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constantly alter their form, being now almost globose, then become 

 exceedingly elongated tubes, that change their stations after the 

 manner of Geometer-larvae by "looping." Then one becomes an 

 elegant little " specimen-flower-glass," with a globular base, from 

 which springs a funnel-shaded tube. 



Sagartia nivea, Gosse, the Snowy Anemone, is exceedingly local 

 here. It has several stations which for long I failed to discover, 

 though I got one isolated specimen from a rock at low-water, and 

 another that floated into our "porth" on a scrap of oar-weed. I 

 have since found several colonies. 



A couple of days after our Exhibition I took the opportunity 

 afforded by a low spring-tide to pay a first visit to a mass of rocks, 

 usually submerged, at Portcurnick, about half-a-mile away. The 

 rocks are much broken up, great bosses standing up from sandy 

 patches, and squared blocks are bordered with deep channels, 

 through which every wave sends in a fierce current of water. At 

 the base of the rocks, among the sand and gravel, /e?//>/^ of enormous 

 proportions were packed in long lines. Verrucosa was there in 

 plenty, but I would not notice them, for others caught my eye. 

 There were limp masses of whitish jelly hanging on the vertical face 

 of one rock, or depending from under the beetling brow of another ; 

 and with them were more elongated forms of a drab colour, inclining 

 to red at the free end. Similar forms weie slightly open and 

 showed a peculiar pinkiness within that contrasted strangely with 

 the dingy tints of the outside. This was a find, for the clear jelly 

 masses, though puzzling at first, when half expanded revealed them- 

 selves fully, late that evening, by erecting iheir dumpy mass into a 

 tall alabaster column, with a parapet near the top supporting the 

 rich feathery crown of Metridmtn senilis (Linn.), the Plumose 

 x\nemone. 



The others included two of Gosse's species that I had not previ- 

 ously found at Portscatho, namely, Sagartia venusta, Gosse, the 

 Orange-disc Anemone, and S. rosea, Gosse. The former is a shy 

 creature, not widely opening so readily as it closes. The dull 

 orange disc is surrounded by very slender white tentacles with pellucid 

 tips, and the bases crossed by a couple of grey bars, which give a 

 peculiar, checkered appearance to the circumference of the disc. 

 When the two species have fully withdrawn their tentacles, venusta 

 and rosea niay be easily mixed and passed as one species. Rosea 

 has delicate, almost pellucid, tentacles, of a pale rose pink, the disc 

 still paler. When removed, it pours out a great number of stinging 

 threads from its column and base, but freely opens to reveal its 

 charms. These specimens were obtained from an awkward position. 

 We had to jump upon an island-rock, and lying prone, with the 

 upper part of the body hanging down one side, detach the anemones 

 from the sloping under-surface of the rock whilst hanging on by the 

 legs only. It was done at the risk of losing knife, anemones, or 

 self in the eddying and swirling waters beneath, to say nothing of 



