CRABS IN THE STOMACH OF ANEMONES. 133 



ment floating in the water : yet they either could not, or 

 would not, eat this Crustacean. 



No one can have taken Anemones from the rocks without 

 observing fragments of small crabs, and sometimes whole 

 crabs, as big as crown pieces, in their stomachs ; but the 

 question whether these crabs were captured alive by the 

 Anemones is not thereby answered. Without absolutely 

 denying that the Anemone does thus capture them, I am 

 forced by repeated observation and experiment, to declare 

 that the evidence all points in the direction of a denial. I 

 remember once accidentally dropping a tiny crab on the 

 expanded oral disc of a Crassicornis, whose mouth was wide 

 open ; and very amusing it was to see the little creature rush 

 into the open mouth, settle himself comfortably there, and 

 begin twittering his antennse, as crabs do wlien their alarm 

 subsides. The Crass never moved : owing to the insensibi- 

 lity of the stomach, he was quite undisturbed by this refugee 

 — in this by no means resembling the Cyclops of Euripides, 

 who energetically repudiates the idea of swallowing the 

 satyr : 



" You in my stomach ? Horror, if I had ! 

 Your capering antics there would drive mo mad." * 



The crab remained twittering for some minutes. I touched 

 him, and he retreated deeper down into the cavity. Looking 

 into the pan some time after, I found he had crawled away, 

 so I gave him to an Anthea, who clutched, but soon released 



—Cyclops, V. 220. 



