SEA-STARS. 63 



than the former, heing very difficult to keep alive ; 

 and also much more brittle : the former, notwith- 

 standing their English name, I have not found so 

 particularly fragile. Among other members of this 

 wonderful class of animals, we obtained in the course 

 of our day's work, several of that fine but common 

 one, the Twelve-rayed Sun-star {Solaster papposaj, 

 a showy creature dressed in rich scarlet livery, some 

 eight inches in diameter. Two or three of a species 

 usually counted rare also occurred, the Bird's-foot 

 {Palmipes membranaceusj; more curious aad equally 

 beautiful. {See Plate III). It resembles a penta- 

 gonal piece of thin leather, with the angles a little 

 produced and regularly pointed. The central part 

 of this disk is scarlet, and a double line of scarlet 

 proceeds from this to each angle, while the whole is 

 margined by a narrow band of the same gorgeous hue. 

 The remainder of the surface is of a pale yellow or 

 cream-colour, and covered in the most elegant manner 

 with tufts of minute spines arranged in lines, which 

 cross each other, lozenge-fashion, near the middle of 

 the disk, and run parallel to each other, at right 

 angles to the margin, between the points. 



Not less attractive was another Starfish, the Eyed 

 Cribella (Gribella oculataj. It consists of five 

 finger-like rays, tapering to a blunt'point, and cleft 

 nearly to the centre ; the consistence stiffly fleshy, 

 or almost cartilaginous. The hue of both disk 

 and rays, on the superior surface, is a fine rosy 

 purple. {See Plate III.) 



All these are very attractive occupants of an Aqua- 

 rium. They are active and restless, though slow in 



