306 IN LOWER FLORIDA WILDS 



the mouth is blue. According to Jordan and 

 Evermann's Fishes of Middle and North America 

 this is not known from the waters of the United 

 States but it really is not rare on the southeast 

 coast of Florida. 



We ran slowly over a diversified bottom, stop- 

 ping now and then to absorb and revel in the 

 strange and beautiful sight. What first strikes the 

 visitor to such a reef is the wonderful color scheme, 

 and then the amazing wealth of animal life. On 

 land a few birds may be seen in an ordinary land- 

 scape; a moderate number of butterflies and other 

 insects; a wild mammal of any kind is rarely en- 

 countered, but here are actually acres of liAdng 

 things closely crowded together. There are hills 

 and dales of corals, and fields of sea fans, and 

 everywhere the gorgeous unbelievable fishes. 



The foundations of all this edifice of animal 

 life are great rounded masses of corals, the As- 

 treans, eight to ten feet across. Among them, 

 and a little above in the structure of the reef, 

 are other coral heads (Meandrina) almost as large 

 but having their surfaces cut into intricate ridges. 

 They are called "brain corals" from the fact that 

 their surfaces so closely resemble the convolutions 



