THE EUROPEAN SEAS. 



99 



tional and disappear. But other sea-weeds are very 

 abundant, especially those that delight in red or 

 purple hues. 



Sea-Vegetables of the Dulse tribe and its allies 

 are very plentiful here, species of Delesseria, Rho- 

 domenia, Rhodomela, &c. Tender sea-mosses, exqui- 

 sitely delicate in form and colouring, species of 

 Hutchinsia, Callithamnium, and Ceramium abound. 

 Where none of these are very plentiful, we often 

 find the coral-weed or Nullipore, in vast quan- 

 tities, and assuming many strange modifications of 

 form, growing in some places into miniature cab- 

 bage-heads or fucus-like expansions, in others as- 

 suming a truly coral-like aspect and deserving its 

 popular designation. Among these vegetable corals 

 numbers of peculiar fish, shells, and articulate ani- 

 mals delight to live; and probably not a few derive 

 subsistence from their stony fronds. The Lima (a 

 shell-fish related to the Scallop) gathers the broken 

 branches by means of prehensile tentacles, and con- 

 structs for itself a comfortable nest, lined with a 

 woven cloth of byssal threads. Numerous fishes 

 resort to these rugged pastures in order to deposit 

 their spawn among the gnarled branchlets. 



The destruction of a nullipore ground is sure to 

 drive away its finny frequenters, and, consequently, 

 enactments have been made at various times in 

 statutes concerning fisheries, for the preservation of 

 this valuable variety of sea-bed. 



The zoological and botanical peculiarities and 



