The Pheasant Shells 



ranean and Adriatic beaches. Some have rosy patterns, others 

 brown and yellow, others purplish and drab. P. tenuis, Mich, 

 is a trifle longer, its whorls rounded, the pattern blending red 

 and yellow on a pale ground. Mediterranean and Adriatic 

 shores. 



Florida and the West Indies and California have represen- 

 tatives of this genus, all very small shells, but graceful and prettily 

 marked. P. affinis, C. B. Ads., J inch in height, is regularly 

 dotted with pink, with broad longitudinal dull streaks clouding 

 the pale ground colour. P. tessellata, smaller but much 

 stouter in shape, is checkered with red lines crossing at right 

 angles, and white figures, elongated or crescent shaped, are regu- 

 larly scattered on its whorls. P. umbilicata, d'Orb., dotted and 

 blotched with red on a white ground, is provided with a deep 

 umbilicus. Cuba and Florida. 



On the California coast P. compta, Old., a very small pheas- 

 ant shell, with elongated spire, has longitudinal banding of purple 

 or gray crossed by fine spiral lines of rose or drab. This species 

 occurs in several distinct varieties. 



Sandy beaches yield plenty of the dead shells, whose beauty 

 can only be enjoyed by using a lens. The living creatures may 

 be collected from the blades of sea grass. 



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