THE COEALS AND JELLY-FISHES. 841 



greatest amount of food, and it is for the puipose of feeding that they visit the oyster-beds in 

 such large droves. They are not always abundant in the same places, but seem to move about. 

 Professor Verrill thinks " their habit of coming up to the shore may be connected with their 

 reproductive season." They do not enjoy too brackish water, and oysters in such locations are 

 safe from their attacks. 



Asterias vulgaris ranges from Long Island Sound to Labrador, and A. ForbesU from Massa- 

 chusetts Bay to the Gulf of Mexico. The former species is, therefore, essentially a northern one, 

 and the latter a southern one, but over a certain region they overlap, and it is througt this region 

 and just to the south of it that most of the damage is done. A. Forhesii is the shore species where 

 the greater part.of the oyster-beds occur, and it must assume most of the blame for the thousands 

 of oysters destroyed on these beds. 



236. THE COELENTERATES. 



The Goraxs. 



Many of the common Florida Corals, from their graceful shapes and delicately sculptured 

 surfaces, are highly prized for ornamental purposes, and have come to possess a certain commer- 

 cial value. They are regularly kept for sale in most of the larger cities, such as Boston and New 

 York, and unusually fine specimens frequently command a high price. The group of Corals, as 

 popularly understood, includes members of two classes of the Ccelenterata, the Polyp Corals and 

 the Hydroid Corals, both of which, and especially the former, present a great variety of forms. 

 The principal ornamental Corals found on the coast of Florida are as follows : Among the 

 Gorgonians occur the Sea-fans {Gorgonia flabellum), and the Sea-feathers or Sea-i)lumes [Gorgonia 

 acerosa and Gorgonia setosa). Among the true stony corals are the Stag-horn Corals {Madrepora 

 cervicornis, prolifera, and. palmata); the Brain Corals {Meandrina labyrinthiformis, clivosa, and 

 sinuosa, Biploria cerebriformis, and Manicina areolata) ; the Fungus Corals (Agaricia agaricites 

 and Mycedium fragile); the Star Corals {Orbicella annularis and cavernosa), a.ud many others 

 without common names, such as the Oculina diffusa and Isophyllia dipsacea. l nly a single Species 

 of Hydroid' Coral is commonly seen in show collections ; it is the so-called Finger Coral or Sea 

 Ginger [Millepora alcicornis), the latter common name haviifg reference to the smarting sensation 

 which it imparts to the skin, on handling, soon after it is taken from the water. Many foreign 

 species of Corals, belonging to the above groups, are often to be seen in the natural history stores; 

 they come mainly from the West Indies and the Pacific Ocean. Neither the precious Coral 

 [Gorallium rubrum) nor any other species approaching it in value to the trade occurs in American 

 waters, but large quantities of the former are < imported annually from Europe for making into 



jewelry. 



The Jellt-Fishes. 



The Jelly-fishes, Sun-fishes, or Medusae, which are well known to the sea-coast inhabitants as 

 transparent and delicate floating animals, most abundant in the summer months, are, at times, a 

 source of great annoyance to the Aet fishermen. These watery creatures, whose bodies contain only 

 a very small percentage of solid matter, vary greatly in shape, and belong to several orders of the 

 Gmlenterata. They have often been described and figured in popular books on natural history, to 

 which the reader is referred for details concerning their structure and habits. The commoner 

 species found on the New England coast are referred to as follows by Prof. A. E. Verrill. ^ 



" A fine, large specimen of the beautiful Jelly-fish Tima formosa has been sent me by Mr. V. 

 N- Edwards, who captured it at Wood's Holl, April 30. He states that the same species was very 



'Vineyard Sound Eeport, p. 449, 1871-'72. 



