logs on his back. 

 Another variety uses small pebbles in- 

 stead of logs. Taking a stone from bot- 

 tom in the swift running water of a tiny 

 rapid to-day I found it covered with little 

 gravel barnacles that clung like limpets 

 to the proverbial rock. 



I could pry them off only by the use of 

 considerable force and even when I did 

 this the wee bits of gravel, carefully fitted 

 together in a hemisphere, still remained, 

 bound in strong bands. Within the hol- 

 low was the little creature that had built 

 the structure, his silken netting still hold- 

 ing him snug within his rock castle, so 

 much brain has this seemingly blind and 

 helpless worm for the preservation of 

 165 



