Kitabı oku: «Birds and Nature Vol. 9 No. 4 [April 1901]», sayfa 5

PAU-PUK-KEEWIS AND THE BEAVERS

 
Over rock and over river,
Through bush, and brake, and forest,
Ran the cunning Pau-Puk-Keewis;
Like an antelope he bounded,
Till he came unto a streamlet
In the middle of the forest,
To a streamlet still and tranquil,
That had overflowed its margin,
To a dam made by the beavers,
To a pond of quiet water,
Where knee-deep the trees were standing,
Where the water-lilies floated,
Where the rushes waved and whispered.
On the dam stood Pau-Puk-Keewis,
On the dam of trunks and branches,
Through whose chinks the water spouted,
O’er whose summit flowed the streamlet.
From the bottom rose the beaver,
Looked with two great eyes of wonder,
Eyes that seemed to ask a question,
At the stranger, Pau-Puk-Keewis.
On the dam stood Pau-Puk-Keewis,
O’er his ankles flowed the streamlet,
Flowed the bright and silvery water,
And he spake unto the beaver,
With a smile he spake in this wise:
“O my friend Ahmeek, the beaver,
Cool and pleasant is the water;
Let me dive into the water,
Let me rest there in your lodges;
Change me, too, into a beaver!”
Cautiously replied the beaver,
With reserve he thus made answer:
“Let me first consult the others,
Let me ask the other beavers.”
Down he sank into the water,
Heavily sank he, as a stone sinks,
Down among the leaves and branches,
Brown and matted at the bottom.
On the dam stood Pau-Puk-Keewis,
O’er his ankles flowed the streamlet,
Spouted through the chinks below him
Dashed upon the stones beneath him
Spread serene and calm before him,
And the sunshine and the shadows
Fell in flecks and gleams upon him,
Fell in little shining patches,
Through the waving, rustling branches.
From the bottom rose the beavers,
Silently above the surface
Rose one head and then another,
Till the pond seemed full of beavers,
Full of black and shining faces.
To the beavers Pau-Puk-Keewis
Spake entreating, said in this wise:
”Very pleasant is your dwelling,
O my friends! and safe from danger;
Can you not with all your cunning,
All your wisdom and contrivance,
Change me, too, into a beaver?”
“Yes!” replied Ahmeek, the beaver,
He the king of all the beavers,
“Let yourself slide down among us,
Down into the tranquil water.”
Down into the pond among them
Silently sank Pau-Puk-Keewis;
Black became his shirt of deer-skin,
Black his moccasins and leggins,
In a broad black tail behind him
Spread his fox-tails and his fringes;
He was changed into a beaver.
 

– Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “The Song of Hiawatha.”

 
What rosy pearls, bright zoned or striped!
What freckled surface, iris-dyed!
Fluted and grooved, with iv’ry lips,
Spotted like panthers, peacock-eyed!
 
 
Look closer, as the angels can,
And you will see the fairy work —
The ruby specks, the azure veins,
That in the tiniest hollow lurk.
 

– Walter Thornbury, “Shells.”

SNAILS OF THE OCEAN

Many of my readers have doubtless spent some of the vacation months at the sea shore and have wandered over the beach at low tide picking up shells and other objects left by the receding ocean. They have also, I am sure, peered into the little pools of water left on the beach and have watched with interest the captives imprisoned therein, hermit crabs, fiddler crabs, sea anemones, sea worms and snail shells. It is with the latter that the present article will deal.

The stretch of beach which is uncovered twice a day by the receding of the water is called “between tides,” and is inhabited by a host of animate creatures, chief among which are the mollusks. The marine snails outnumber all of those which we discussed in the last article, and their shells are far more beautiful, those found in the tropics having the most gaudy colors imaginable. The animals are formed on the same plan as those of the fresh-water snails, although each family has some peculiarity not shared by its relatives. All live in the water and breathe air through that medium by means of gills, similar to the second class of fresh water snails mentioned in the last number. They are found in all parts of the world, those of the tropics, however, being the most brilliantly colored. While the majority of species live either between tides or near low water, there are not a few which live in the abysses of the ocean, and have been dredged from the bottom of the sea at a depth of two thousand, seven hundred and forty fathoms, or, to put it more plainly, over three miles. The average depth at which mollusks are found in any number is about one thousand fathoms. The variability of marine snails is so great that we shall be able to call attention to but a limited number of typical forms.

Among the best known of the marine snails are the Tritons, a family of mollusks living in tropical seas. Their shells are generally large and highly-colored and variously ornamented with short spines and knobs. One species, the Triton tritonis, is among the largest of mollusks, measuring eighteen inches in length. One of the smaller Tritons is pictured on the plate. Another shell familiar to those who have visited Florida is the Fasciolaria or banded snail, which attains a length of three inches and is very prettily banded and dashed with color. A near relative of this species is the giant banded shell (Fasciolaria gigantea), which is the largest of all marine snails, growing to a length of nearly two feet. This species is found plentifully on the southern Atlantic coast of the United States, being particularly abundant about the coral reefs of the Florida Keys.

A genus of mollusks with light horn colored shells, and inhabiting the cold waters of the Arctic seas, is the Buccinum, or whelk. In various parts of Great Britain it is known as “buckie” and “mutlog.” The Buccinum delights to burrow in the sand, like the moon shells (Natica), and frequently nothing but the end of the siphon can be seen, the latter protruding from the sand to enable the water to enter the animal to furnish the necessary oxygen. The whelk is used economically, both for food and bait. One ingenious method of catching them is to fasten a dead fish of good size in a wire basket and to allow it to rest on the bottom for a short time; when taken up it is covered with large, fat whelks. This fishery in Great Britain is fully as valuable as our oyster fishery, the annual income from this industry reaching to thousands of pounds sterling. The animal is also one of the principal baits used in cod fishing. A related genus, the neptune shells (Neptunea), is also eaten by the poorer people and makes a good codfish bait. The two kinds of whelk (Buccinum and Neptunea), are termed, the first the white whelk and the second the red or almond whelk, probably on account of the colors of the two shells. In the Shetland Islands the red whelk is used as a lamp, being suspended by strings from a nail, the mouth placed uppermost and filled with oil.

The basket shells or dog-whelks are among the most numerous in individuals of all the marine snail shells, the common black whelk (Nassa obsoleta) being the most common of all the mollusks. The writer has seen a mud flat at low water literally paved with the shells of this snail, there being millions of the little creatures crawling about. The shells of this family are frequently very handsome, being latticed by the crossing of lateral and longitudinal lines. They are mostly of small size, scarcely exceeding an inch in length, many of them being much under these dimensions. The animal is very rapid in movement and leaves a distinct track in the mud, which will frequently end at a little pellet of mud, which, upon examination, will disclose the little animal nicely concealed beneath.

The Nassas of France are very destructive to the oyster beds of that nation, an adult “borer” being able to perforate the shell of a large oyster in a single night. So numerous are these pests that a single acre has yielded over a thousand individuals. As a result of these depredations the French oystermen carry on a relentless war against the Nassa, destroying thousands of animals annually. With all this persecution the mollusk still exists and even increases in numbers. The dead shells of this genus are a favorite home for the hermit crabs of small size, and it is to be suspected sometimes that other than dead shells are appropriated. We fear that a sort of piracy is resorted to by the hermit crab, resulting in a kind of “walk-the-plank” end for the mollusk, before the new tenant takes possession of the “home.”

Of the many varieties of tropical shells, few exceed the Volutes, or bat shells, in beauty or variety of coloration. They are found in most parts of the world, although strangely enough none are now living in the seas of Europe, but they are most abundant and more highly colored in the tropics and subtropics. The animal is carnivorous, and the long, fang-shaped teeth are certainly suggestive of predaceous habits. The shells are variously colored, some being mottled, some with zigzag or lightning-like markings, while others have spirally arranged dots and lines. One species (Voluta musica, figured on the plate), has received its name from a more or less fanciful resemblance of the surface of the shell to a musical staff, the spiral lines being grouped in sets of four or five and the dots being arranged as notes. In some specimens this resemblance is quite close. The smooth and polished shell of some volutes is due to the fact that the greater portion is covered by a reflected part of the large foot.

On the sandy shores of subtropical beaches certain graceful and polished animals bury themselves from sight in the sand. These are the olive shells (Oliva) whose bright colors and highly polished surfaces rival even the gaudy Volute in beauty. The foot may be described as plough-shaped and is admirably adapted for digging rapidly in the sand, so that the shell may be hidden from sight on the approach of enemies. The long siphon is thrust up through the canal in the anterior part of the shell and its end protrudes above the sand. The high polish of the surface is due to the shell being enveloped in the voluminous foot; hence it has no epidermis. The aperture is so narrow that it is difficult to understand how the animal gets in and out. The olives are very numerous in individuals; when one is found hundreds are sure to reward a patient search.

Probably no more distinct family of mollusks exists than the Conidae, the family of cones, their beautifully decorated shells and the large number of species making them a favorite with collectors. The shell is in the form of an inverted cone, gracefully rounded, the aperture being but a narrow slit extending nearly the whole length of the shell. The colors of the cones are always very brilliant, although when they are alive the shell is not brilliantly polished as the olives, on account of the presence of an epidermis. About three hundred species are known, living principally in tropical seas. They love to conceal themselves in holes in the rocks and among the branches of corals. The animal is predaceous, boring into the shells of other mollusks and extracting the juices from the bodies. The teeth of Conus are hollow and very sharp and have a barb on the end. A poison gland is said to be present in this genus and bites from the animal are very painful, although not dangerous, the large Conus marmoreus being able to inflict a severe wound. The cone is quite pugnacious and will immediately bite the hand when picked up, a veritable reptile of the ocean.

The ne plus ultra of mollusks to the collector is without doubt the genus Cypraea, comprising the cowry shells. So eagerly have they been sought by wealthy collectors that the price of rarities has gone up to an astonishing degree, some specimens being sold at several hundred dollars each. The shell is highly polished, owing to the fact that two lobes of the voluminous mantle are turned back over the shell and meet in the middle of the back. The foot is very large and spreading, the mantle beset with curious little tentacular-like organs and the eyes are placed on small swellings near the base of the long, cylindrical tentacles. The color-patterns of the shell vary to a wonderful degree. The young shell has a thin epidermis, a sharp lip to the aperture and a more or less prominent spire, the rolled over and toothed lip and polished surface not being acquired until fully adult. No more beautiful sight can be imagined than one of these gorgeous animals, as seen through the clear water, crawling over the sandy bottom or on the branch of some coral.

Several of the cowries have a curious economic value. Thus, Cypraea aurantia, the orange cowry, was used as an insignia of royalty by the chiefs of the Friendly Islands, and for a long time the only specimens obtainable were those which had been bored and used. The money cowry (Cypraea moneta) has been used as money by the natives of Western Africa, and many tons of this small shell were annually imported to England to be used in barter by the African traders. The shell is of a yellowish or whitish color, does not exceed an inch in length, and is very common in the Pacific and Indian Oceans. It is still used as a medium of barter in parts of Africa, although other things have pretty generally taken its place.

Cameos were at one time quite in the fashion, both as ornaments for the person in the way of brooches, and as bric-a-brac about the room. These shell-cameos are made from the genus Cassis, the helmet shells. These are well adapted for this purpose, as the shell is made up of several differently colored layers, making a bas relief figure not only possible but very effective. The black helmet (Cassis madagascariensis) is one of the best for this purpose, the figure being carved from the white, outer layer of shell, which stands out very clearly against the black background of the second layer. When a cameo is desired simply as a brooch or for any other form of personal adornment, a piece of the shell is cut out and shaped into the required form and size – oval, square or other shape – and cemented to a block of wood. The figure is then traced on the shell with a pencil and finally carefully worked out with sharp, pointed steel instruments, of delicate size and form. The same process is resorted to in working out a bas relief on the entire shell, only the latter is placed in a vice or other object to hold it firmly. The home of this industry is Genoa and Rome, Italy, although some are produced in France; these latter, however, are of a poorer quality. Several thousand people are employed in this trade. Many beautiful examples of this work were exhibited at the World’s Columbian Exposition, in Chicago, in 1893.

The cameo shells are among the largest of sea snails, several of them measuring eight or ten inches in length and weighing several pounds. They are found only in tropical and subtropical seas, living in comparatively shallow waters on a sandy bottom. They are voracious eaters, living principally on bivalve mollusks.

One of the most abundant of mollusks is the violet sea snail (Ianthina communis), which spends its life floating in the waters of the Atlantic Ocean. The shell is very delicate, resembling in form some of the land snails, and has but two colors, both shades of violet, a deep color on the under side (which, by the way, is always turned upward when the animal is floating in the water), and a lighter shade on the upper side. So fragile is the shell that it seems as if a breath would break it. The most interesting fact in connection with this mollusk is the wonderful float or “raft” which is secreted by the foot, and to the under side of which the eggs are attached. The latter are not all in the same condition. Nearest to the animal they are more or less fresh; those in the middle of the float contain embryos and fully formed young, while those on the outer end are empty, the young having escaped into the water. The genus is gregarious and may be found in almost countless numbers. After a severe storm they are sometimes cast upon the beaches in vast numbers, where they soon die under the fierce rays of the sun.

We have thus far been dealing with snails whose shells were formed in a spiral coil. Quite a number of mollusks are not protected by such a shell, its place being taken by a flat, shield-like disk, or several distinct plates placed side by side. The most familiar of the first is the limpet or Patella, which is a depressed, conical, oval disk, looking not unlike a miniature shield. They live on rocks, to which they cling with great tenacity. The animal seems to have a pretty clear idea of local geography, for it invariably returns to the same place after its excursions for food and the rock in some localities has been hollowed out to a considerable depth by the continuous dwelling thereon of the limpet. The large foot is very strong and it is almost impossible to dislodge the shell from the rock when the animal becomes alarmed and is aware that danger is near. While grazing along the sides of a rock covered with fine sea-weed, it will leave a track like a worm and will clean off quite an area in a very short space of time.

Another species is the key-hole limpet (Fissurella), distinguished by having a slit or foramen in the apex of the shell. The shells of Fissurella are generally rougher than those of Patella, and as a rule they live in warmer seas. In the limpet we find a departure from the general form of both animal and shell, both being bilaterally symmetrical, that is, having both sides alike. In the mollusks which have been presented thus far, the body has been twisted in the form of a spiral, making one side different from the other and causing the organs of one side to become atrophied. In the limpets the organs are paired, as they are supposed to have been in the ancestors of the living mollusks.

The most peculiar of all the mollusks, so peculiar, indeed, that they constitute a separate order (Polyplacophora) are the Chitons, or coat-of-mail shells. The shell is made up of eight separate pieces or plates, each locking with the other, the whole supported by and buried in a coriaceous mantle which forms a margin all the way around. This must not be confounded with the true mantle of the animal, for it is only a part of the shell. It is beset with bristles, spines or hairs, which add much to the peculiar appearance of this mollusk.

The Chitons live for the most part on rocks at low water and are said to be nocturnal in habit, feeding only at night. Their movements are slow and they appear to be very sluggish in all their actions. When detached and taken from their rocky homes they have the provoking (to the collector) habit of rolling up and are sometimes very difficult to straighten out again. There are about two hundred and fifty living species, found in all parts of the world.

In the foregoing pages we have called attention to a few types of marine snails, and what has been written has hardly more than touched upon this vast field. There are thousands of different species even more interesting than those which have been mentioned. There are the beautiful ear shells, or Abalones, the little periwinkle, so largely used as an article of food in Europe, besides a host of others too numerous to mention. The brief notes and the figures on the plate will convince the reader, it is hoped, that these inhabitants of the deep are not only beautiful and worthy of our attention and study, but are also of much practical and economical use to man.