By Keith S heard. 
s.A. tfA?., VOL. XVI. 
March 24. 1937. 
51 . 
reminiscent of spiders, may be seen, the male carrying the egg 
bundles on specialised joints of his legs. When to these are added 
the myriad Copepods and representatives of most of the Isopod 
groups, from the relatively huge Idoteids to Sphaeromids and 
Cirolanas, the total from one small pool is enough to convince 
you of the inexhaustible fertility of the sea. 
Should you desire to study the animals living, the best 
method is to place a little water in the bowl and stand a rock 
or seaweed in this in the hot sun. Gradually the rock or weed 
will dry, and many of its inhabitants will creep to the damper 
side and may be shaken into the water, but it will be well to do 
this long before the tide begins to come in, as you will become 
so interested that you will find the water cutting you off before 
vour collecting is half done, for there yet remain the under sides 
of such rocks as can be lifted. 
If these are turned over in water so that after a while the 
animals begin to carry on their daily life again, you will see 
how the Anemones live, be able to watch finger-like Holothurians, 
and realise that each colouration represents a different animal 
or colony, from the blood-red Bryozoan, Mucro, to the trans- 
lucent egg masses of any one of a number of groups. 
By now the tide has fully turned, and you prepare to leave 
when your companion sees an octopus creeping from under the 
last rock that has been turned over. While he catches it, you 
turn back the rocks that have been disturbed (on the general 
principle of leaving things more or less as you find them), ami 
by the time this is done the octopus, with many score of egg 
capsules held close to it, is caught, your companion refuses to 
pickle it, and you have the experience of seeing quite an acrobatic 
feat. Leaving you to pack the various impedimenta, he starts 
for the shore, balancing the enamel bowl, negotiating potholes 
and slippery places, and altogether giving a performance that, 
neatly rounds off the day’s experience. 
The catch obtained from the three methods — straining of 
the shore sand, the formalin soaking, and the sun drying ma\ 
prove difficult to name, as obscure forms and new species aie 
frequent but with the help of the British Science Guild Handbook, 
the Crustaceans of South Australia (H. M. Hale), papers on the 
Isopoda and Cumacea (H. M. Hale), and the Amphipoda (K. 
Sheard) in the Records of the South Australian Museum, the 
Crustacea may be fairly well identified. W hile for the lest, le- 
course may have to be made to a Museum specialist. 
