88 THE SEA-SHORE 



side by side together a few feet in front of the 

 water's edge and gobbling up the active little 

 creatures in thousands. Then the shore crabs 

 are very fond of them, and destroy thousands 

 more. And even when they are buried deeply 

 in the sand they are not safe, for there is a little 

 beetle which goes down their burrows after them, 

 and catches and eats them there very much as 

 a ferret catches a rabbit in its hole. 



But it is just as well that they do not all get 

 eaten, for sandhoppers are very useful little 

 creatures indeed. They feed upon the masses 

 of decaying sea-weed which are constantly flung 

 up on the shore by the waves. For they, too, 

 belong to the great army of " Nature's Dustmen," 

 like the "zoeas" of the crabs and lobsters, and 

 help to clear away all kinds of rubbish which 

 would poison the air and the water if it were 

 left to decay. Indeed, they will eat almost any- 

 thing, and if you were to tie up a number of sand- 

 hoppers in your handkerchief, and leave them 

 there for a few minutes, you would never be able 

 to use the handkerchief again; for you would 

 find that their sharp little jaws had nibbled it 

 into holes. 



If you watch a sandhopper carefully when it 

 is skipping about, you will find that it leaps by 

 doubling its body up, and then straightening it 

 out again with a sudden jerk. 



