34 ETON NATURE-STUDY 



(5) Drop a small pebble on to the tentacles and record what happens. 

 Do the same with a small piece of meat or fish. (Note the different 

 result and write down any explanation that may occur to you.) 



SUGGESTIONS FOR WORK OUT OF SCHOOL 



Keep an anemone in a glass jar or dish containing salt water, 

 taking care that it is as cool as possible, aerate the water by means 

 of a glass syringe every morning. Occasionally fill up the vessel 

 with distilled water to replace what is lost by evaporation. With a 

 little care it is possible to keep anemones for many months in this way. 



Note and draw the different positions which the creature will 

 occupy from time to time, and note any other facts about it that you 

 observe. 



Search in ponds and slowly moving streams for hydras, the little 

 fresh water relatives of the anemone, and compare the two together. 



If you are lucky you may see how an anemone reproduces itself, 

 especially if you have an aquarium and can keep two or three 

 examples in the same vessel. 



If you have a chance of visiting the seaside, look for as many 

 different kinds of anemones as you can, noting the 



(a) Size, shape and colour. 



(6) Number of tentacles. 



(c) Place where you found them, (that is to say how far below 

 high water mark). 



Then try and identify them from books and write their names 

 against your sketches. 



