THE WONDERS OF THE SHORE. 155 



twisted masses of Serpulge,* those white tubes of 

 stone, from the mouth of which protrude pairs of 

 rose-coloured or orange fans, flashing in, quick as 

 light, the moment that your finger approaches them 

 or your shadow crosses the water. -f- 



You will dredge, too, the twelve-rayed sun-star 

 (Solaster papposa), with his rich scarlet armour ; and 

 more strange, and quite as beautiful, the bird's foot 

 star (Palmipes Membranaceus), which you may see 

 crawling by its thousand sucking-feet about one of 

 the central tanks, a pentagonal webbed bird's foot, 

 of scarlet and orano^e shagreen. With him, most 

 probably, will be a specimen of the great purple 

 heart-urchin (Spatangus purpureus), clothed in pale 

 lilac horny spines, and other Echinoderms, for 

 which you must consult Forbes's British Star-fishes : 

 but perhaps the species among them which will 

 interest you most, will be the common brittle-star 

 (Ophiocoma Eosula), of which a hundred or so, I can 



* Plate X. Fig. 1. 



f Do Serpulse &ce ? I cannot help thinking so, with my friend 

 their keeper at the Zoological Gardens. But wiser men than I say 

 they can find no organs of vision. 



