THE ZOOPHYTES (Hyuroida and Polyzoa) 

 OF GUERNSEY. 



BY E. D. MARQUAND, A.L.S. 



Until the microscope began to be regularly employed for the 

 purpose of scientific investigation, the great majoiity of those 

 curious forms of life which were afterwards popularly known 

 by the expressive name of ZoopJiytes^ were regarded as belong- 

 ing either to the vegetable or to the mineral kingdom. Even 

 the great natm-alist Reaumur speaks of the flowers of the 

 coral ; and it was not until the middle of the eighteenth 

 century that the animal nature of these productions was clearly 

 demonstrated. This was done by a Bristol merchant named 

 John Ellis, avIio in the year 1755, after much patient research, 

 published a classical work on the " Natural History of the 

 Corallines, "^ — a book equally remarkable for closeness of 

 observation and scientific accuracy, both in the descriptions 

 and the drawings. 



Linna3us adopted the views of Ellis to some extent^ 

 although he seems to have held the opinion that the stems 

 and branches of corallines were of a vegetable nature, while 

 the polyps that tenanted them were animals ; and so he 

 founded the Order Zoojjliyta for the reception of these and 

 certain other radiated animals. 



During the first half of the nineteenth century a good 

 many books Avere published on the subject, the most important 

 one to British students being Johnston's valuable treatise 

 Avhich appeared in 1838. A second edition, much enlarged, 

 was issued in 1847, and this remained the best text-book on 

 British Zoophytes, until the publication by the Rev. Thomas 

 Hincks, F.R.S., of his two splendid monographs : the first in 

 1868, on The British Hijdroid Zoophytes^ the second in 1880, 

 on The British Marine Polyzoa. These two books are at the 

 present time, and are likely to remain for some years, the 

 standard works of reference on the subject for British natu- 

 ralists. 



