THE AUSTKALIAX MUSEUM MAGAZ1^'E. 



81 



from tlie crevices in the rock, or slowly 

 ci'awling over the fine white sand. These 

 are the beche-de-mer, and at one time 

 they were extensively collected and 

 largely exported to China. Although 

 called by the fishers "sea slugs" or "teat- 

 lisli," tliey are neither slugs nor fish, 

 but are closely related to the star- 

 fishes. 



GIANT SEA AXKMOXES. 



The familial- crimson-coloured sea 

 anemones from Port Jackson and our 

 adjacent coastal beaches are veritable 

 pygmies comi)ared to some of their tro- 

 pical allies. The Great Barrier Eeef 



Clam shells and large Ijlue-coloured Starfishes 

 standing out in bold relief against the 

 glistening white of the coral sand. 



produces giant specimens which may 

 measure no less than from 18 inches to 

 2 feet across their expanded discs. 

 These giant anemones are further in- 

 teresting on account of the circum- 

 stance that they are self-constituted 

 "harbours of refuge" to sundry fishes 

 and crab'^. Tlie anemones are them- 

 selves bright in colour, but the associated 

 fishes are even more so. In addition a 

 small crab shares the sheltering hos- 

 pitality of the anemone. Some of these 

 tropical coral-reef -frequenting anemones, 

 which have their tentacles beautifully 

 l)raiiched. must lie cautiously handled in 

 consequence of their notalile stinging 

 properties. 



From the side of our boat we were 

 al)le to look down into the clear depths 

 of tiie sea and admire the wonders of 

 the ocean bed. Whole stretches of the 

 sea floor are covered over by the so- 

 called soft corals with here and there 

 collections of clam shells and laro-e blue- 



coloured starfishes, wliich stand oai in 

 bold relief against the glistening white 

 :)f tlie coral sand. 



EA(iLK JSr.AXD. 



At Eagle Island a pair of beautiful 

 sea eagles were seen hovering over- 

 head, and we found their nest, which 

 stood about ten feet in height, on the 

 windward side of the island. The nest 

 contained one egg and a young bird 

 measuring about two feet from ti]> to 

 tip of the outstretched wings. We re- 

 moved the t)ird from the nest for the 

 pur))ose of olitaining a photograph, but 

 our eaglet joroved to be in a pugnacious 

 mood, and it w^as only after consider- 

 able difficulty that I succeeded in mak- 

 ing an exposure. 



Large mottled eels proved to be very 

 common on the reefs, usually lying with 

 their bodies closely pressed along nar- 

 row grooves in the coral rock. When 

 distuilied tliey would make off through 

 the shalliiw water to otlier grooves, iti' > 

 •vliich their bodies fitted so perfectly 

 that they merged with the surrounding 

 L\K-k and were almost immediately lost 

 eigiit of. A small s]iecies of shark with 

 a bnUs-eye pattern on the side of the 

 body appeared to haunt the same loca- 

 lity as the reef eels. 



Turtles were sometimes met wit'.i either 

 in !l;c rock pools or sv/imming in the 

 open sea, while we l':equently passed 

 coiled sea-snakes basking in the warmth 

 of the sun as they floated passively on 

 tlie surface of the water. 



DUGONGS AXD TJIEIR OIL. 



The dugongs form a highly charac- 

 teristic and interesting group of reef- 

 frequenting marine mammals Avhich are 

 the object of a regular fishery chiefly 

 on account of their valual)le oil. Du- 

 gongs are essentially social in their habits 

 and assemble in herds, the females be- 

 ing always much more numerous than 

 the males. The adult animal reaches a 

 jcMgtli of eight to ten feet, and has a 

 distinctly rounded muzzle, while the 

 mouth of the male is armed with a 

 pair of large projecting tusk-like teeth. 

 Dugongs are herbivorous, and their food 

 consists almost exclusively of the marine 

 grass, which grows in great abundance 

 over the reef-flats. 



