deadl}- to most of the marine animals, 

 there is one notable exception. On an 

 island between New Guinea and Aus- 

 tralia there lives a species of sea anem- 

 one which attains a diameter of two 

 feet, and in its interior stomach cavity 

 there lives a little fish (Amphiprion), 

 which enters and leaves this strange 

 abode without suffering harm from its 

 host. This is an example of commens- 

 alism, the fish and anemone being mu- 

 tually beneficial to each other. 



There are many animals, however, 

 which suffer the penalty of being eaten 

 when they approach too near the appar- 

 ently harmless polyp, for they are imme- 

 diately parahzed by the stinging organs 

 and drawn into the capacious mouth of 

 the polyp by the tentacles. Small fish, 

 strong crabs with their formidable pin- 

 cers and mollusks alike fall victims, their 

 strength being of no avail against the 

 benumbing influence of these little barbs. 

 It is recorded that a bee once mistook 

 a sea anemone for a flower as it lay ex- 

 panded just beneath the surface of the 

 water, and it found its mistake too late, 

 when the anemone paralyzed it and after 

 a few struggles drew it into its stomach. 



The sea anemone possesses a wonder- 

 ful power of reproducing parts of its 

 body which may become cut off or in- 

 jured in some manner. If a polyp be 

 cut in several pieces each piece will even- 

 tually become a perfect animal. 



Coral polyps reproduce their kind in 

 three ways ; first, in the ordinary manner 

 l)y means of eggs. Some species of the 

 polyps are separated into sexes, male and 

 female, but there are a large number 

 which are hermaphroditic, having the 

 male and female organs in the same 

 body. A second method of reproduction 

 is by gemmation or budding and in 

 this case a new individual simply grows 

 from the base or some other part, of an 

 older individual. A large number of the 

 colonial polyps increase in this manner. 

 A third manner, called fission, is by self 

 division, in which the animal breaks in 

 two, forming two individuals. The 

 polyps which develop from eggs are at 

 first oval, ciliated embryos which swim 

 about in the ocean for a time and finally 

 settle to the bottom in a favorable spot, 

 where they become attached to some ob- 

 ject, and begin to build their limestone 



support. The family Astraeidas or star 

 Corals are closely allied to the sea anem- 

 one, many of the species differing prin- 

 cipally in the presence of the limestone 

 support. These Corals are very beauti- 

 ful, forming rounded hemispherical 

 domes or long, tortuous trenches. The 

 common brain Coral of Florida and the 

 West Indies (Meandrina cerebriformis) 

 grows to an immense size, specimens 

 having been seen on the Coral reefs 

 which measured over ten feet in cir- 

 cumference. The little folds which cov- 

 er this Coral resemble the convolutions 

 of the human brain, hence the common 

 name cerebriformis, "formed like a 

 brain." Another common, though very 

 much smaller species is the Manacina 

 areolata, which is to be found abundantly 

 on the Florida Keys. 



The fungus or mushroom Corals, be- 

 longing to the family Fungiidae, are 

 among the most remarkable of all the 

 Corals. They frcquenth' form circular 

 or elliptical discs, conical caps or long, 

 narrow inverted troughs. These are all 

 made up of sharp, erect lamellae which 

 radiate from a common center to the 

 periphery of the disc. They attain a con- 

 siderable size, some specimens being a 

 foot in diameter, while the trough-shaped 

 individuals attain a length of nearly 

 twenty inches, the width of which may 

 not be over five inches. The attached 

 forms grow in simple leaf-like expan- 

 sions, sometimes at the side of other 

 Corals, like a lichen on a tree stump. 

 Others form hemispherical clusters 

 which resemble leaves, vases or massive 

 columns. 



The colonies of the Caryophyllidae 

 form bushy clumps, convex masses, leaf- 

 like clusters and goblet-shaped designs, 

 and frequently attain a height of six 

 feet. Several species are common in 

 Florida and the West Indies, among 

 which may be mentioned the milk white 

 Coral (Galaxea) which builds rather 

 long, cylindrical tulies from a wide stony 

 platform, and the Eved Coral (Oculina) 

 which forms beautiful vase-like cups on 

 graceful branches. 



The family Favositidae is of great in- 

 terest on account of its great antiquity, 

 it having commenced life in the early 

 Ordovician age of geological time. 

 Though once forming huge Coral reefs, 



132 



