XARRATIVE OF THE CRUISE. 



14f) 





strong, and they fight furiously, screaming all the while. Only one egg is laid, and it is 

 of a dark red colour like that of the kestrel. 



The corals of Bermuda may be seen growing to great advantage by the use of a water 

 glass. The species are, as will be seen by the list below, as far as is yet known, 25 in 

 number, of which 23 are Anthozoan and 2 Hydrozoan; the latter (species of Mille- 

 pora) are very abundant, and contribute largely to the reef formation. While some 

 species, such as the great Brain Coral (Diploria cerebriformis), which is conspicuous 



Fig. 59. — Group of Palms on the croquet-lawn, Mount Langton. 



at the bottom as a bright yellow mass, appear to prefer to grow where the water is 

 lighted up by the sunshine, other species, such as Millepora ramosa and Isophyllia 

 dipsacea, seem to thrive best in the shade. One species, Agaricia fragilis, occurs 

 growing in colonies in great abundance in water from a foot to a fathom in depth, 

 inside small caverns, and forms very thin and fragile plate-like laminae, which when 

 bleached are almost the loveliest of corals. 1 



1 Reef Corals of Bermuda.— lit. J. J. Quelch, B.Sc, of the British Museum, who is engaged in the preparation of 

 a Report on the Challenger collection of Reef Corals, contributes the following note -.—"The structure and position of 

 the Bermudas give a special interest to the reef-corals which are found there, the more so as those hitherto obtained have 

 been confined to a few species. A list of these has been given by Dana (Corals and Coral Islands, p. 114) and includes 

 the following :— Of the Astrsea tribe, IsophylUa dipsacea, Isophyllia rigida, Diploria cerebriformis; of the Oculina tribe, 

 Oculina diffusa, Oculina pallens, Oculina mricosa, Oculina valenciennesi ; of the Fungia tribe, Siderastra-a radians, 

 Myeedbm fragile; of the Madrepora tribe, Porites clavaria; also the Hydroid coral Millepora alokornis. 



(naur. chall. Exr. — vol. i. — 1884.) 19 



