hells 
ate Zealand 
Plate XII 
No. 3 
Plate XII 
No. 4 
the collector will rarely find complete specimens, especially 
during hot weather; when washed up, the shells rapidly 
dry in the hot sun, the ligament becomes very brittle, and 
so the valves fall apart at the least touch, or puff of wind. 
There are times when one will be rewarded by finding a 
few perfect specimens, and these may be carefully cleaned by 
removing the remains of the adductor muscles—which will 
be about all there is left of the animal—and rinsing in cold 
fresh water to get rid of the salt, sand, and any extraneous 
matter on the outside of the shell. A little glycerine applied 
to the ligament, inside and out, will prevent that structure 
from drying up and becoming brittle, or the valves may 
be bound together with a few turns of cotton for a day 
or two; when dry, the thread may be removed, and the 
shell will remain closed; the specimens may thus be kept 
intact for the cabinet. Those treated with glycerine will 
remain open, so that the beautifully-tinted interior may be 
displayed. 
The Protocardia pulchella is found in the Hauraki 
Gulf; Mount Maunganui; Stewart Island. 
PSAMMOBIA LINEOLATA (pfsammos, sand; bios, 
life; lineolata, being marked with lines).—This is one of 
the well-known Sunset shells. A prettily-marked oblong 
bivalve about two inches long, equally rounded at both ends, 
rather thin, translucent and polished. The colour is pur- 
plish pink, and is arranged in concentric bands of varying 
widths and shades, the different shades of colour being 
caused by very fine lines close together or spaced further 
apart. There are three or four darker bands close to the 
ventral margin, then a paler zone along the middle of the 
shell, gradually shading into a darker zone toward the 
hinge. There are also fan-shaped whitish rays proceeding 
from the beaks to the ventral border, somewhat feebly 
marked. Some specimens have the sunset rays well de- 
fined, while in others they are quite absent. This variation 
might lead one to suppose them to be distinct varieties, 
but this is not the case. The interior has a highly-glazed 
surface, similarly coloured to the exterior, but paler. 
Found washed ashore on sandy ocean beaches. 
North and South Islands. Mount Maunganui; Chat- 
ham Islands. 
PSAMMOBIA STANGERI (psammos, sand; bios, life; 
Stanger, the naturalist)—This Sunset shell is a purplish- 
white, thick bivalve, rayed with darker bands of violet 
arranged either singly or in groups of two or three, the 
rays being more conspicuous at either end. The colour 
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