THE SEA-ANEMONES AND THEIR ALLIES 167 



marine animals have been named above, because, as already 

 explained, the conditions are so varied at different parts of our 

 coasts that comparatively few animals can be said to be equally 

 common in all parts. It has been thought best to include here 

 a selection of those only common in certain parts. It may there- 

 fore quite well happen that the teacher at some particular part 

 of the coast may find only a very small proportion of the animals 

 here described. But in this case the poverty of the shore should 

 not be regarded as a reason for neglect rightly looked at, the 

 few, commonplace, hardy forms found may rival in interest all 

 the anemones of Devonshire. As points to which in this case 

 the teacher may usefully direct attention are, for example, on a 

 wave-swept coast, with few or no sheltered coves, the means of 

 protection from current action adopted by the animals which 

 do occur. Thus, the common anemone Tealia, if living in wave- 

 swept spots where the stones and gravel it loves are absent, 

 quite changes its tactics, and attaches itself to the rock-face 

 instead of sinking its body in gravelly sand. Again, if the coast- 

 line is predominantly sandy, with occasional belts of rock, a 

 problem of great interest is how the rock-loving, sedentary 

 animals, which are absent from the sandy reaches, get from 

 one belt of rocks to another. We have offered above some sug- 

 gestions as to the solution of this problem, and by the help of 

 the aquarium the teacher may hope to solve it for all the common 

 forms. Again, generally speaking, coast towns or villages have 

 been determined by the occurrence of a harbour or sheltered cove. 

 If the prime industry was fishing, there will be bait beds in the 

 neighbourhood, for long before man came the fish were there, 

 and they must have found food. Here is a sequence which may 

 be made the basis of useful lessons a fishing village means 

 shelter, which often means rocks, the rocks mean rock-haunting 

 animals, and these bring food-fish ; the aquarium is not being 

 properly kept if it does not suggest and make "vivid such 

 sequences. Again, if the village or town be on a river or estuary, 

 it will be noted that the river brings down silt, which is deposited 

 somewhere near its mouth. The silt means mud-inhabiting 

 animals, for the land waste carried down by the river is capable 

 of feeding many marine animals. If muddy water is fatal to 



