290 EAMBLES OF A NATURALIST. [Ch. XVII. 



catch one before I could succeed, so swift were they in 

 their movements. Preparing my right hand, and advancing 

 it cautiously, I darted it out as rapidly as I could to secure 

 the crab ; but it was too quick, and had regained its hole. 

 At length, after repeated attempts, I caught two specimens, 

 which immediately curled themselves up and feigned death. 

 I put one of them on the sand to see what it would do. At 

 first it did not attempt to move ; but after a short time, by 

 a twisting and wriggling movement, it rapidly sunk into the 

 sand and disappeared. I had attempted in vain for a long 

 time to cut off one of the crabs from its hole, so that I might 

 fill it up and observe whether it would go into a neighbour's 

 hole, and with what result. But as I could not succeed in 

 doing this (and it was frightfully hot work stooping over the 

 sand under the direct rays of the tropical sun) I put one of 

 the crabs I ha,d caught into a hole already containing a crab ; 

 but no result followed. I attempted to dig it up again in 

 vain. I dug up many holes ; but though I soon arrived at 

 the soft and wet sand beneath, I never succeeded in procur- 

 ing a pill-making crab by digging it out. Nor, when I filled 

 up several holes, did any result follow, as long as I had 

 patience to wait.* 



These pill-making crabs are gregarious. Many considerable 

 patches of sand were covered with their holes and pellets, some 

 close together, some more sparsely ; but other very large tracts 

 in the neighbourhood had not a single hole upon them. They 

 rapidly make their appearance immediately after the tide has 



• Mr. Spenoe Bate writes me as follows : " The PiU-maker is a very curious 

 fellow, and is very remarkable in its structure. I have drawn it, but have 

 not completed my detailed examination of its structure. It is a new genus, 

 which I have named Sphserapoeia (from iT(j>aipa, a piU, and itoiew, to make)." 

 The same gentleman has further attached my name to this species, which he 

 calls Sphserapoeia CoUingwoodii. 



