ZOOPHYTES. 205 



one of the most curious of our native zoophytes. The 

 specimens are particularly fine ; the cells tenanted 

 with healthy polypes in great numbers, protruding 

 their crystal stars of tentacles, and covered with scores 

 of birds' heads nodding to and fro their bald heads 

 like so many old men sleeping at church, and opening 

 and shutting their frightfully gaping jaws like snap- 

 ping turtles. 



Up the stem of one of these Bird's head Corallines 

 a colony of Pedicellitia Belgica has entwined its 

 creeping clinging roots, and is displaying its clubbed 

 polypes with unfolded tentacles in every direction. 

 This is a very common species in our rock- pools, 

 parasitic on many sea-weeds and calcareous polypes. 



The most abundant thing of all is Crisia aculeata, 

 a delicate and pretty species, easily recognised by its 

 long slender spine springing from the margin of every 

 cell. The multitude of these spines- gives a peculiar 

 lightness to the little shrubs in which this species 

 delights to grow. 



Several other species are parasitic on the Crisia. I 

 detect the curious tiny snake-heads of Angiiinaria 

 spatulata, entwined about its stems. A stalk of 

 Bowerbankia imbricata also is here, studded with 

 little aggregations of cells in dense clusters, set on the 

 slender thread-like stem at wide intervals. And a few 

 of the pitcher-hke cells of that singular zoophyte, 

 Beania mirabilis, set with hooked prickles, I find ; 

 in one of which I can see the polype snugly packed, 

 though I cannot get him to display his beauties out- 

 side his door. 



Besides all these, there are at least two kinds of 



T 



