78 



EGGS OF PURPUEA. 



clusters is remarkable ; far the whelk itself is 

 by no means a large shell, and so it often 

 happens that those persons who are practically 

 acquainted with the whelk, but not with the eggs, 

 entirely refuse to believe that there is any con- 

 nexion between objects so dissimilar. The empty 

 egg-cluster bears some resemblance to a rather 

 dingy honey-comb, partially squeezed between 

 the hands. But when the membranous egg-sacs 

 contain their living inhabitants, the animal 

 nature is evident from the presence of the young 

 whelks, whose forms can be plainly seen through 

 the semi-transparent substance that envelopes 

 them until they are sufficiently strong to lead 

 an independent life. 



A description of the purpura has already been 

 given on p. 24, and it will be seen that this 

 creature is interesting, not only on account of 

 the beautiful dye which it contains, but also for 

 the singular shape of its eggs, a cluster of which 

 is represented in plate h, fig. 2. Sometimes these 

 curious eggs are found affixed to little stones, 

 and, indeed, when first deposited, some of them 

 seem always to be thus anchored as it were, and 

 to afford support to the others, who stand on 

 each other's shoulders, something like the human 

 pyramid that is occasionally formed at Astley's 



