416 SEA-WEEDS. 



surprises and delights those who begin to study them. These 

 plants present a far greater variet\' of shapes than the land 

 plants which surround us; especialh' the Rhodophyceae 

 which I'lbouiid in the Mediterranean. There are species 

 of red Algae which consist onl\' of line threads; others 

 whose various branches unite to form a definite structure, 

 as Calit/iaiiiiiioii rosciim (Fig. p. 57). Others again are 

 Hat and branched in different ways, as ^iluphvlhtm pniic- 

 iaiuiu (Fig. p. 30/); some resemble lichen, as Pcvssoniiclia 

 Squafiiaria (Fig. p. ,-531); and lastl\ some remind us of 

 highly organised plants, as Dclcsscria Jlvpoglofsaiii. In 

 some cases the resemblance is so striking that an un- 

 practised eye might be deceived as to their classification 

 in the Vegetable World. Next to the red Algae is a 

 group of green ones, the Siphoneae, which are very 

 attractive on account of their elegance. Amongst these 

 are species {Bryopsis, Fig. p. 53) branched like our 1 lyp- 

 num, others {Halcuicda, Fig. p. 221) that resemble small 

 Opuntias, and others again [Acclaluilan'a, V\g. p. 9) 

 that look like slender bright green Toadstools. But what 

 most strikes anyone wandering on the sea-shore after a 

 storm is a dark green ball [Codiiuii luirsa, Fig. p. 113), 

 which may be the size of an orange or even of a child's 

 head. This also belongs to the Siphoneae. I have often 

 seen (.[uantities of it in the Ba\- of Villefranche. It is 

 filled with sea-water, and as this soon evaporates, the 

 ball shrinks and forms a cap. Of the brown Algae, 

 Cyslosrira (Fig. p. 137) is the commonest. Ne.xt we have 

 the bushy Sphaccllaria (F"ig. p. 3'm) and Padiiiii Pavojiia 

 (Fig. p. 31')j which, clinging to the rocks in cro^^'ded 



