170 NATURE NOTES 
nurseries they were, with a half-moon shaped hole for exit and 
entrance. 
Our presence caused much consternation, and clouds of 
martins flew backwards and forwards before the entrance of the 
cave. Now and then a bold bird would dash in past us to pay 
its nest a hurried visit and then dash out again to join the other 
alarmed parents. After a time the birds seemed to become 
accustomed to our presence and openly returned to their nests, 
when an incessant chattering ensued, which suggested that 
the parents were entering into explanations with their little 
ones. In the flat conglomerate rocks to the left of the cave we 
came across a great pot-hole filled with water left by the tide. 
The hole was about two yards in diameter and perhaps the same 
in depth, with a surface fringe of fine green seaweed, and lower 
down on the sides bunches of coarse brown fucus had taken 
firm foot-hold. The water was beautifully clear and showed 
quite plainly the bottom lined with pebbles and sea-worn pieces 
of rock. As our shadows fell across the pool we noticed some 
swift movements in its depths, but on looking to see the cause, 
nothing living was visible among the still stones. We sat our- 
selves down to watch developments, feeling quite convinced that 
some living creature had been there a few moments before. 
Presently from the shade of the fucus darted out three small 
gurnets about four inches in length, and immediately afterwards 
from under the shelter of the stones at the bottom, some small 
crabs cautiously crawled out. From one of the larger recesses 
two large claws heralded the appearance of a lobster. He came 
out slowly and warily, and was followed by another and yet 
another of his kind. Soon the bottom of the pool was alive and 
moving with crabs and lobsters. Evidently, for some time past, 
the sea had not been high enough to reach this spot, for the 
rocks around were bare and dry, whereas, as far up as the then 
high-water mark, mussels formed a thick incrustation. 
As soon as the crustaceans emerged from their hiding places 
they began to feed. With their claws they nipped ofl from the 
stones the scanty confervoid vegetation and conveyed it to their 
mouths as though they were starving. 
They fed themselves very much like a child does, sometimes 
using the right claw as a hand, sometimes the left, and some- 
times both claws went to the mouth at once, reminding one of 
a greedy boy cramming his mouth with his two hands. One 
lobster caught hold of a long branch of brown fucus with his 
left claw, as though to steady himself, and with the right claw 
picked away at the seaweed and carried the portions to his 
mouth. Soon, however, a movement in the water washed the 
fucus away from the left claw and beyond the creature’s reach. 
The lobster, as soon as he realised his loss, stretched out both 
claws towards the recreant weed so imploringly, that the action 
seemed almost human. 
The gurnets had many narrow escapes, for their armoured 
