The Sea-beach at Ebb-tide
by Augusta Foote Arnold · English · Gutenberg #43946 · 1,048,903 chars · public domain (US)
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Title: The Sea-beach at Ebb-tide
Author: Augusta Foote Arnold
Release date: October 13, 2013 [eBook #43946]
Language: English
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THE
SEA-BEACH AT EBB-TIDE
THE
SEA-BEACH AT EBB-TIDE
A GUIDE TO THE STUDY OF
THE SEAWEEDS AND THE
LOWER ANIMAL LIFE FOUND
BETWEEN TIDE-MARKS
BY
AUGUSTA FOOTE ARNOLD
WITH MORE THAN
600 ILLUSTRATIONS
[Illustration]
NEW YORK
THE CENTURY CO.
1901
And hath been tutor'd in the rudiments
Of many desperate studies.
SHAKSPERE.
Copyright, 1901, by
THE CENTURY CO.
/Published May, 1901/
THE DE VINNE PRESS.
PREFACE
This volume is designed to be an aid to the amateur collector and
student of the organisms, both animal and vegetable, which are found
upon North American beaches. In it are described many invertebrates
and some of the more notable varieties of seaweeds, and each
individual is given its proper place in the latest classification.
The technicality of classification or scientific grouping may at
first seem repellent, but it in reality makes the study of these
objects more simple; and a systematic arrangement has been adopted in
the belief that it is the easiest as well as the only satisfactory
way of becoming familiar with the organisms described. Without it
a very confused picture of separate individuals would be presented
to the mind, and a book like the present one would become a mere
collection of isolated scraps of information. Morphology, or the
study of structure, has been touched upon just enough to show the
objects from the biologist's point of view and to enable the observer
to go a little beyond the bare learning of names.
Scientific names have been used from necessity, for the plants
and animals of the beach are so infrequently observed, except by
scientific people, that but few of them have common names; and, as
a matter of fact, the reader will find that a scientific name is
as easily remembered as a common one. Technical phraseology has,
however, been avoided as much as possible, even at the expense of
conciseness and precision; where it has been used, care has been
taken to explain the terms so that their meaning will be plain to
every one. A general glossary has been omitted, but the technical
terms used have been indexed. The illustrations will bear the use of
a hand-glass, and this will often bring out details which cannot well
be seen by the unaided eye.
The systematic table of the marine algæ, as given in Part I, and
followed in the text, will be of use to collectors who wish to make
herbaria. In order to name and group specimens such a guide is
necessary. Should specific names lead to embarrassment, many of them
can be neglected, for the names of genera are often a sufficient
distinction.
Since so many species of invertebrates are found on the beach that
a complete enumeration of them is impracticable, only the most
conspicuous ones have been selected for description in Part II;
but the attempt has been made to designate the various classes and
orders with sufficient clearness to enable the collector to identify
the objects commonly found on the shore, and to follow the subject
further, if he so desires, in technical books.
It is hoped that this book will suggest a new interest and pleasure
to many, that it will encourage the pastime of collecting and
classifying, and that it will serve as a practical guide to a
better acquaintance with this branch of natural history, without
necessitating serious study. Marine organisms are interesting
acquaintances when once introduced, and the real purpose of the
author is to present, to the latent naturalist, friends whom he will
enjoy.
Grateful acknowledgment is here made to the following persons who
have kindly assisted and advised the author and have also extended
valued courtesies to her in the preparation of this book: Smith Ely
Jelliffe, M.D., Ph.D.; Herbert M. Richards, A.B., Ph.D., Professor
of Botany in Barnard College; Marshall A. Howe, A.B., Ph.D.; the
Rev. George A. Holst; the Long Island Historical Society of Brooklyn
for the use of its fine herbarium, containing the collections of
Mr. John Hooper, Mr. A. R. Young, and others, from which most of
the illustrations of algæ in this book were photographed; Miss
Toedtleberg, Librarian of the Long Island Historical Society; Miss
Ingalls, in charge of the Museum of the Long Island Historical
Society; Dr. Theodore Gill; James A. Benedict, Ph.D., Assistant
Curator of Marine Invertebrates in the Smithsonian Institution; Miss
Mary J. Rathbun, second Assistant Curator of Marine Invertebrates in
the Smithsonian Institution; Miss Harriet Richardson; and especially
to Mr. John B. Henderson, Jr.
* * * * *
Thanks, also, are due to Messrs. Macmillan & Co. for permission to
use cuts from the "Cambridge Natural History," Parker and Haswell's
"Zoölogy", and Murray's "Introduction to the Study of Seaweeds";
to Swan Sonnenschein & Co. for the use of cuts from Sedgwick's
"Student's Text-book of Zoölogy"; to Wilhelm Engelmann for a cut from
"Die natürlichen Pflanzenfamilien" of Engler and Prantl; to Little,
Brown & Co. for permission to reproduce illustrations from Agassiz's
"Contributions to the Natural History of the United States"; to Henry
Holt & Co. for a cut from McMurrich's "Invertebrate Morphology";
to Houghton, Mifflin & Co. for cuts from the "Riverside Natural
History" and Agassiz's "Seaside Studies in Natural History"; to the
Commonwealth of Massachusetts for the use of illustrations from
Verrill's "Report upon the Invertebrate Animals of Vineyard Sound
and the Adjacent Waters," Gould's "Invertebrata of Massachusetts"
(ed. Binney), and certain fisheries reports; and to the United
States government for illustrations taken from Bulletin 37 of the
Smithsonian Institution and from reports of the United States Fish
Commission.
CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION
PAGE
I Signs on the Beach 1
II Collecting 6
III Classification 19
IV Animal Life in its Lowest Forms 21
V Distribution of Animal Life in the Sea 23
VI Some Botanical Facts about Algæ 25
VII Naming of Plants 28
VIII Distribution of Algæ 30
IX Some Peculiar and Interesting Varieties of Algæ 32
X Uses of Algæ 37
XI Collecting at Bar Harbor 40
PART I
MARINE ALGÆ
I BLUE-GREEN SEAWEEDS 47
(CYANOPHYCEÆ)
GRASS-GREEN SEAWEEDS 47
(CHLOROPHYCEÆ)
II OLIVE-GREEN AND BROWN SEAWEEDS 61
(PHÆOPHYCEÆ)
III RED SEAWEEDS 75
(RHODOPHYCEÆ OR FLORIDEÆ)
PART II
MARINE INVERTEBRATES
I PORIFERA (SPONGES) 99
II C[OE]LENTERATA (POLYPS) 111
III WORMS 159
(PLATYHELMINTHES, NEMATHELMINTHES, ANNULATA)
IV MOLLUSCOIDA 187
V ECHINODERMATA 199
VI ARTHROPODA 237
VII MOLLUSCA 299
VIII CHORDATA 471
INDEX 479
INTRODUCTION
In vain through every changeful year
Did nature lead him as before;
A primrose by a river's brim,
A yellow primrose was to him,
And it was nothing more.
At noon, when by the forest's edge
He lay beneath the branches high,
The soft blue sky did never melt
Into his heart; he never felt
The witchery of the soft blue sky.
WORDSWORTH.
To him who in the love of Nature holds
Communion with her visible forms, she speaks
A various language.
BRYANT.
INTRODUCTION
I
SIGNS ON THE BEACH
The sea-shore, with its stretches of sandy beach and rocks, seems,
at first sight, nothing but a barren and uninteresting waste, merely
the natural barrier of the ocean. But to the observant eye these
apparently desolate reaches are not only teeming with life; they are
also replete with suggestions of the past. They are the pages of a
history full of fascination for one who has learned to read it.
In this history even the grains of sand have a part. Though so humble
now, they once formed the rocky barriers of the shore. They stood
as do the rocks of to-day, defiant and seemingly everlasting, but
the fury of the sea, which knows no invincible adversary, has laid
them low. Every coast-line shows the destructive effects of the sea,
for the bays and coves, the caves at the bases of the cliffs, the
buttresses, stocks, needles, and skerries, are the work of the waves.
And this work is constantly going on.
Even a blind man could not stand long upon a shingly beach without
knowing that the sea was busily at work. Every wave that rolls
in from the open ocean hurls the pebbles up the slope of the
beach, and then as soon as the wave has broken and the water has
dispersed, these pebbles come rattling down with the currents that
sweep back to the sea. The clatter of the beach thus tells us
plainly that as the stones are being dragged up and down they are
constantly knocked against each other; and it is evident that by
such rough usage all [pg002] angular fragments of rock will soon
have their corners rounded off and become rubbed into the form of
pebbles. As these pebbles are rolled to and fro upon the beach they
get worn smaller and smaller, until at length they are reduced
to the state of sand. Although this sand is at first coarse, it
gradually becomes finer and finer as surely as though it were
ground in a mill; and ultimately it is carried out to sea as fine
sediment and laid down upon the ocean floor.[1]
[Footnote 1: Huxley.]
The story of the sands is not only one of the conflict of the sea
and rocks; it is also a story of the winds. It is the winds that
have rescued them from the waves and driven them about, sifting
and assorting them, arranging them in graceful forms, and often
heaping them up into dunes which, until fastened by vegetation, are
themselves ever moved onward by the same force, sometimes burying
fertile lands, trees, and even houses in their march. The sands,
moreover, are in turn themselves destructive agents, to whose power
the many fragments which strew the beach and dunes bear ample
witness. The knotty sticks so commonly seen on the beach are often
the hearts of oak- or cedar-trees from which the tiny crystals of
sand have slowly cut away their less solid outer growth. Everything,
in fact, upon the sands is "beach-worn," even to the window-glass of
life-saving stations, which is frequently so ground that it loses its
transparency in a single storm.
The beach is also a vast sarcophagus holding myriads of the dead.
"If ghosts be ever laid, here lie ghosts of creatures innumerable,
vexing the mind in the attempt to conceive them." And there are
certain sands which may be said to sing their requiem, the so-called
musical sands, like the "Singing Beach" at Manchester-by-the-Sea,
which emit sounds when struck or otherwise disturbed. On some
beaches these sounds resemble rumbling, on others hooting; sometimes
they are bell-like and even rhythmical. The cause of this sonorous
character is not definitely known, but it is possibly due to films
of compressed gases which separate each grain as with a cushion, and
the breaking of which [pg003] causes, in the aggregate, considerable
vibrations. Such sands are not uncommon, having been recorded in
many places, and they exist probably in many others where they have
escaped observation. They may be looked for above the water-line,
where the sand is dry and clean.
We have to do, however, in this volume, not with the history of the
past, nor with the action of physical forces, but with the life of
the present, and to find this, in its abundance, one must go down
near the margin of the water, where the sands are wet. There is no
solitude here; the place is teeming with living things. As each wave
retreats, little bubbles of air are plentiful in its wake. Underneath
the sand, where each bubble rose, lives some creature, usually a
mollusk, perhaps the razor-shell /Solen ensis/. By the jet of water
which spurts out of the sand, the common clam /Mya arenaria/ reveals
the secret of its abiding-place. A curious groove or furrow here and
there leads to a spot where /Polynices heros/ has gone below; and the
many shells scattered about, pierced with circular holes, tell how
/Polynices/ and /Nassa/ made their breakfast and their dinner. Only
the lifting of a shovelful of sand at the water's edge is needed to
disclose the populous community of mollusks, worms, and crustaceans
living at our feet, just out of sight.
Even the tracks and traces of these little beings are full of
information. What may be read in the track of a bird on the sand is
thus described by a noted ornithologist:
Here are foot-notes again, this time of real steps from real
feet. . . . The imprints are in two parallel lines, an inch or so
apart; each impression is two or three inches in advance of the
next one behind; none of them are in pairs, but each one of one
line is opposite the middle of the interval between two of the
other line; they are steps as regular as a man's, only so small.
Each mark is fan-shaped; it consists of three little lines less
than an inch long, spreading apart at one extremity, joined at
the other. At the joined end, and also just in front of it, a
flat depression of the sand is barely visible. Now following the
track, we see it run straight a yard or [pg004] more, then twist
into a confused ball, then shoot out straight again, then stop,
with a pair of the footprints opposite each other, different from
the other end of the track, that began as two or three little
indistinct pits or scratches, not forming perfect impressions of a
foot. Where the track twisted there are several little round holes
in the sand. The whole track commenced and finished upon the open
sand. The creature that made it could not, then, have come out
of either the sand or the water; it must have come down from the
air--a two-legged flying thing, a bird. To determine this, and,
next, what kind of bird it was, every one of the trivial points of
the description just given must be taken into account. It is a bit
of autobiography, the story of an invitation to dine, acceptance,
a repast, an alarm at the table, a hasty retreat. A bird came on
wing, lowering till the tips of its toes just touched the sand,
gliding half on wing, half afoot, until the impetus of flight was
exhausted; then folding its wings, but not pausing, for already a
quick eye spied something inviting; a hasty pecking and probing to
this side and that, where we found the lines entangled; a short run
after more food; then a suspicious object attracted its attention;
it stood stock-still (just where the marks were in a pair), till,
thoroughly alarmed, it sprang on wing and was off.[2]
[Footnote 2: Elliott Coues.]
Following the key further, he draws more conclusions. The tracks are
not in pairs, so the bird does not belong to the perchers; therefore
it must be a wader or a swimmer. There are no web-marks to indicate
the latter; hence it is a three-toed walking or wading bird. It had
flat, long, narrow, and pointed wings because it came gliding swiftly
and low, and scraped the sand before its wings were closed. This
is shown by the few scratches before the prints became perfect. A
certain class of birds thus arrests the impetus of flight. It had a
long feeling-bill, as shown by the little holes in the sands where
the marks became entangled; and so on. These combined characteristics
belong to one class of birds and to no other; so he knows as
definitely as [pg005] though he had seen the bird that a sandpiper
alighted here for a brief period, for here is his signature.
It is plain that tracks in the sand mean as much to the naturalist as
do tracks in the snow to the hunter, and trails on the land to the
Indian who follows his course by signs not seen by an untrained eye.
The tide effaces much that is written by foot and wing, but sometimes
such signs are preserved and become veritable "footprints on the
sands of time." In the Museum of Natural History in New York is
a fossil slab, taken from the Triassic sandstone, showing the
footprints of a dinosaurian reptile now extinct, which, in that long
ago, walked across a beach--an event unimportant enough in itself,
but more marvelous than any tale of imagination when recorded for
future ages. From such tracks, together with fragments of skeletons,
the dinosaur has been made to live again, and its form and structure
have been as clearly defined as those of the little sandpiper of Dr.
Coues.
[pg006]
II
COLLECTING
It has been said that everything on the land has its counterpart
in the sea. But all land animals are separate and independent
individuals, while many of those of the sea are united into organic
associations comprising millions of individuals inseparably connected
and many of them interdependent, such as corals, hydroids, etc. These
curious communities can be compared only to the vegetation of the
land, which many of them resemble in outer form. Other stationary
animals, such as oysters and barnacles, which also depend upon
floating organisms for their food, have no parallel on the land.
The water is crowded with creatures which prey upon one another,
and all are interestingly adapted to their mode of life. Shore
species are exceedingly abundant, and the struggle for life is there
carried on with unceasing strife. In the endeavor to escape pursuers
while they themselves pursue, these animals have various devices of
armature and weapons of defense; they have keen vision, rapid motion,
and are full of arts and wiles. One of the first resources for safety
in this conflict is that of concealment. This is effected not only
by actual hiding, but very generally by mimicry in simulating the
color of their surroundings, and often by assuming other forms. Thus,
for instance, the sea-anemone when expanded looks like a flower and
is full of color, but when it contracts becomes so inconspicuous as
to be with difficulty distinguished from the rock to which it is
attached. Anemones also have stinging threads (nematophores), which
they dart out for further defense. [pg007]
The study of biology has great fascination, and the subject seldom
fails to awaken interest as soon as the habit of observation is
formed. Jellyfishes, hardly more dense than the water and almost as
limpid, swimming about with graceful motion, often illuminating the
water at night with their phosphorescence, showing sensitiveness,
volition, and order in their lives, cannot fail to excite wonder
in even the most careless observer. Not less interesting are the
thousands of other animals which crowd the shores, lying just beneath
the surface of the sand, filling crevices in the rocks, hiding under
every projection, or boldly--perhaps timidly, who shall say?--lying
in full view, yet so inconspicuous that they are easily passed by
unnoticed.
To find these creatures, to study their habits and organization, to
consider the wonderful order of nature, leads through delightful
paths into the realms of science. But even without scientific study
the simple observation of the curious objects which lie at one's feet
as one walks along the beach is a delightful pastime.
The features which separate the classes and the orders of both the
plant and the animal life are so distinctive that it requires but
very superficial observation to know them. It is easy to discriminate
between mollusks, echinoderms, and polyps, and to recognize the
relationship between univalves and bivalves, sea-urchins and
starfishes, sea-anemones and corals. The equally plain distinctions
between the branched, unbranched, tubular, and plate-like green algæ
make them as easy to separate.
The pleasure of a walk through field or forest is enhanced by knowing
something of the trees and flowers, and in the same way a visit to
the sea-shore becomes doubly interesting when one has some knowledge,
even though it be a very superficial one, of the organisms which
inhabit the shore.
ROCKY SHORES
Rocky shores furnish an abundance and great variety of objects to the
collector. The seaweeds here find places of attachment, and the lee
and crevices of the rocks afford shelter to many animals which could
not live in more open and exposed places. The [pg008] rock pools
harbor species whose habitat is below low-water mark and which could
not otherwise bear the alternation of the tides.
The first objects on the rocky beach to attract attention are the
barnacles and rockweeds. They are conspicuous in their profusion,
the former incrusting the rocks with their white shells, and the
latter forming large beds of vegetation; yet both are likely to be
passed by with indifference because of their plentifulness. They are,
however, not only interesting in themselves, but associated with
them are many organisms which are easily overlooked. The littoral
zone is so crowded with life that there is a constant struggle for
existence,--even for standing-room, it may be said,--and no class
of animals has undisputed possession of any place. Therefore the
collector should carefully search any object he gathers for other
organisms which may be upon it, under it, or even in it, such as
parasites, commensals, and the organisms which hide under it or
attach themselves to it for support. Let the rockweed (/Fucus/) be
carefully examined. Among the things likely to be found attached to
its fronds are periwinkles (/Littorina litorea/), which simulate
the plant in color, some shells being striped for closer mimicry.
Sertularian hydroids also are there, zigzagging over the fronds or
forming tufts of delicate horny branches upon them. Small jelly-like
masses at the broad divisions of the fronds may be compound
ascidians. Calcareous spots here and there may be polyzoans of
exquisite form, while spread in incrusting sheets over considerable
spaces are other species of /Polyzoa/. Tiny flat shelly spirals
are the worm-cases of /Spirorbis/. A pocket-lens is essential to
enable one to appreciate the beauty of these minute forms. Under the
rockweeds are many kinds of crustaceans; perhaps there will also be
patches of the pink urn-like egg-capsules of /Purpura/ at the base of
the fucus.
Various kinds of seaweed abound in the more sheltered parts of the
rocks, and among them will be found amphipods and isopods, many of
which are of species different from those of the sandy beaches. Here,
too, is the little /Caprella/, imitating the seaweed in form, and
swaying its lengthened body, which is attached to the plant only by
its hind legs. On the seaweeds, as well as in the tide-pool, may be
found beautiful hydroids, and on [pg009] them the curious little
sea-spiders (/Pycnogonidæ/), animals which seem to be all legs.
Mollusks, and other classes as well, differ in different latitudes.
On the rocks of the Northern shores /Littorina/ and /Purpura/ shells
are very abundant, the latter in various colors and beautifully
striped. Limpets are also plentiful, but are not as conspicuous,
since they have flat, disk-shaped shells. When their capture is
attempted, they must be taken unawares and pushed quickly aside,
else they take such a firm hold of the rock that it is difficult
to dislodge them. Near low-water mark under ledges will perhaps be
found chitons, which are easily recognized by their oval, jointed
shells. On the California coast in like localities will be found
the beautiful /Haliotis/, /Acmæa/, and chitons. Every stone that
is lifted will disclose numbers of little amphipods (/Gammarus/),
which will scuttle away on their sides to other shelter; worms will
suddenly disappear into the mud, and perhaps a crab, here and there,
having no alternative, will make a stand and fight for his liberty.
Flat against the stone and not easily perceived may be a chiton, a
planarian worm, or a nudibranch. And just below the water's edge are
sea-urchins and starfishes, which grow in numbers as the eye becomes
accustomed to the search.
The rock pools are natural aquaria, more interesting by far than any
prepared by man. The possibilities of these little sea-gardens are
beyond enumeration. The longer one studies them the more one finds.
In them all classes of seaweeds and marine invertebrates may be found
and their habits watched. The great beauty of these pools gives them
an esthetic charm apart from the scientific interest they excite.
Perhaps one may find here a sponge, and removing it to a shallow
vessel of sea-water can watch the currents of water it creates.
Several sponges of the same species placed in contact will at the
end of two days be closely united. If the sponges are of different
species they will not coalesce.
In the clefts and crannies of the rocks are various fine seaweeds,
often of the red varieties, sea-anemones, hydroids, polyzoans,
crustaceans, mollusks, and ascidians. Crabs will be snugly [pg010]
ensconced under projecting surfaces. Most species are more plentiful
at the lowest-water mark, and many are found only at this point and
below.
SANDY SHORES
On sandy shores the greater part of the inhabitants live under the
surface. Many give evidence of their presence by the open mouths of
their burrows, and some distinctly point out these places by piles
of sand or mud in coils at the opening. Some tubicolous worms have
their tubes projecting above the surface. The tubes of /Diopatra/
are hung with bits of shells, seaweeds, and other foreign matter.
Some mollusks announce themselves by spurting jets of water or
sending bubbles of air from the sand. The majority of the underground
species, however, give no sign of their presence on the surface,
and must be found by digging. Many of them go deep into the sand,
and in searching for worms the digger must be quick- and expert,
or he will lose entirely or cut in two many of the most beautiful
ones, which retreat quickly and to the extremity of their holes at
the least alarm. One can be a rambler on the sandy beach for a long
time without being aware of the many beautiful objects which inhabit
the subsurface of the sand. The curious crab /Hippa/ will disappear
so quickly into the sand that one is hardly sure he has really seen
it. The vast number of worms will surprise any one who searches for
them by their variety, their beautiful color, and their interesting
shapes. Here again a glass is requisite to appreciate the delicacy
and beauty of their locomotive organs, their branchiæ, and so on. The
most common of the gasteropod mollusks on sandy shores are /Nassa
obsoleta/, /Nassa trivittata/, and /Polynices (Lunatia) heros/. The
last are detected by the little mounds of sand which they push before
them as they plow their way just below the surface. On more southern
beaches, /Fulgur/, /Strombus/, and /Pyrula/ are the common varieties.
/Olivella/, /Oliva/, and /Donax/, also inhabitants of sandy beaches,
will quickly disappear when uncovered by the waves, being rapid
burrowers. Most of the many dead shells on the beach will be found
to be pierced with a round hole, which is [pg011] drilled by the
file-like tongue, or lingual ribbon, of /Polynices/, /Urosalpinx/,
or /Nassa/, which thus reach the animal within and suck out its
substance. Another similar species is /Polynices/ (/Neverita/)
/duplicata/, which extends to the Gulf of Mexico, while /P. heros/
is not commonly found below Hatteras. Crustaceans are abundant on
the sandy beach over its whole breadth. Some of the sand-crabs live
above tide-mark. Among these is the fleet-footed /Ocypoda/, which is
interesting to watch. Often they go in numbers to the water's edge
and throw up mounds, behind which they crouch like cats, watching
for whatever prey the tide may bring up. When unable to outrun a
pursuer they rush into the surf and remain there until the danger is
past. The wet sand is often thickly perforated with the burrows of
the sandhoppers (/Orchestia/). These often rise about the feet as do
grasshoppers in the fields.
[Illustration: PLATE I. Egg-capsules of Purpura lapillus. Egg-case of
Polynices heros. Egg-capsules of Buccinum undatum. Egg-case of the
skate. Fulgur canaliculata (whelk) and egg-cases.]
/Hippa talpoida/ is a remarkable crab, somewhat resembling an egg.
It is not likely to be seen unless searched for by digging at the
water's edge. It burrows so rapidly that one must be quick to catch
it after it is exposed by the shovel. In some places the tests of
"sand-dollars" are common. The living animal may be found buried just
below the surface at extreme low-water mark.
The sea-wrack drifted in lines along the shore will repay careful
examination, for here will be found many things belonging to other
shores and deep water. It is often alive with sandhoppers, which
hop away while one searches for less common things. Often the most
delicate seaweeds, numerous small shells, worms, polyzoans, etc.,
will be found there.
The surface of the sand-beach is strewn with remains of many species,
usually beach-worn, but interesting nevertheless as examples of
species one would like to find in better condition, but good
specimens of which elude ordinary search or are unobtainable except
by dredging.
Egg-cases form another class of objects which are often gathered with
no idea of their identity. Of these the most common are the long
strings of saucer-like capsules which contain the eggs of the mollusk
/Fulgur/, those having square edges being [pg012] the egg-cases of
/F. carica/, and those having sharp edges those of /F. canaliculata/.
Collar-like sandy rings contain the eggs of /Polynices/ (/Lunatia/),
which are cemented together in this shape. The boys of Cape Cod
call them "tommy-cod houses." Cylindrical piles of little capsules,
sometimes called "ears of corn," hold the eggs of /Chrysodomus/. The
irregular masses of small hemispherical capsules are those of the
common whelk (/Buccinum/). The so-called "Devil's pocket-books" are
the egg-cases of the skate.
MUDDY SHORES
On muddy shores the eel-grass (/Zostera marina/) grows abundantly,
giving an appearance of submerged meadows. It is one of the very
few flowering plants which live in salt water. In summer its little
green blossoms may be seen in grooves on the leaf-like blades. Many
animals live on and among eel-grass. Found upon it is the delicate
gasteropod mollusk /Lacuna vincta/, and its eggs in little rings; the
iridescent /Margarita helicina/, and /Nassa/, with its bright-yellow
eggs in small gelatinous masses; also little worms (/Spirorbis/) in
tiny flat spiral shells, compound ascidians in jelly-like masses,
clusters of shelly or horny polyzoans, isopods, planarian worms, and
so on. Scallops (/Pecten/) will be found at the base of the plants,
and the common prawns are very numerous, swimming freely about. Mud
flats and shores are the homes of many mollusks, especially of /Nassa
obsoleta/,--which is the most abundant shell of any considerable size
from Cape Cod to the Gulf of Mexico,--and of vast numbers of the tiny
/Littorinella minuta/, which serve as food for fishes and aquatic
birds. Clams and worms of all varieties are also abundant.
There are many varieties of mud-crabs, of which the most common
are the "fiddlers," which honeycomb the banks and the surface of
salt-marshes with their burrows. The common edible crab /Callinectes
hastatus/ is plentiful in bays and estuaries. The sluggish
spider-crabs hide beneath the surface of the mud and in decaying
weeds and eel-grass. Hermit-crabs are plentiful here as well as
elsewhere. /Panopeus/ is a sluggish crab found in shallow water and
in all sorts of hiding-places along the shore. It [pg013] may often
be found in dead shells, and, in the South, in holes in the banks.
This genus is represented by a number of species, some of which are
quite pretty.
WHARVES AND BRIDGES
On the piles of wharves and bridges may often be found beautiful
tubularian hydroids in large tufts just below low-water mark,
branched hydroids looking like little shrubs, polyzoans,
sea-anemones, mollusks, and ascidians. The species peculiar to these
localities are the boring mollusk /Teredo navalis/, or ship-worm, the
boring isopod /Limnoria lignorum/, and the boring amphipod /Chelura
terebrans/, all of which penetrate the wood and are most destructive.
The animals and plants of tropical beaches and coral reefs are
so various and abundant, so curious and beautiful, as to make
a description or even an enumeration of them in a brief space
difficult. The collector is bewildered and excited when he first
views the profusion of the wonderful forms there found.
It is not generally known that a fine species of "stony coral"
is common from Cape Cod southward, growing in clear water as an
incrustation on rocks, and developing little spires as it advances in
age. This species, the /Astrangia danaë/, is especially interesting,
since it will live in a dish of clear sea-water, and the polyps will
expand, showing a very close relationship to the sea-anemone. With
care in changing the water this coral will live for days, and may be
examined in its expanded condition with a lens of moderate power.
The most favorable time for collecting on any beach is at the lowest
tide, many objects being then uncovered which do not appear higher up
on the beach. At the spring-tides, which occur twice a month, at the
period of the new and that of the full moon, the ebb is especially
low, and affords an opportunity to search for forms whose habitat is
below ordinary low-water mark. During storms deep-water forms are
often torn from their beds and cast upon the beach. Shore-collecting
at these times is often very interesting. [pg014]
EQUIPMENT FOR COLLECTING INVERTEBRATES
The equipment for collecting upon sandy beaches is a shovel, a sieve,
and a net. Numerous trials should be made with the shovel from about
half-tide mark to as deep as one cares to wade, and the sand raised
should be carefully searched for shells, crustaceans, and worms.
By washing out the sand in the sieve the smallest specimens, which
might otherwise escape notice, may be secured. On a rocky beach a
strong knife and a net are sufficient. It is well to have a number
of homeopathic vials for small specimens, which will be injured
by contact with larger forms, and jars for holding the general
collection.
PRESERVING INVERTEBRATES
To preserve specimens, they should first be placed in a weak solution
of alcohol, the strength of which should be increased gradually until
the animal is entirely free from water and is hardened throughout.
If the alcohol becomes colored and sediment falls to the bottom
of the jar, the animal is degenerating, and the alcohol should be
changed. Specimens for transportation can be packed by wrapping each
one in a bit of cheese-cloth and then placing them together in a
large receptacle. Care should be taken to keep the fragile specimens
separate. Sand-dollars possess a pigment which discolors and soon
vitiates alcohol, and consequently these should be separated from
the other forms and placed where the alcohol may be changed from
time to time as appears necessary. The homeopathic vials containing
small specimens may be put into the can without injury to the other
specimens. Special cans of various sizes, with handles and screw
covers, are made for naturalists. One of these cans is a convenient
receptacle for carrying the alcohol to the station and for receiving
the collection for transportation. Careful notes should be made on
the spot of the conditions under which the species are found. One is
likely to forget details if this is delayed until one reaches home.
Labels should be used, giving name when known, or a number when the
name is not known, [pg015] corresponding with the note-book. Names
written with lead-pencil on a slip of paper will not be defaced by or
injure the alcohol. Collections when arranged permanently should be
placed in glass jars, the species being kept separate.
COLLECTING AND PRESERVING SEAWEEDS
To collect seaweeds one must search for them on rocks, in tide-pools,
in the sea-wrack upon the beach, on piles of wharves, on eel-grass,
and on the surface of incoming waves. It is well to follow the
receding tide and take advantage of its lowest ebb (especially of
that of the spring-tides, as mentioned above) to search the extreme
limit of the beach in the short time it is exposed. Many of the red
seaweeds are found there.
The equipment for collecting consists of a basket, two small tin
pails, one small enough to be carried within the other, a staff
with an iron edge at one end and a small net at the other, and a
pocket-lens. Rockweeds (/Fucus/) or other coarse gelatinous seaweeds
should be put into the basket. The pails, half filled with sea-water,
will receive the other specimens, fine and delicate algæ being put
into the smaller pail. It is well to have a second small receptacle
for /Callithamnion/ and /Griffithsia/, if one can be further
burdened. /Desmarestia/ should be kept apart, if possible, since it
discolors and decomposes other algæ; it should also have the earliest
attention when the time comes for mounting, and salt water should
be used for floating it upon the mount, otherwise the beauty of the
specimen will be impaired.
Besides its use as a support, the staff is needed to dislodge
specimens from the rocks, and the net to secure those that are
floating just out of reach. When possible, it is desirable to secure
the whole plant, including the holdfast, and to gather several
plants of the same species, since they vary with age and other
conditions, and it is also well to have duplicates for exchange. It
is particularly desirable to obtain plants which are in fruit. Each
specimen as it is taken should be rinsed in the sea-water to free it
from sand.
Collections should be mounted as soon as convenient, and [pg016]
especial care in this respect should be taken with red algæ, as they
decompose quickly. The requisites for mounting are blotters, pieces
of muslin, two or more smooth boards, weights, a basin, and several
shallow dishes containing water. Fresh water has a strong action on
the color and substance of seaweeds, and specimens should not be left
in it for any length of time.
Lift a specimen from the general collection, and in a basin of deep
water carefully wash off all superfluous matter; then place it in
shallow water and spread it out, trimming it judiciously, so that
when mounted it will not be too thick and the characteristics be
hidden. Specimens are more interesting and their species more easily
determined when laid out rather thin, showing their branching and
fruit. After the specimen is thus prepared, place it in a second
shallow dish of water. It should now be perfectly clean. Float it out
into the desired position, spreading it well, letting some parts show
the details of the branching, and other parts the general natural
effect of the mass. Run under it a rather heavy sheet of white paper,
and lift it carefully from the water. If raised from the center,
it is easier to let the water subside evenly and gradually without
disarranging the parts. Some collectors find it better to float the
specimen in water deep enough to allow the left hand to be placed
under the sheet to raise it. Lay the sheet on a plate, and with a
needle or forceps rearrange any of the delicate parts which have
fallen together. A few drops of water placed on any portion will
usually be sufficient to enable one to separate the branchlets or
ultimate ramifications. A magnifying-glass will be useful in this
work.
Cover a blotter with mounted specimens, spread over them a piece
of cotton cloth, and on this place another blotter, upon which lay
more mounted specimens and a cloth. Proceed in this way until all
the specimens are used. Lay the pile of blotters between boards, and
on them place the weights. The weights should not be very heavy.
Judgment must be used in assorting the specimens, those that are fine
being placed together. Those that are coarse and likely to indent
the blotters should be placed between separate boards. In this way a
flat surface and an even pressure will be obtained. The blotters and
cloths should be [pg017] changed twice each of the first two days,
then the cloths should be removed and the specimens left in press for
a week, the blotters being changed daily. Be sure that the specimens
are perfectly dry before placing them in the herbarium. Label each
specimen with the name and the date and place of collection.
There are some seaweeds which cannot be treated in the above manner.
/Fucus/ if placed in fresh water soon becomes slimy. It is so full of
gelatine that it soon destroys blotters; therefore it is well to hang
it up for several hours and then place it between newspapers, which
should be frequently changed, and as the plant becomes pliable it
should be arranged in proper position.
Those specimens which do not adhere to paper in drying should be
secured with gum. When it is impossible to mount specimens at the
time they are collected, they can be preserved by drying; afterward
they can be soaked and mounted in the usual manner. To dry the
plants, lay them separately upon boards without pressing out the
sea-water, and leave them in an airy, shaded place until thoroughly
dry; then pack them loosely into boxes and label, giving date and
locality. Blotters or driers can be obtained at botanical-supply
stores at thirty-five cents per quire.
HOW TO ARRANGE A HERBARIUM
The standard herbarium-paper is sixteen by eleven and a half
inches. The sheets are single, white, smooth, and quite heavy.
These, together with folded sheets of yellow manila paper, called
genus-covers, are the only requisites. It is desirable to have also
a case of shelves protected by glass doors. The shelves should be
twelve by eighteen inches, and four to six inches apart. They are
more convenient when made to slide like drawers.
The different species of one genus are gummed on one or more of the
white sheets and placed within the folded manila paper, which serves
as a cover. Each specimen should be signed with its name, place, and
date of collection, thus:
/C. rubrum./ Bar Harbor. Aug. 12, 1899,
the generic name being indicated by its initial capital letter and
the specific name written in full. To this are often added the
[pg018] name of the collector and some interesting comment. On the
lower left-hand corner of the genus-cover is written the generic name
in full and the species of that genus which the cover contains, thus:
/Ceramium/ /C. rubrum/
/C. strictum/
/C. diaphanum/
The genera of an order are then placed within a cover and labeled
in the same way, the legend then having the name of the order on
the left and the genera on the right of the bracket, [TN: see
Transcriber's Note.] thus:
/Rhodymeniaceæ/, suborder /Ceramieæ/
/Callithamnion/
/Griffithsia/
/Ceramium/
When the order is a large one the genera are distributed through as
many covers as may be necessary. The covers are then arranged on
shelves in the regular order of their classification, and each shelf
is labeled with the order it contains. Herbarium-sheets cost at
retail one dollar per hundred. Genus-covers cost at retail one dollar
and eighty cents per hundred. [pg019]
III
CLASSIFICATION
The first great biological division is into kingdoms, namely, the
animal kingdom and the vegetable kingdom. Then by classification the
vast number of existing animals and plants are grouped so as to give
each individual a definite place. By this system a beautiful order
is established, which enables the student to find any particular
animal or plant he may wish to study, and also to know its general
characteristics from the name of the group to which it belongs.
In broad generalization, objects of wide dissimilarity are recognized
as belonging to the same kingdom, as do trees and grasses, or as
do birds and fishes. Certain trees or grasses and certain birds or
fishes have such points of resemblance that they plainly show that
they belong to subdivisions. The most untutored people recognize
these distinctions, but the naturalist goes further and finds points
of distinction which the casual observer overlooks.
The animal kingdom has a varying number of divisions, called
/branches/, /subkingdoms/, or /phyla/. Some late authors have
admitted twelve divisions, and have given them the name /phyla/. Each
phylum is composed of a group of animals with a plan of structure
which is common to themselves, but differs from that of the animals
of all other phyla.
The higher animals begin with the twelfth phylum, namely, the
/Chordata/, or vertebrates. These animals have a spinal column, or
series of vertebræ, while the lower animals, or invertebrates are
without a spinal column, and depend for stability [pg020] upon
muscles or coriaceous or calcareous coverings. The vertebrates
are first represented in the fish-like forms. Bilateral symmetry,
however, or the uniform arrangement of parts on each side of
a central axis, exists in several groups which are below the
vertebrates, the first pronounced example being found in worms.
Groups lower than worms have their organs arranged around a central
axis or radiating from it, and were once all classed as /radiates/.
An animal is classified in accordance with its morphology, anatomy,
histology, and embryology. Morphology determines its general shape,
the position of its limbs, eyes, and mouth, and the covering of
its body; anatomy, the arrangement of its internal organs, such as
the position of its heart, lungs, stomach, etc.; histology, the
character of the tissues of the body; and embryology, the method of
the development of the animal from the embryo to maturity. It is only
after these exact discriminations have been made that the groups are
arranged. Owing to the greater accuracy resulting from histology and
embryology (methods which have been employed only in later years),
many changes in classification have been made, and as science
advances will continue to be made.
The primary groups are based on broad general characteristics,
but their divisions and subdivisions are determined by closer
distinctions. Animals having shells differ from those having a
cartilaginous or those having a crustaceous covering, and are placed
in different groups. Yet mollusks having a single or a double shell,
having spiral or flat forms, living on land, in fresh water, or in
the sea, while differing from one another, are all of one group.
Lobsters and crabs, although both have crustaceous coverings, are
very unlike; and again, there are many species of both lobsters and
crabs.
To group individuals, noting resemblances as well as differences,
a system of classification has been arranged with the following
divisions:
Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family (or Suborder), Genus, Species.
[pg021]
IV
ANIMAL LIFE IN ITS LOWEST FORMS
The biological division, or discrimination, between animal and
vegetable life, is based on the manner of assimilating food. Plants
feed upon mineral substances, or, in other words, assimilate
inorganic matter, while animal life requires for its support
vegetable or some other organic matter.
Animal as well as vegetable life in its lowest forms begins with
one-celled organisms, which are called respectively /Protozoa/ (first
animals) and /Protophyta/ (first plants). Both of these divisions
are composed mostly of microscopic objects, and, together with other
minute forms of life of the marine species, constitute a great part
of the /plankton/, or free-floating organisms of the sea. These
minute organisms seem like connecting-links between the two kingdoms.
They were claimed by both botanists and zoölogists until the use of
the microscope made close observation of minute structure possible.
Among the small animalcules of the phylum /Protozoa/ are some which
are familiar to all by name, such as the /Infusoria/, which are
most interesting creatures to examine in a drop of water under
the microscope. A more tangible example of the /Protozoa/ are the
/Foraminifera/. /Foraminifera/, like diatoms, have a shell-like
covering, and these shells, among the most plentiful of which are
those of the genus /Globigerina/, fall, as do those of diatoms, in
immense numbers to the bottom of the ocean, and form respectively
what are known as /Globigerina/ and diatomaceous ooze. In course of
time the sedimentary strata become fossilized; thus, the stone of
which the city of Paris is built consists of fossilized [pg022]
foraminifers, and the pyramids of Egypt are built of nummulites,
another genus of /Foraminifera/. It is estimated that an ounce of
this deposit contains four millions of these protozoans, so it is
impossible to conceive the numbers of once living animals represented
in the tombs of the Pharaohs. Telegraph-cables raised from the depth
of two miles bring the message to naturalists that the bottom of the
ocean at that depth is composed of little else than the calcareous
shells of /Foraminifera/.
Many of the lower animals resemble plants in form. Hydroids and
polyzoans are often gathered and preserved as seaweeds. Corals,
sea-anemones, and holothurians are curiously like plants. For a time
the confusion about the division of animals and plants was partly
owing to this resemblance of forms, and the theory of the animal
nature of corals was for a long time considered to be refuted by
the testimony of a naturalist who declared that he had seen them
in bloom. Later this class of animals was believed to occupy an
intermediate sphere and partake of the characteristics of both
kingdoms. The name zoöphyte, meaning "animal-plant" or "mingled
life," was adopted because of these resemblances and was formerly
applied to these forms only. To-day it has a broader application.
There is still a neutral class, called /Protista/, comprising
organisms which have not yet been classified as plants or animals.
[pg023]
V
DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMAL LIFE IN THE SEA
All living things which inhabit the sea have their appointed
boundaries, and the localization of marine life is as distinct as
is that of terrestrial life. Each kind of beach has forms of life
peculiar to itself. Those animals which inhabit rocky shores or stony
beaches or sand or mud may be looked for anywhere under similar
physical surroundings. They are, however, modified by climatic
conditions, and in wide ranges differ in genera and species. The
rocky coast of Maine has a class of sea-urchins and starfishes
which are different from those which live on the rocky shores of
the northern Pacific coast, yet they are all easily recognized as
belonging to the same family, and a description of typical forms is a
sufficient guide to the recognition of their relationships.
A bathymetrical division defines the classes of animals according
to the depth of water in which they live. Those which live near the
shore are /littoral/ species, those of the broad sea are /pelagic/,
while those living at great depths are /abyssal/.
Their modes of life are distinguished by other terms. Those which
float at or near the surface and are carried about by the currents,
like the jellyfishes and the minute organisms mentioned elsewhere,
are /plankton/. Strong swimming animals which move about at will are
/nekton/. Those which are fixed, like oysters, sponges, etc., and
those which crawl on the bottom, like crabs, echinoderms, etc., are
/benthos/.
Again, geographical divisions are named, in recognition of climatic
influences. The /boreal/ fauna and flora on the Atlantic [pg024]
coast extend from Cape Cod northward; the /American/, from Cape Cod
to Cape Hatteras; the /West Indian/, from Cape Hatteras southward. On
the Pacific coast the divisions, without definite names, are from the
Isthmus to Acapulco, Acapulco to the Gulf of California, Cape Lucas
to the Strait of Fuca. These divisions merge at indefinite lines,
but the above limits are generally accepted as the points of broad
division.
The shore or littoral fauna is especially abundant and comprises
more species that are curious in form and beautiful in color than
the others. The invertebrates of the deep sea are mostly transparent
and of a blue or violet tint, while the fishes are gray or bluish
above and white beneath, which renders them inconspicuous to their
enemies. [pg025]
VI
SOME BOTANICAL FACTS ABOUT ALGÆ
The vegetable world is separated into two great divisions:
/thallophytes/, or plants having no distinction of leaf or stem,
and /cormophytes/, or plants which have leaves and stems. All
thallophytes that live in the water and are nourished wholly by water
are called /algæ/.
A second great division of plants is into /cryptogams/, or those that
have no flowers, and /phanerogams/, or those that have flowers, by
means of which seeds are produced and successive generations of plant
life continued.
/Thallophytes/ and /cryptogams/ comprise the lowest and simplest
vegetable organisms. Algæ belong to both these divisions; to the
first because they have neither stems nor leaves, and to the second
because they have no flowers.
The lowest forms of algæ are microscopic in size, each individual
being a single cell; but in the ascending scale they attain curious
and beautiful shapes, some growing to a gigantic size and in forms
that resemble shrubs and trees. The green surface commonly seen on
the shady side of trees, on stone steps, and in other damp places is
one of the species of algæ which consist of a single cell. This plant
or cell divides, and the separate divisions divide and subdivide
again and again, and in time the aggregate number is great enough to
spread over a comparatively large surface, and thus become visible
to the naked eye. This plant, the /Pleurococcus vulgaris/, is a
fresh-water alga. The /Protococcus nivalis/, or red snow, described
on page 33, is a closely allied species. The green and blue-green
scums and slimes on [pg026] brackish ditches and on the stones and
woodwork of wharves are also species of the lowest orders of algæ
and increase by cell-division. Many of them are in colonies incased
in gelatinous matter. These, together with plants of a little higher
order, though still of low organization, the /Confervaceæ/, form a
large part of the green vegetation between tide-marks.
The vegetative body of a thallophyte is a /thallus/, and corresponds
to stem and leaf. It is also called a /frond/. What corresponds to
the root of flowering plants is in algæ a disk or conical expansion
of the base of the plant. It is simply a holdfast by which the frond
attaches itself to any submerged material. The algæ which grow on
sandy shores and on corals have holdfasts which branch like fibrous
roots and penetrate porous substances in all directions; but this
is only for greater stability, and is an adaptation to the habitat.
Holdfasts do nothing for algæ other than the name implies, whereas
real roots absorb the nourishment upon which plants live. Algæ are
nourished by the substances held in solution by the water which
surrounds them.
Algæ are the lowest and simplest in organization of all plants,
because they are composed of but one class of cells, such as in
flowering plants are called the /parenchyma/, or soft cells, these
being the ones which compose the pulp of the leaf. In the lowest
orders of algæ single cells constitute individual plants, as in
/Pleurococcus/; but in the higher forms, such as /Sargassum/, they
arrange themselves in such a variety of combinations as to resemble
plants which have leaf and stem. The botanical distinction is that in
leaf and stem there would exist the woody and the vascular cells as
well as the parenchyma cells.
Beginning with plants composed of a single cell, the next development
is into filamentous plants, which are single thread-like rows of
cells, as in /Cladophora/. In /Ulva/ is seen the earliest type of an
expanded leaf. The cells are here arranged in a horizontal surface of
plate-like or ribbon-like shape.
In /Ulva/ there is a double layer of cells. The layers separate in
/Enteromorpha/, giving a hollow or tubular form. In /Monostroma/ a
double layer is opened or torn apart, giving a frond with a single
layer of cells. [pg027]
The stem-like forms of certain algæ are composed of cylindrical
cells which combine or grow in a longitudinal direction chiefly.
Sometimes the cells are arranged evenly, in which case the stem
seems articulated, as in some species of /Ceramium/. Again, they are
irregularly placed, so that the stem appears solid.
The highest types of algæ in the differentiation of parts, or
vegetative forms, are to be found in the /Fucaceæ/, of the brown
seaweeds; the highest in the reproductive development, in the red
class.
Reproduction by cell-division, in which the organism itself breaks up
into two or more individuals, is called /vegetative reproduction/.
Higher forms reproduce by spores, or germ-cells, which give rise to
new individuals on germination.
The substance of an alga is more or less firm, according as the
vegetable mucus or gelatinous matter it contains has more or
less consistency; it is /membranaceous/ when the gelatine is
scant and glossy, /gelatinous/ when it is abundant and fluid, and
/cartilaginous/ when it is hard.
Some algæ are annuals; a few are perennials, and cast off and renew
their laminæ every season. Many plants present quite a different
appearance at different seasons of the year, and so are often
difficult to identify. Those which form spores throw off these
isolated cells, which sink or are washed to positions where they
germinate and begin their cycle of life. Many of the spores begin
their growth at once, without regard to season, so the species is
ever present. [pg028]
VII
NAMING OF PLANTS
The real or technical names of plants, which at first appear long and
unpronounceable, are in reality simple when the system of naming is
understood. Every plant has a /generic/ and a /specific/ name. The
generic name is analogous to the surname of a person, such as /Smith/
or /Jones/. The specific name is analogous to the Christian name of
a person, such as /John/ or /James/. The specific name never stands
alone, and would have as little designating character as John ---- or
James ----.
This is called the /binomial/ (two-name) /nomenclature/. It was
introduced by Linnæus, and greatly simplified the system of naming.
The rule in scientific nomenclature is that all names must be Latin
or Latinized. This gives a universal language by which scientists of
all countries understand one another.
The names of classes (the highest groups) and subclasses are
adjectives or adjective nouns, expressing the most prominent
characteristic of the class or subclass. Thus the four subclasses of
the class /Algæ/ are:
/Cyanophyceæ/ (subclass of blue-green algæ).
/Chlorophyceæ/ (subclass of grass-green algæ).
/Phæophyceæ/ (subclass of dusky-brown or olive-green algæ).
/Rhodophyceæ/ or /Florideæ/ (subclass of red algæ).
Orders are, with few exceptions, the names of genera with the
termination /-aceæ/, as:
/Ulvaceæ/, from the genus /Ulva/.
/Ectocarpaceæ/, from the genus /Ectocarpus/.
/Gigartinaceæ/, from the genus /Gigartina/. [pg029]
Suborders, or groups between orders and genera, terminate in /-eæ/.
Names of genera are nouns or words taken as nouns. They are derived
from any source,--from prominent or peculiar characteristics, from
localities, or from names of botanists,--or they may be wholly
arbitrary. Personal generic names are divested of titles and take
a final /a/, or, in many cases, for euphony, /ia/. Thus, /Ulva/ is
the Latin for "sedge"; /Ectocarpus/ is from two Greek words meaning
"fruit outside"; /Corallina/ means "coral-like"; /Grinnellia/ is
named for Mr. Henry Grinnell.
The specific names are commonly adjectives, but sometimes they are
nouns, and occasionally are the names of the botanists who first
described the plants, in which case the name terminates in /-i/ or
/-ii/. The specific name always follows the generic name, thus:
/Ectocarpus Hooperi/, a species of /Ectocarpus/, first described by
Mr. Hooper.
/Grinnellia Americana/, a species, peculiar to America, of a genus
named for Mr. Grinnell.
/Griffithsia corallina/, a species resembling coral, and belonging to
a genus named for Mrs. Griffiths.
With regard to the four subclasses mentioned above, it should be said
that algæ are strictly classified in accordance with their methods
of reproduction; but since allied species have, with few exceptions,
the same color, the classification by colors is generally adopted as
convenient and sufficiently precise.
Familiar, or, in technical language, "vulgar," names are very
generally given to land plants, and especially to flowers; but
seaweeds are less in sight than flowers are, and so, save in a
few instances, have not been named except by the man of science.
To remember the scientific names will not be found difficult, for
without effort or special pains to acquire the new vocabulary, the
names, like those of new personal friends, will insensibly become
fixed in the memory.
In the body of this work each of the groups (class, subclass, order,
etc.), in the classification of both animals and plants, is indicated
by a special kind of type. [pg030]
VIII
DISTRIBUTION OF ALGÆ
The eastern coast of North America has been divided into four
sections, which correspond to the distribution of the algæ which are
characteristic of each section. The boundary-lines are not precise,
since some species of each section extend beyond the defined limits;
but arctic forms are not generally found south of Cape Cod, nor
can tropical varieties be expected north of Cape Hatteras. On the
intervening coast, however, there are some species common to both
sections. The divisions are: (1) Greenland to Cape Cod; (2) Cape Cod
to Cape Hatteras; (3) Cape Hatteras to Cape Florida; (4) the Florida
Keys and the shores of the Gulf of Mexico.
On the Pacific coast such distinct lines of demarcation do not exist,
there being no such natural barriers as are formed on the eastern
coast, first by Cape Cod, and, second, by the stretch of sand-beach
which extends from New York to Charleston, and which divides sharply
the climatic varieties.
The whole shore is again divided laterally into three distinct belts,
called the /littoral/, the /laminarian/, and the /coralline/ zones.
The first or littoral zone covers the space between tide-marks.
Vegetable life in this zone is subjected first to exposure to the
sun and air, and even to desiccation, and then to entire submergence
at constantly recurring periods. The rockweeds (/Fucus/), which
are so plentiful in this zone, are very gelatinous, nature having
apparently provided the gelatine to protect the cells of the plant
from the effects of the alternating extreme conditions. /Fucus/ and
/Enteromorpha/ predominate in this zone. [pg031]
The laminarian zone extends from low-water mark to the depth of
fifteen fathoms. The /Laminariaceæ/ and the beautiful red algæ
(/Florideæ/) grow here.
The third or coralline zone extends to the depth of about fifty
fathoms. The algæ of this zone, the nullipores, are incrusted with
a deposit of lime which gives them the appearance of corals; and,
singularly enough, the corals, which are animal forms, simulate plant
life.
Again, algæ have special habits and demand certain climates and
seasons for their growth. Algologists register the place where a
specimen is found, and in this way localities have been pretty well
determined. However, great exactness has not been reached, and the
collector is ever watchful to find an alga in some undiscovered home
within the given range. Although algæ grow from extreme high-water
mark to the depth of fifty fathoms, almost every variety may be
found on the beach, those growing in deep water being frequently
torn off and washed ashore by the waves. The heaps of sea-wrack
will often reward one who examines them carefully for deep-water
species. Seaweeds are most abundant on rocky shores, particularly
where there are stratified rocks with crevices, which afford shelter
from the waves. Rock pools often contain beautiful varieties of the
more delicate species. Red algæ will sometimes be found on the shady
side of these pools. Sand-beaches are unfavorable to the growth of
seaweeds, but fronds which have been carried long distances by the
currents will frequently be found on such shores. [pg032]
IX
SOME PECULIAR AND INTERESTING VARIETIES OF ALGÆ
The species of seaweeds that are known and classified are said to
number several thousands. These plants, which have neither vessels
for the conduction of fluids, nor fibers, consisting simply of
the first vegetable element, the cell, have, notwithstanding this
limitation, assumed a great variety of forms. In size they vary
from one one-thousandth of an inch in diameter, the smallest green
plants known, to those which exceed in length the height of the
tallest trees and form dense submarine forests, which in places make
comparatively deep water impassable for boats. In texture they vary
from a jelly- to a paper- and a leather-like consistency. In color
they have all the shades of green, brown, and red.
DIATOMS AND OTHER MINUTE ALGÆ
Among the smallest algæ are diatoms. They are microscopic in size,
but exist everywhere in both salt and fresh water, and are infinite
in variety as well as in numbers. They have a silicious, shell-like
covering, which divides and subdivides in their reproductive growth,
forming varied shapes which are exceedingly beautiful and interesting
to examine under the microscope. In vast numbers they float on the
surface of the sea, and, together with other minute free-floating
organisms, form the basis of food-supply for fishes. Their
indestructible shells fall to the bottom of the sea, forming large
deposits, which in time become fossilized. The city of Richmond,
Virginia, is built upon [pg033] a fossiliferous bed of diatoms,
which measures twenty to eighty feet in depth and several miles in
length.
Associated with diatoms, in fresh water, are desmids, which are green
in color and resemble the diatoms except in having a cartilaginous
instead of a silicious covering. Another minute organism, /Pyrocystis
noctiluca/, is luminous and is said to produce the beautiful
phosphorescent effects seen in tropical seas. /Trichodesmium/ is a
little alga which periodically occurs in great numbers, giving the
water a red appearance, as in the Red Sea, which is said to derive
its name from this circumstance.
RED SNOW
In the high latitudes of the arctic regions, also on snowy mountains
at altitudes where all vegetable life is supposed to be extinguished,
there sometimes appears a redness on the surface of the snow, which
in some cases extends for many miles. At a certain place in Greenland
the color was so vivid that an arctic voyager named the locality the
Crimson Bluffs.
The strangeness and almost sudden appearance of this color in the
snow have been so unaccountable to uninformed observers that it has
been ascribed by them to the falling of bloody snow and has been
regarded with superstition. The redness is caused by the growth of
one of the smallest of plants, the /Protococcus nivalis/. It is a
simple one-celled alga containing protoplasm and endochrome (red
coloring-matter). It grows by cell-division, the cell dividing into
four, eight, or sixteen parts on a quaternary scale. Each part
acquires a new covering while within the mother cell, and when it
emerges it is a complete individual and ready to repeat the process.
Only a few hours are required for its growth and development; hence
its increase is rapid, and it requires but a little time to make
itself manifest in those places where the conditions are favorable to
its existence.
THE SARGASSO SEA
When the voyager reaches a certain region of the North Atlantic,
called the Sargasso Sea, he sails into a vast undulating marine
[pg034] prairie. Farther than the eye can reach is spread a
yellowish-brown vegetation which covers the water as grass covers the
plain. Sometimes these weeds are so thick as to impede navigation,
and, seen from a little distance, seem substantial enough to walk
upon. At other times, according to seasons and conditions of storm
and wind, they are divided into strips or into island-like masses,
with spaces of clear water between. If the sailor did not know the
special conditions existing here he might suppose he had come upon
dangerous shallows; or were the waters less turbulent he might dream
that he was floating among the water-weeds of an inland lake.
This vast acreage of vegetation, as large as the continent of Europe,
lying southwest of the Azores and extending between the Canary and
the Cape Verde Islands, was first reported by Columbus, and takes its
name from the floating plant of which it is composed, the /Sargassum
bacciferum/, a species of the order /Fucaceæ/, commonly known as
gulfweed. Columbus's sailors took fright at the marvelous appearance
and wished to turn back, thinking they had reached the end of the
navigable ocean. They thought, if land were beyond, it was guarded
by shoals, and that the weeds concealed dangerous rocks. Columbus
threw out two hundred fathoms of line, but did not reach bottom,
and continued on his course for fifteen days before emerging into
clear water. From that day to this the Sargasso Sea has attracted
the attention of all navigators. It is especially interesting to
scientists. The physicist finds there the phenomenon of the ocean
currents holding in a vortex this immense mass of seaweed, the
zoölogist finds a great pasture in whose protecting shelter are
living and breeding countless numbers of marine animals, and the
botanist is puzzled because the source of this species of plant is
clouded with doubt.
[Illustration: PLATE II. Macrocystis pyrifera. Agarum Turneri.
Nereocystis Lütkeana.]
According to one theory, the plants are dislodged by the tempests
from terrestrial beds and carried by the Gulf Stream into the
huge eddy; but since there does not exist enough of the attached
plants of this species to supply the vast accumulation, another and
more generally accepted theory is that the gulfweed lives also a
pelagic life and adapts itself to the conditions of the [pg035]
floating state, thus dispensing with the disk-like root, as it
needs no holdfasts, and propagating solely by lateral and axillary
ramification.
There are said to be one hundred and fifty species of /Sargassum/,
but /S. bacciferum/ alone constitutes the beds of the Sargasso Sea.
The plant is the most highly differentiated of any seaweed, in that
it more nearly approaches the true leaf and stem, and is described
botanically as follows: Frond furnished with distinct, stalked,
nerveless leaves and simple, axillary, stalked air-vessels. The
integument is leathery, and the color brown of varying shades. The
most striking peculiarity is the abundance of globular cells. These
berry-like air-bladders give the plant buoyancy enough to support the
weight of its innumerable guests. (Plate XVI.)
THE LAMINARIACEÆ
In the laminarian zone, described above, grow the /Laminariaceæ/, an
order of brown seaweeds, some of whose genera grow to enormous size,
and in some places form dense submarine forests. Darwin speaks of the
good service rendered by these plants to vessels navigating stormy
coasts, where often they act as natural breakwaters, and again as
buoys designating dangerous rocks near the shore on which they grow.
The seaweeds belonging to this order, commonly known as oarweeds,
tangle, devil's-apron, and sea-colander, are frequently seen twelve
to twenty feet in length, and others are measured by fathoms. One
of the giant plants is /Nereocystis Lütkeana/, which occurs on
the northwest coast. It has a stalk, sometimes three hundred feet
in length, which bears on its extremity a barrel- or cask-shaped
air-vessel, six or seven feet long, from the surface of which a tuft
of fifty or more forked laminæ grows to a length of thirty or forty
feet. The stem which anchors this immense frond is so small that the
Aleutian Indians use it for fishing-lines. The sea-otter makes his
home on its huge air-vessel, and the plant is called by the Russians
the "sea-otters' cabbage."
But the longest of all known plants is the alga /Macrocystis/. Its
thin naked stem, the diameter of which seldom exceeds one quarter
[pg036] of an inch, is reported by one author to be seven hundred
feet in length, by another fifteen hundred feet. It is terminated
by a lamina fifty feet long, resembling a pinnatifid leaf, each
leaflet of which, at its point of division on the stem, expands into
an air-vessel as large as an egg. These air-vessels sustain the
immense frond which floats on the surface of the water, its leaflets
depending in a vertical position from the stem. /M. pyrifera/, the
only species, is found in the Southern oceans and on the Pacific
coast of North America.
/Lessonia/, another genus, resembles a palm-tree. It grows erect to
a great height and has a stem like the bole of a tree. It branches
in a forking manner and has depending from its branches laminæ two
or three feet long. The large stems from which the laminæ have been
torn by the storms, and which have been cast ashore on the Falkland
Islands, as described by Sir Joseph Hooker, resemble driftwood, as
they lie in piles three or four feet high and extending for many
miles.
/Agarum/ and /Thalassiophyllum/ are arctic genera, but they are found
within our limits, the former in the North Atlantic. It has a simple
but enormous leaf-like frond. The latter, which is found on the North
Pacific coast, has a compound frond. Both are characterized by their
fronds being perforated throughout with holes, giving them the name
of sea-colander. [pg037]
X
USES OF ALGÆ
Water covers two thirds of the surface of the earth, and algæ, with
a very few exceptions, constitute the whole vegetation which exists
in that enormous area. They have, therefore, an important part to
perform in the economy of nature. Algæ do not, like land plants,
derive their nourishment from the soil to which they are attached,
but from substances held in solution by water. In their growth they
effect changes in the water analogous to those effected by land
plants in the air; that is, they change so-called impurities in the
water into materials essential to animal life. The function of plants
is that of transforming or manufacturing inorganic matter, which they
assimilate, into organic matter (such as starch, albumen, sugar),
which forms their own structure and which is the food essential to
animals. In this process, plants inhale carbonic acid gas which
animals breathe out, and exhale oxygen which animals breathe in.
Plants feed on mineral substances and furnish vegetable food, thus
keeping up the balance of life.
Fresh-water algæ have a like economic value. The green surface on
stagnant pools is a vegetable growth whose function is to assimilate
the matter which makes the pool offensive. A submerged district soon
becomes covered with scum, or minute plants (/Sphæoplea annulina/),
which grow with great rapidity, using up the materials of the
decaying vegetation, and in great measure counteracting the ill
effects, in the atmosphere, of such decay. When the waters subside,
the plants shrivel up and appear like thin paper covering the ground.
This ephemeral substance soon [pg038] disappears, without giving
evidence of its nature in dust or gases, its body seeming to be a
machine which transmutes, but does not hold, the substances on which
it grows.
Algæ, as has been said above, grow in definite zones, and each
zone has also a definite animal life which finds there its food.
Darwin says: "In all parts of the world a rocky and partially
protected shore perhaps supports in a given space a greater number
of individual animals than any other station." And speaking of the
/Laminariaceæ/, he adds: "I can only compare these great aquatic
forests of the southern hemisphere with the terrestrial ones in the
intertropical regions. Yet if in any country a forest was destroyed
I do not believe nearly so many species of animals would perish as
would here from the destruction of the kelp." The same may be said of
the Sargasso Sea, where millions of living creatures make their home.
In every kind of marine fauna there are species which derive, if not
the whole, at least a part of their nourishment from the seaweeds.
The vegetation in the narrow boundary of the three zones is
palpably inadequate to supply the needs of the animal life which
exists in deeper waters. But over the broad area of the ocean
there exists a vast number of pelagic, free-floating algæ, which,
although microscopical in size, are almost infinite in numbers.
In illustration of this it has been estimated that, although they
are not especially numerous in the Sargasso Sea, yet if all the
seaweed there were gathered into one mass and the free-floating
algæ into another, the bulk of the latter would exceed that of the
former. The pelagic flora consists of /Diatomaceæ/, /Protococcaceæ/,
/Peridinieæ/, and others. Undoubtedly it is on these pastures that
fishes feed, as well as other organisms which in turn are food for
fishes.
/Fucus/ and /Laminaria/ constitute the kelp from which iodine is
obtained, and were at one time the source of the potash of commerce.
/Fucus vesiculosus/ is a constituent of a medicine used as a cure for
obesity. /Chondrus crispus/, commonly known as Irish moss, was a few
years ago generally used as an article of diet. /Porphyra vulgaris/
(laver) is used by the Chinese for soups. /Rhodymenia palmata/
(dulse) is an article of food in Ireland and Scotland. [pg039]
/Gracilaria spinosa/ is used by birds, allied to the swallows, for
making their nests--the edible nests found in large numbers on the
islands of the Indian Archipelago, especially in the caves on the
shores of Java, and gathered and sent to China, where they bring
large prices and are used in making the famous birds'-nest soup.
/Gracilaria lichenoides/, also a species of the Eastern seas, is
the source of agar-agar, a preparation used in laboratories as a
culture-medium for bacteria. Fossil diatoms are ground and used for
polishing-powders. Seaweeds are everywhere used by farmers on the
coasts as fertilizers. [pg040]
XI
COLLECTING AT BAR HARBOR
The beautiful coast of Maine is a particularly good field for
shore-collecting. The rocky coast harbors the boreal fauna and flora
which depend upon such physical conditions, and the shores at Bar
Harbor are typical of those found elsewhere in northern New England.
The rocks give shelter from the beating surf, while life has exposure
to the cold, pure waters of the arctic current. Everywhere along
the shore, rock pools are to be found. These are perhaps the most
fascinating of all spots to the collector. They are veritable gardens
of the sea, where species flourish which naturally belong to deeper
water, but which find in such pools conditions suitable to their
existence.
At Bar Harbor one well-known and frequently visited rock pool is
found in Anemone Cave. Entering a field at Schooner Head, one
turns to the right and follows the rocky shore for two or three
hundred feet. It is difficult to take this short walk without being
constantly diverted and delayed by the various attractions one meets,
such as the tide-pools, the barnacles which in places whiten the
rocks, the periwinkles, the purpura shells, and the curious algæ; but
at last one arrives at a cavern under an overhanging rock. Here is a
large tide-pool which at first sight displays only a beautiful scheme
of color. It is carpeted with a bright-pink alga, /Hildenbrandtia
rosea/, which incrusts the basin of the pool.
Interspersed with the pink are patches of a deep-red color, having
a velvety appearance, which are formed by another crustaceous alga,
/Petrocelis cruenta/. The water of the pool is of crystal [pg041]
clearness, and as one gazes into it one object after another comes
into view, until one is filled with astonishment at the number of
beautiful objects the pool contains. The little green balls, one
half of an inch to one inch in diameter, which look like small green
tomatoes scattered on the stones, are /Leathesia difformis/, an
alga which cannot be mistaken for any other. Bunches of /Corallina
officinalis/, which resembles coral, as the name indicates, are
abundant. This alga should be examined with a magnifying-glass. It is
covered with calcareous matter, and its peculiar form of growth is
beautiful and interesting.
The fronds of the laminarian /Alaria esculenta/ are tiny here,
while just outside the cave they are to be seen several feet in
length, beating against the rocks in the swash of the waves. Thorny
sea-urchins (/Strongylocentrotus drobachiensis/) make green spots
which look like tufts of moss. Yellow and green sponges in little
cones are spread over small surfaces. Starfishes and ophiurans
are plentiful. The /Purpura lapillus/ and /Littorina litorea/ and
/rudis/ (periwinkles), so plentiful on this coast, are present. The
/Mytillus/ and the /Saxicava/ and the /Acmæa testudinalis/ are also
to be found. A green crab (/Carcinus mænas/) is snugly hidden in a
dark nook on the shady side of the pool, and many small crustaceans
scuttle away from under stones as they are lifted. The collector
is always anxious for uncommon, or rather less plentiful, species,
and here are found two specimens of nudibranchs, or naked mollusks,
/Æolis/ and /Dendronotus/. The /Chiton ruber/, a jointed mollusk, was
also found here, and five species of sea-anemones were counted. As
this is a favorite hunting-ground, the anemones have not been left
to attain full growth; but there are very many small ones which at
first are not distinguishable, as they retract their tentacles at the
slightest disturbance of the water and are then quite inconspicuous.
After a little time of quiet watching they will be seen putting out
their tentacles and expanding their beautiful flower-like forms.
It is useless to try to capture them uninjured, so tightly do they
adhere to the rocks, and the difficulty of preserving them in an
expanded form is so great that amateur collectors had better leave
them undisturbed to beautify the pool. [pg042]
It was hard to resist robbing this rock pool, where the author in
half an hour counted twenty different species, and finally left,
feeling that its treasures were not half discovered; but collecting
should be done elsewhere, and this pool be guarded as a gem to be
admired and not to be despoiled.
This pool in Anemone Cave, although so very attractive, is surpassed
in beauty and interest by pools on Porcupine Island, at the base
of the cliff. This place is somewhat difficult of access, and the
timid will not undertake the descent to it; but the enthusiastic
collector, who overlooks small obstacles, will be repaid by a visit
to this spot, where all the treasures of Anemone Cave are multiplied
many times over. These pools are resplendent with large anemones,
hydroids, nudibranchs, mollusks, echinoderms, crustaceans, and
algæ. /Alaria esculenta/, several feet in length, is beaten to a
fringe against the rocks, and /Agarum Turneri/, the sea-colander, is
also found here, together with beautiful specimens of /Rhodymenia
palmata/, which is so plentiful that it reddens the rocks.
A /Metridium marginatum/, the most common sea-anemone of this coast,
was taken here which measured six inches in diameter. This creature
threw out so many of the processes used for defense that it seemed at
first as though it were covered with some seaweed; but the worm-like
movements of these threads, which measured six inches or more in
length, soon disclosed their nature.
On the more accessible shores of Porcupine Island are found the naked
mollusks (nudibranchs) /Æolis/ and /Dendronotus/. Clinging sideways
to the rocks just above high-water mark are many shells of /Littorina
rudis/. They are fastened to the rocks by a glutinous deposit along
the outer lip, and the peculiar exposure of the open end, as well
as the position above tide-mark, indicates that this animal is
undergoing transformation into a land species. /Littorina palliata/
is abundant on the rockweeds (/Fucus/); some of the specimens are
banded with yellow, and all closely simulate the seaweed on which
they cling. Beautifully banded specimens of /Littorina litorea/ are
also plentiful. Among other shells which are abundant here as well as
elsewhere on this coast are /Purpura lapillus/, /Acmæa testudinalis/,
/Buccinum undatum/, /Mya arenaria/, and /Mytillus edulis/. [pg043]
Under the rockweeds in small pools and crevices are the polyzoans
/Bugula turrita/ and /Membranipora pilosa/, and the hydroids
/Sertularia pumila/ and /S. argentea/.
The seaweeds /Rhodymenia palmata/ (dulse) and /Desmarestia/ are
plentiful; also beautiful worms, crustaceans, and starfishes.
A very interesting beach is found a few hundred feet south of Otter
Cliffs, to which an easy descent is made if one follows a pathway
leading to it through a grove adjacent to the drive. Here one will be
interested in the study of numerous and beautiful rock pools.
Sea-urchins (/Strongylocentrotus drobachiensis/) seem to carpet some
of them, having the appearance of mossy tufts. Beautiful pink and
purple starfishes (/Asterias vulgaris/), brittle-stars (/Ophiopholis
aculeata/), sea-cucumbers (/Pentacta frondosa/), sea-anemones, and
crabs are abundant. If one lifts a stone the little crustaceans
/Orchestia/ and /Gammarus/ will hurry away, and very likely an
interesting worm or a nudibranch will be found. It is also most
interesting to watch the barnacles, which are below the surface,
reaching out their curled, feather-like feet in regular rhythmic
grasping motions. The common mussels (/Mytillus edulis/), which in
places blacken the shore, are beautiful under examination, and the
silky network or byssus which forms the anchorage should be observed.
The rocks are hung so plentifully with /Ascophyllum nodosum/
(rockweed) that its beauty is likely to be passed over unnoticed.
On the /Ascophyllum/ is growing in tufts /Polysiphonia fastigiata/;
other seaweeds, /Rhodymenia palmata/, /Chordaria flagelliformis/,
/Desmarestia aculeata/, /Corallina officinalis/, and /Ceramium/, are
so abundant that one forgets to value them at the moment. Higher up
on the beach the rocks are spotted with papery sheets, which, floated
out in water, prove to be the beautiful purple /Porphyra/. A fine,
dark colored, hairy scum on the rocks is /Bangia fusco-purpurea/.
Sometimes one finds here fronds of /Laminaria/ which have been washed
ashore. Various green algæ are abundant. Even if not collecting, it
is well to carry a small tin pail to the beach and float out pieces
of the algæ in order to observe carefully, if but for a moment, the
beautiful forms they have in their natural state. Watched for a few
minutes in a pail of water animals disclose curious [pg044] and
surprising forms and habits which are difficult to watch leaning over
a pool.
Most of the various species mentioned above are common along the
whole shore, and may be looked for at almost any point where the
water is free from contamination.
At the sand-beach are found species which do not inhabit the rocky
shore, as the sand-dollar (/Echinarachnius parma/), /Polynices/
(/Lunatia/) /heros/, /Mya arenaria/, and others. After a storm
various deep-water forms are washed upon this beach. /Laminaria
digitata/, six feet long, is found here sometimes under these
circumstances. /Chordaria flagelliformis/, resembling long switches
of hair, floats from the rocks near the shore. To the left, on the
rock under the overhanging ledge, is a tide-pool which one would
hesitate to deface by touching a single specimen. So crystal-clear
is the water, so brilliant the /Hildenbrandtia/, so lovely the
/Corallina/, that all seem placed there to excite admiration.
But most of all one should obtain the permission of the owner to
visit Rodicks Weir. Here is an immense natural aquarium, full of
living wonders. On a clear day, sunlight penetrates to the bottom,
and at low tide the whole contents of the weir are clearly seen as
one floats through the inclosed water-spaces. On the bottom are
sea-urchins, many of them with sticks or stones on their backs, which
the animals have placed there in the endeavor to conceal themselves;
starfishes feeding; and great numbers of whelks (/Buccinum undatum/).
Cuttlefishes dart rapidly about, and skates, sculpins, and other
fishes display their curious forms. Very likely a giant jellyfish
(/Cyanea arctica/) is entangled in the brush, so that one can examine
at short range its wonderful and beautiful parts. Other jellyfishes
may be closely scrutinized.
The alga /Polysiphonia violacea/ floats in long feathery tufts from
the stakes.
On the eel-grass are to be found /Lacuna vincta/ and the delicate
iridescent little shells of /Margarita helicina/.
Every tide brings different species of the ocean fauna to temporary
imprisonment in this inclosure, so that it is difficult to say what
one may not chance to find in this interesting place.
PART I
MARINE ALGÆ
SEAWEED
When descends on the Atlantic
The gigantic
Storm-wind of the equinox,
Landward in his wrath he scourges
The toiling surges,
Laden with seaweed from the rocks;
From Bermuda's reefs; from edges
Of sunken ledges
In some far-off, bright Azore;
From Bahama and the dashing,
Silver-flashing
Surges of San Salvador;
* * * * *
Ever drifting, drifting, drifting
On the shifting
Currents of the restless main;
Till in sheltered coves, and reaches
Of sandy beaches,
All have found repose again.
LONGFELLOW.
I
BLUE-GREEN SEAWEEDS (CYANOPHYCEÆ)
GRASS-GREEN SEAWEEDS (CHLOROPHYCEÆ)
TABLE SHOWING THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE BLUE-GREEN SEAWEEDS DESCRIBED
IN THIS CHAPTER
Class =ALGÆ=
Subclass =Cyanophyceæ= (/Blue-Green Seaweeds/)
Order =NOSTOCACEÆ=
Genera Species
^Spirulina^
^Oscillaria^
^Calothrix^
^Lyngbya^ ^L. majuscula^
^L. ferruginea^
[pg049]
BLUE-GREEN SEAWEEDS
The minute algæ, which form patches of purple color on rocks, slimy
layers or spots on wharves, bluish-green slime on mud, emerald-green
films on decaying algæ, blue-green slime on brackish ditches, and so
on, are various species of the subclass =Cyanophyceæ=. The prevailing
color of these plants is blue-green, but some are purple, brown, or
pink. Some of them are gelatinous in texture and shapeless, others
have more definite forms; but all are too small to classify without
the aid of a powerful glass, and are not of special interest except
to the botanist.
GENERA ^Oscillaria^ and ^Spirulina^
The genus ^Oscillaria^ is so named from an oscillating movement which
these filamentous plants show when viewed under the microscope. They
are very delicate blue-green threads occurring singly, or in loose or
felt-like floating masses, or like slime or scum, on mud or woodwork.
In ^Spirulina^ the filaments are spirally twisted like a corkscrew
and also have a vibrating movement. /Spirulina/ is often found
growing with /Oscillaria/, and forms purple patches on wharves.
GENUS ^Calothrix^
("/Beautiful hair/")
Filaments one tenth of an inch long, terminating in transparent
hair-like points, occasionally branching. The plant grows in fine
tufts or like a fringe on algæ or in patches on rocks. Sometimes it
forms a spongy layer, again a velvety stratum. The color varies in
different species; it may be bright green, brownish-green, [pg050]
or dark bluish-purple. The genus is very common, and the plants are
often found on the bottoms of boats.
GENUS ^Lyngbya^
(/Named for Hans Christian Lyngbye, a Danish botanist/)
^L. majuscula^, mermaid's-hair. The filaments are curled or
crisped, long, thick, and tenacious, matted together at the base,
and blackish-green. The species grows in tufts on eel-grass and
algæ, and is often found floating free. It is common in summer
everywhere south of Cape Cod and on the Pacific coast.
^L. ferruginea^ or ^æstuarii^. In this species the filaments are
thin, soft, and without stability (flaccid), so that they lie flat
like a thin stratum. They are verdigris-green in color, and are
found in brackish pools and ditches and on muddy shores near the
sea. [pg051]
TABLE SHOWING THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE GRASS-GREEN SEAWEEDS
DESCRIBED IN THIS CHAPTER
Class =ALGÆ=
Subclass =Chlorophyceæ= (/Grass-Green Seaweeds/)
Order Genus Species
=CONFERVACEÆ= ^Ulothrix^
^Chætomorpha^ ^C. melagonium^
^C. ærea^
^C. linum^
^Cladophora^ ^C. arcta^
^C. rupestris^
^C. gracilis^
=ULVACEÆ= ^Ulva^ ^U. lactuca^
^U. latissima^
^Enteromorpha^ ^E. clathrata^
^E. compressa^
^E. intestinalis^
^E. lanceolata^
^Monostroma^
Group =Siphoneæ=
=VALONIACEÆ= ^Chamædoris^ ^C. annulata^
^Anadyomene^ ^A. flabellata^
=DASYCLADACEÆ= ^Acetabularia^ ^A. crenulata^
^Dasycladus^ ^D. occidentalis^
^Cymopolia^ ^C. barbata^
=UDOTEACEÆ= ^Penicillus^ ^P. dumentosus^
^P. capitatus^
^P. Ph[oe]nix^
^Udotea^ ^U. flabellata^
^U. conglutinata^
^Halimeda^ ^H. tuna^
^H. tridens^
^H. opuntia^
=CODIACEÆ= ^Bryopsis^ ^B. plumosa^
^Codium^ ^C. tomentosum^
=CAULERPACEÆ= ^Caulerpa^ ^C. prolifera^
^C. Mexicana^
^C. plumosa^
^C. Wurdemanii^
[pg052]
GRASS-GREEN SEAWEEDS
"There can hardly be a more fascinating group of plants than this,
whether to the strictly scientific botanist or to the more catholic
lover of nature. The green algæ are among the most widely diffused
of plant forms. They grow practically in every place where enough
moisture, together with light and air, is to be had. Between
tide-marks on almost every coast, floating on the surface of the deep
sea, covering damp earth, walls, palings, and tree-trunks, sticking
to the surface of leaves in the moist atmosphere of tropical forests
and jungles, and inhabiting almost every river, brook, pond, ditch,
or casual pool of rain-water in all quarters of the globe, are
members of this ubiquitous group to be found."[3]
[Footnote 3: Kerner.]
The grass-green seaweeds are more simple in structure, and therefore
are lower in order, than the red or brown algæ. They are among the
lowest of all plants, many of them being minute single cells. They
abound in fresh as well as in salt water, and in this respect differ
from the other groups, the red and the brown algæ being almost
exclusively marine plants.
As one approaches the shore, the attention is often attracted by the
green mantle which covers everything overflowed by the tides. This
consists largely of the confervoid algæ, which are very abundant and
are found almost everywhere. They are dense tufts of fine thread-like
plants, often matted at the base; sometimes they are sponge-like,
floating masses.
The =Ulvaceæ=, the plants next higher in order, are the first which
assume ribbon- and leaf-like expansions, and usually first engage the
attention of the collector. [pg053]
In the green algæ are found the extreme forms of one-celled plants.
In ^Pleurococcus^ the cell is microscopic in size. In the =Siphoneæ=
the plant still consists of a single cell, but it attains large
dimensions and develops into forms resembling, in outward appearance,
leaf, stem, and root (see /Caulerpa/).
Other plants consist of single rows of cells, called filaments
(=Confervaceæ=), or of cells arranged in layers or flat surfaces,
called membranes (=Ulvaceæ=).
ORDER =CONFERVACEÆ=
The silkweeds. This order is characterized by cylindrical cells
strung end to end, forming threads or filaments, branched and
unbranched. The plants inhabit both fresh and salt water, and are
very abundant and widely distributed. They grow in dense tufts, often
matted at the base.
GENUS ^Ulothrix^
A yellow-green, unbranched, decumbent, soft, hair-like fleece on the
surface of rocks, extending indefinitely. This genus differs from
/Chætomorpha/ in the character of its filaments, which are soft and
gelatinous in ^Ulothrix^, but bristle-like and wiry in /Chætomorpha/.
GENUS ^Chætomorpha^
The frond is filiform; the filaments are coarse, rigid, and
unbranched. In some species the filaments grow straight and in
tufts from a definite base; in others they are twisted together
and are prostrate. Often they are found floating in masses. In ^C.
tortuosa^ the filaments are as fine as human hair, but rigid, and so
closely interwoven as to resemble a layer of wool on the rocks. The
cell-divisions give a striped appearance to the filaments when dry.
^C. melagonium.^ This species is dark green, with filaments erect,
coarse as a double bristle, and wiry; five to twelve inches long.
It is found in rock pools from Boston northward. It does not adhere
to paper in drying, and loses its color if immersed in fresh water.
(Plate III.)
^C. ærea.^ Yellowish-green, with filaments erect and less rigid
than [pg054] in /C. melagonium/, which it otherwise resembles;
tufts three to twelve inches long; cell-divisions very marked. This
species is found in rock pools from Cape Cod to New York Bay.
^C. linum.^ Bright green; filaments coarse, rigid, twisted
together, and prostrate. It is found floating in masses and forming
strata on rocks and gravel from New York northward. It is thought
by some that this, as well as ^C. picquotiana^, which it closely
resembles, is not a true species, but consists of the mature plants
of the species /C. melagonium/ and /C. ærea/, which have become
detached from their holdfasts and have continued to grow. (Plate
III.)
GENUS ^Cladophora^
("/Branch-bearing/")
Frond filiform, branched. There are many species of ^Cladophora^,
which differ from one another in their branching, color, and size.
They abound on rocks at low-water mark, in tide-pools, in muddy
ditches, and on wharves. They are especially characterized by being
so profusely branched as to form tufts or spherical masses, by which
the collector can easily distinguish the genus.
^C. arcta.^ Bright, glossy green; filaments fine, erect, much
branched, two to eight inches long; tufts dense, more or less
entangled, and in bunches, giving a starry effect. The species is
common on rocks near low-water mark from New York northward. The
plants vary slightly in appearance with the season. (Plate III.)
^C. rupestris.^ Dark green; filaments straight, rigid, tufted;
branches crowded; many branchlets flattened against the filaments,
so that the alga somewhat resembles grass; five to ten inches long.
The cell-divisions show plainly. Plants of this species do not
adhere to paper in drying. They are found on rocks at low-water
mark, and are common on the northern New England coast. (Plate III.)
^C. gracilis.^ Bright yellow-green; filaments very fine, loosely
tufted, three to twelve inches long, soft, silky, much branched;
branches rather short, and branchlets more or less curved and
arranged in a comb-like manner. It grows on wharves, in muddy
pools, and on eel-grass. (Plate IV.)
[Illustration: PLATE III. Chætomorpha melagonium. Chætomorpha linum.
Cladophora arcta. Cladophora rupestris.]
[Illustration: PLATE IV. Cladophora gracilis. Ulva lanceolata. Ulva
lactuca, var. rigida. Enteromorpha clathrata.]
ORDER =ULVACEÆ=
The plants of this order are, with few exceptions, formed of celled
surfaces and show the earliest type of an expanded leaf. The cells
form thin membranes, which sometimes are broad surfaces of no
definite shape, sometimes are narrow and ribbon-like, or they may be
simple or branched tubes. When the membrane [pg055] consists of
a single layer of cells it is ^Monostroma^ ("one layer"); when it
consists of a double layer it is ^Ulva^; when the layers separate,
the thallus becomes hollow, and it is then ^Enteromorpha^. These
plants are mostly a brilliant grass-green in color, are silky in
texture, and are attached by a small disk to rocks and stones. They
abound everywhere, and are commonly known as /green laver/.
GENUS ^Ulva^
Frond a thin, silky, flat membrane, sometimes leaf-like, again an
extended surface of no definite shape. These are the largest green
algæ. They are common everywhere.
^U. lactuca^, the sea-lettuce. Frond a flat membrane of various
shapes, sometimes orbicular, again deeply incised, often
ribbon-like; margin always much waved or ruffled. In the variety
^rigida^ the frond is oval in outline, not very large, and quite
firm or rigid. The species is found on rocks exposed to the action
of the waves. (Plate IV.)
^U. latissima.^ Frond a flat, expanded membrane of indefinite
shape, but general outline oval, never ribbon-like; attains a
size of twelve to twenty-four inches; often deeply lobed, very
waved, often perforated with holes; membrane brilliant green,
thin, smooth, glossy. It grows apart or in tufts, and is found
everywhere, in all stages of growth. It is the largest species of
/Ulva/, and is very common on muddy shores.
GENUS ^Enteromorpha^
Fronds tubular, simple or branched, sometimes inflated. The tubes
vary in size in different species and also in the same species, some
being fine like a hair, others large, and flat or inflated. The genus
is widely distributed and very abundant. Species of ^Enteromorpha^
grow on the bottoms of ships, and in nautical language are called
/grass/.
^E. clathrata.^ Fronds thread-like, tubular, branched, and branches
beset with numerous fine branchlets; densely tufted, soft. Common
everywhere. (Plate IV.)
^E. compressa.^ Fronds long, slender, branched, tufted; branches
simple, compressed, extending from main central branch, obtuse
at ends, but attenuated at base. The species is very abundant
everywhere, and is a useful plant for the aquarium. (Plate V.)
^E. intestinalis.^ Single, long, inflated tubes or sacs, obtuse at
the apex, very attenuated at the base; fronds often crimped and
twisted, resembling an intestine, whence the name. (Plate V.)
[pg056]
^E. lanceolata.^ Formerly called /Ulva Linza/. Frond narrow,
ribbon-like, six to twelve inches long, one inch to two inches
wide; blunt or pointed at apex, tapering at base; attached by a
disk; edges much ruffled; bright green, soft, thin.
GENUS ^Monostroma^
This genus resembles /Ulva/, but is more delicate since it
has but one layer of cells, as its name implies. The frond is
usually sac-like at first, then breaks apart, leaving a thin,
semi-transparent membrane of no definite shape.
GROUP =SIPHONEÆ=
The distinct and peculiar character of this group is that in each
individual the whole plant consists of but one cell. There are many
genera, some of which are plants of elaborate form and considerable
size, but always the one cell expands and branches without dividing
the elongated cavity with septa, or plates of division. In ^Caulerpa^
the stability of the plant is secured by numerous fibrils which
emanate from the interior of the cell, forming a spongy network of
interlacing filaments. In other orders the branches gain support from
incrustation, from interlacing, and from cohering on the edges.
ORDER =VALONIACEÆ=
The algæ of this order are found only in tropical or subtropical
waters. Their holdfasts resemble fibrous roots and penetrate the sand
or coral on which they grow.
GENUS ^Chamædoris^
^C. annulata.^ When young this alga consists of an annulated tube
formed of a single cell. The annular constrictions occur at short
intervals, giving it the appearance of being jointed. It grows to
the height of two to three inches, when it ceases to lengthen and
produces a dense mass of filaments, forming a head or spherical
tuft one inch or more in diameter. It is bright grass-green in
color, rather rigid and tough, and when mature is thinly coated
with carbonate of lime. The holdfast is a tuft of fibers. The
species is found at Key West and is a native of the West Indies.
[Illustration: PLATE V. Enteromorpha compressa. Enteromorpha
intestinalis. Enteromorpha intestinalis. Anadyomene flabellata.]
[Illustration: PLATE VI. Acetabularia crenulata. Dasycladus
occidentalis. Penicillus dumentosus. Udotea conglutinata.]
GENUS ^Anadyomene^
^A. flabellata.^ Frond composed entirely of branching filaments,
which unite and form an undulating, rigid membranaceous surface,
which seems like a network of veins. The species grows in bunches
on short stems in the fissures of tidal rocks, and at first view
resembles young /Ulva/. It is a very curious and beautiful alga,
and should be examined with a glass. It is one inch to four inches
in diameter when full-grown. (Plate V.)
ORDER =DASYCLADACEÆ=
This order also inhabits only tropical or subtropical seas. It is
placed in this group, although only the main axis is unicellular.
The one-celled axis is surmounted or encircled by whorls of minute
filaments or branchlets (/ramuli/), which protrude through small
holes and are either persistent or deciduous. In the latter case the
fallen filaments leave disk-like scars on the stem.
GENUS ^Acetabularia^
^A. crenulata.^ This little alga resembles a mushroom of the
/Agaricus/ variety or gilled species, and so is easily identified.
It is thinly incrusted with lime and is found on rocks and coral,
within tide-marks, on the Florida reefs. When full-grown the stipe
is two to three inches long and the cap one half of an inch in
diameter. (Plate VI.)
GENUS ^Dasycladus^
Fronds destitute of calcareous matter, soft, cylindrical or
club-shaped; single unicellular axis, beset with fine filaments or
ramuli.
^D. occidentalis.^ Frond club-shaped, one to two inches high, one
half of an inch or less in diameter; covered with whorls of fine
filaments, making the fronds almost spongy; substance soft but
tough; dark green. These plants have been compared to foxes' tails.
They grow in bunches on rocks between tide-marks. (Plate VI.)
GENUS ^Cymopolia^
^C. barbata.^ Frond branched, dividing regularly in pairs; thickly
incrusted with lime. Annular constrictions at short intervals give
the branches the appearance of strings of beads. Each section
is covered with pores or scars of fallen ramuli. The branches
terminate in tufts of fine filaments. [pg058]
ORDER =UDOTEACEÆ=
GENUS ^Penicillus^
The merman's shaving-brush, characteristic of coral reefs.
^P. dumentosus.^ Holdfast much branched, like a fibrous root, and
penetrating deep into the coral or sand; stem short, thick, more
or less flattened, sometimes hollow, covered with velvety scurf;
top covered with loosely spreading tuft of soft filaments three to
six inches long, which branch repeatedly in pairs (dichotomous);
color deep green. When old, these plants are incrusted with a thin,
porous layer of carbonate of lime. (Plate VI.)
^P. capitatus.^ Holdfast a dense mass of fibers two or more inches
long; stipe one to five inches long, one fourth to one third of an
inch in diameter, usually cylindrical, sometimes wider at top than
at base, sometimes flattened; thickly incrusted with lime, which is
smooth and often polished; top a dense, spherical mass of filaments
one to two inches in diameter; filaments branching dichotomously,
and rigid from incrustation of lime.
^P. Ph[oe]nix.^ Stipe cylindrical, one to three inches long,
one fourth of an inch in diameter, thickly incrusted with lime,
smooth; capitulum or head ovoid, and composed of filaments which
are incrusted with lime and coherent, forming many distinct, flat,
wedge-shaped, level-topped, spreading laminæ. This species is found
at Key West.
GENUS ^Udotea^
^U. flabellata.^ Short, flattened stem, expanding into a broad,
fan-shaped, smooth frond, concentrically zoned; margin wavy;
thickly incrusted with lime. Abundant at Key West.
^U. conglutinata.^ Deeply descending root; stem expanding into
fan-shaped frond; entire, lobed, or irregularly torn; slightly
incrusted with lime. The frond is composed of longitudinally
parallel, adherent filaments, which are visible, giving a striated,
rough surface. (Plate VI.)
GENUS ^Halimeda^
This genus resembles the corallines externally, and is abundant on
coral reefs. It appears as if formed of separate parts, resembling
a series of heart- or kidney-shaped segments strung together. The
plants are more or less incrusted with lime. The branching holdfast
grasps particles of sand, and with them forms a solid ball.
^H. tuna.^ Articulations roundish or half kidney-shaped, one half
to three quarters of an inch broad; frond flat, smooth, and thinner
than most species; bright green; somewhat flexible. (Plate VII.)
[Illustration: PLATE VII. Halimeda tuna. Halimeda tridens. Bryopsis
plumosa. Codium tomentosum.]
[Illustration: PLATE VIII. Caulerpa Mexicana. Caulerpa Wurdemanii.
Caulerpa plumaris. Caulerpa paspaloides.]
^H. tridens.^ Fronds solitary, erect; base composed of
confluent articulations; above divided into numerous branches
of articulations, which are all flat, and in one plane giving a
fan-shaped outline; middle joints wedge-shaped; upper ones divided
into three lobes, frequently bearing articulations at the summit of
each lobe; thinly incrusted with lime; color bright green. (Plate
VII.)
^H. opuntia.^ Articulations kidney-shaped, flat, rather thin;
margins scalloped; irregularly branched and spreading; dense tufts.
ORDER =CODIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Bryopsis^
("/Moss-like/")
There are said to be about twenty species of this genus. They are
distinguished by the manner of branching, but are not very definitely
marked. All are erect, one-celled, branching stalks, and are
feather-like in appearance.
^B. plumosa.^ Fronds branched twice or more; branchlets or pinnules
tapering as they rise on the stalk, giving a triangular outline;
stalk naked below; plants a vivid dark green in color, two to six
inches long, growing in tufts on wharves and stones at low-water
mark and in tide-pools. It is common along the whole Atlantic and
Pacific coasts. It is well to use salt water for mounting this
alga, since the green coloring-matter or granular endochrome with
which it is filled easily escapes. (Plate VII.)
GENUS ^Codium^
^C. tomentosum.^ This is called the commonest seaweed in the world.
It is abundant in every latitude, yet it does not appear on the
eastern coast of North America. It is found on the gulf coast of
Florida and is plentiful on the Pacific coast. The fronds are often
a foot long, composed of closely packed, club-shaped branches
dividing in a forking manner, and densely covered with fine
filaments which give them a soft, sponge-like texture. (Plate VII.)
ORDER =CAULERPACEÆ=
GENUS ^Caulerpa^
(/From two Greek words meaning "stem" and "creep"/)
/Caulerpa/ is the only genus of its order, but it contains about a
hundred species, many of which resemble mosses, ferns, or cacti. Each
plant is composed of a single cell, however much it may be [pg060]
ramified. The frond consists of a prostrate stem, from the lower side
of which root-like fibers or holdfasts descend into the hard sand or
coral, and from the upper side leaf- and branch-like secondary fronds
arise. These plants grow luxuriantly in tropical waters, extending
over large surfaces, and are the chief food of turtles. (Plate VIII.)
^C. prolifera.^ Frond or lamina flat and leaf-like, two to four
inches long, one half to three quarters of an inch wide, either
simple or once forked; margin entire. Similar laminæ spring from
the surface or from the edge or base of the different leaf-like
portions. Laminæ rise from the upper side of the creeping, rooting
stem. Its substance is somewhat horny and translucent.
^C. Mexicana.^ Prostrate, creeping stem, with rootlets or holdfasts
below, and leaf-like fronds above; fronds simple or with one or
two branches deeply cut in narrow lobes nearly to the center. The
species abounds at Key West. (Plate VIII.)
II
OLIVE-GREEN AND BROWN SEAWEEDS (PHÆOPHYCEÆ)
TABLE SHOWING THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE OLIVE-GREEN AND BROWN
SEAWEEDS DESCRIBED IN THIS CHAPTER
Class =ALGÆ=
Subclass =Phæophyceæ= (/Olive-Green and Brown Seaweeds/)
Orders Genera Species
=ECTOCARPACEÆ= ^Ectocarpus^ ^E. littoralis^
^E. siliculosus^
^E. viridis^
^E. tomentosus^
=SPHACELARIACEÆ= ^Sphacelaria^ ^S. cirrhosa^
^S. radicans^
^Cladostephus^ ^C. verticillatus^
=RALFSIACEÆ= ^Ralfsia^
=ENC[OE]LIACEÆ= ^Punctaria^ ^P. latifolia^
^P. tenuissima^
^P. plantaginea^
^Asperococcus^ ^A. echinatus^
^Phyllitis^ ^P. fascia^
=DESMARESTIACEÆ= ^Desmarestia^ ^D. viridis^
^D. aculeata^
^D. ligulata^
^Arthrocladia^ ^A. villosa^
=DICTYOSIPHONACEÆ= ^Dictyosiphon^ ^D. f[oe]niculaceus^
=ELACHISTACEÆ= ^Elachista^
=CHORDARIACEÆ= ^Chordaria^ ^C. flagelliformis^
^Mesogl[oe]a^ ^M. virescens^
^M. divaricata^
^Leathesia^
^Myrionema^
=LAMINARIACEÆ= ^Chorda^ ^C. filum^
^Alaria^ ^A. esculenta^
^Agarum^ ^A. Turneri^
^Laminaria^ ^L. longicruris^
^L. saccharina^
^L. digitata^
^Macrocystis^
^Nereocystis^
^Lessonia^
^Thalassiophyllum^
=DICTYOTACEÆ= ^Dictyota^ ^D. fasciola^
^D. dichotoma^
^Zonaria^ ^Z. lobata^
^Taonia^ ^T. atomaria^
^Padina^ ^P. pavonia^
^Haliseris^ ^H. polypodioides^
=CUTLERIACEÆ= ^Cutleria^ ^C. multifida^
=FUCACEÆ= ^Himanthalia^ ^H. lorea^
^Fucus^ ^F. vesiculosus^
^F. serratus^
^F. furcatus^
^F. ceranoides^
^Ascophyllum^ ^A. nodosum^
^Phyllospora^ ^P. Menziesii^
^Cystoseira^ ^C. expansa^
^Halidrys^ ^H. osmunda^
^Sargassum^ ^S. vulgare^
^S. Montagnei^
^S. bacciferum^
[pg064]
OLIVE-GREEN AND BROWN SEAWEEDS
This subclass contains some of the most remarkable of the seaweeds.
It is especially notable for the diversity of its plant forms, which
range from filaments to plants which appear to have stems and leaves
(/Sargassum/). The species vary in size from very small fronds to
those of immense size (the /Laminariaceæ/). It includes /Fucus/
(the rockweeds), a very conspicuous genus, which furnishes fully
three fourths of the vegetable covering of the tidal rocks in the
localities in which it grows.
ORDER =ECTOCARPACEÆ=
This order comprises many species of branched, filamentous plants,
some of which are of hair-like fineness and form beautiful feathery
tufts of brownish or olive-green color. They resemble, except in
their tawny color, the green alga /Cladophora/.
The name is derived from Greek words meaning "outside" and "fruit,"
the spores of the plants being borne on the branches.
The species are determined by the arrangement of the spores,
according as they are in the pod-like branches, in groups, or in
cases on stalks. Since these differences are not perceptible to the
naked eye, it is impracticable to describe many species, or for the
amateur collector to try to separate them.
GENUS ^Ectocarpus^
^E. littoralis.^ Filaments fine, in dense tufts, interwoven, six to
twelve inches long; pod linear in the substance of the branches;
color olive-green. This is the most common species of /Ectocarpus/,
and grows abundantly everywhere, appearing like large, fine,
dull-green plumes. (Plate IX.) [pg065]
^E. siliculosus.^ Tufts loosely entangled at the base, free and
feathery above, of indefinite length; spores in pod-like forms at
the ends of the branches. Common on the larger algæ and on wharves.
^E. viridis.^ Tufts a little more loose and expanding than in /E.
siliculosus/; spores in pods at the base of the branches. (Plate
IX.)
^E. tomentosus.^ Fine filaments, densely interwoven into rope-like,
spongy masses, two to four inches long; yellowish-brown; pods on
stalks. Found in summer growing on /Fucus/.
ORDER =SPHACELARIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Sphacelaria^
^S. cirrhosa.^ Olive-brown; branched, feathery filaments, one
half of an inch to two inches long. Each branch ends with an
oblong, swollen cell containing a dark granular mass which gives
it a withered appearance. These cells can be seen with a strong
pocket-lens. It forms dense, globe-like tufts on /Fucus/.
^S. radicans.^ Filaments one half of an inch to one inch high;
branches few and hairy. It forms a dense, grass-like covering, of
indefinite extent, on the under side of muddy rocks. Found on the
New England coast.
GENUS ^Cladostephus^
^C. verticillatus.^ Fronds bristle-like, dividing regularly;
covered with whorls of branchlets set close to the stems, each
whorl overlapping the previous one, giving the plant a spongy
appearance. (Plate IX.)
ORDER =RALFSIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Ralfsia^
The species of this genus are brown, leathery, crustaceous expansions
of indefinite form, one inch to six inches in diameter, resembling
lichens. They appear on rocks in shallow, exposed pools.
ORDER =ENC[OE]LIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Punctaria^
Dotted-weeds. Fronds pale olive-green, membranaceous, leaf-like, with
short stem; covered with spores which appear like dots.
^P. latifolia.^ Frond pale green, four to twelve inches long, one
inch to five inches wide, leaf-like, and tapering suddenly to a
short stalk; much [pg066] waved on margin; substance soft and
thin; dotted with spores. In the young plants fine hairs emerge
from the dots, but disappear later, and the fronds become darker
and more rigid. Found in summer on rocks and on other algæ on the
Long Island and New England coasts.
^P. tenuissima.^ Fronds smaller and more slender than in /P.
latifolia/; thin and delicate. Found on eel-grass and /Chorda
filum/.
^P. plantaginea.^ Fronds dark brown, leathery, leaf-like, blunt or
wedge-shaped on top; dense clusters of hairs on the dots; six to
twelve inches long, one inch to one and a half inches wide.
GENUS ^Asperococcus^
This genus differs from /Punctaria/ in having a tubular instead of a
flat frond. (Plate IX.)
^A. echinatus.^ Resembles /Enteromorpha/ in being tubular;
compressed or inflated; obtuse at the apex; attenuated at the
base. It differs from /Enteromorpha/ in being olive in color, and
in being covered with small oblong dots of darker shade. When the
plant is young the dots are hairy. It grows in clusters, two to
eighteen inches long, one half of an inch to one inch wide. Common
along the New England coast.
GENUS ^Phyllitis^
^P. fascia.^ Fronds light olive-green, leaf-like, three to six
inches long, one fourth to one half of an inch wide; margin entire,
slightly waved; contracted at base to short stalk; attached
by disk. This species grows in bunches on rocks and stones at
low-water mark, and is very common everywhere. (Plate X.)
ORDER =DESMARESTIACEÆ=
(/Named for M. Desmarest, a French naturalist/)
GENUS ^Desmarestia^
^D. viridis.^ Filaments cylindrical, about as thick as a bristle;
branches opposite, in pairs, at intervals on the main stem. The
branches branch again and continue to be disposed in the same
manner. All are long and ultimately become very fine. The color is
olive-green, becoming verdigris-green when exposed to the air for
a short time or placed in fresh water. The species grows in deep
tide-pools and below low-water mark, forming fine, feathery plumes,
often a yard long, which give submerged rocks the appearance of a
luxuriant garden. (Plate X.)
[Illustration: PLATE IX. Ectocarpus littoralis. Ectocarpus viridis.
Cladostephus verticillatus. Asperococcus bullosus.]
[Illustration: PLATE X. Phyllitis fascia. Desmarestia viridis.
Desmarestia aculeata. Desmarestia ligulata.]
^D. aculeata^ ("spiny"). Fronds cylindrical at base, flattened
above; branches long and straight, arranged alternately, when young
beset with pencils of fine hairs, often one half of an inch long,
which, later, fall off, leaving alternate spines along the edges of
the flattened branches. It [pg067] grows from one foot to six
feet in length, below low-water mark, and is found washed ashore.
It is an attractive plant in the spring, but is brown and coarse
when old. Common everywhere. (Plate X.)
^D. ligulata.^ Fronds two to six feet long, pinnate, having a
flat main stem one half of an inch or more wide, with opposite
flat branches; leaflets arranged along the edges of the branches,
pointed at each end, and bordered with forward-pointing spines. It
is found washed ashore, in abundance, in California, but is not
found on the Atlantic coast. (Plate X.)
GENUS ^Arthrocladia^
^A. villosa.^ Olive-brown filaments, resembling fine, knotted
threads, each knob having a whorl of delicate filaments. It grows
from six inches to three feet long, in deep water. It is rare, but
is occasionally found on the New England coast.
ORDER =DICTYOSIPHONACEÆ=
GENUS ^Dictyosiphon^
^D. f[oe]niculaceus.^ Fronds filiform, bristle-like, branching
into delicate, hair-like branches; yellowish-brown. It resembles
/Chordaria flagelliformis/, but is much finer. (Plate XI.)
ORDER =ELACHISTACEÆ=
GENUS ^Elachista^
The plants of this genus are small, olive-colored, unbranched,
hair-like filaments, growing in dense, radiating tufts, one half
of an inch in height, on /Fucus/. They are interesting to the
microscopist, but not to the collector.
ORDER =CHORDARIACEÆ=
("/Cord-like/")
GENUS ^Chordaria^
^C. flagelliformis^ ("whip-like"). Firm, leathery, somewhat
elastic, slimy strings, six to twenty-four inches long, and twice
as thick as a bristle; branches mostly undivided, short or long,
irregularly placed on the main axis, and curving inward at the
top of the frond; main axis not extending as far as the branches;
blackish in color; attached by a disk to stones and shells;
solitary or in bunches. It is common along the New England coast.
(Plate XI.) [pg068]
GENUS ^Mesogl[oe]a^
^M. virescens.^ Soft, slimy filaments, with branches and
branchlets; olive-green. (Plate XI.)
^M. divaricata.^ Fronds two to twenty-four inches high; branching
irregularly, and generally without definite main axis; branches
flexuous, solid at first, later hollow; branchlets short and
wide-spreading. Common from Cape Cod southward; abundant in Long
Island Sound. (Plate XI.)
GENUS ^Leathesia^
This singular alga resembles a tuber and cannot be mistaken for any
other plant. Its fronds are gelatinous, fleshy balls, one half of an
inch to two inches in diameter, at first solid, afterward lobed and
hollow. It grows singly or in bunches on algæ and on sand-covered
rocks, and is found in summer on every coast. The common species is
known as /L. difformis/ or /L. tuberiformis/.
GENUS ^Myrionema^
Minute algæ which grow on other plants and which appear like dark
spots, or, at first, like stains, on /Ulva/, /Enteromorpha/, and
small red algæ. These spots, which to the naked eye appear like
decay, show, under the microscope, a jelly-like substance full of
beaded filaments.
ORDER =LAMINARIACEÆ=
The plants of this order have large and coarse fronds (some
attaining an immense size), with stems, branching root-like
holdfasts, and expanded leaf-like laminæ. They are leather-like, not
articulated, olive-green or brown in color, and sometimes yellow
and semi-transparent. They grow in deep water and are found washed
ashore. Sometimes small plants are found in deep tide-pools at
low-water mark. Some species are perennial. In these instances the
stems only survive, and the laminæ are reproduced annually. The new
growth takes place at the apex of the stem. The old lamina is pushed
off, but is held on the summit of the new growth until the latter has
matured.
[Illustration: PLATE XI. Dictyosiphon f[oe]niculaceus. Chordaria
flagelliformis. Mesogl[oe]a virescens. Mesogl[oe]a divaricata.]
[Illustration: PLATE XII. Chorda filum. Agarum Turneri. Alaria
esculenta. Laminaria saccharina.]
In the genus /Chorda/ the fronds are cylindrical; in /Agarum/
[pg069] the laminæ are perforated; in /Alaria/ there are wing-like
leaflets below the laminæ.
The /Laminariaceæ/ and /Fucaceæ/ are the seaweeds used in making
kelp. For this the algæ are burned, and the ash is then separated
into its different mineral constituents and used for various
manufacturing purposes.
GENUS ^Chorda^
^C. filum.^ Entire frond cylindrical, divided internally by
transverse septa; one fourth to one half of an inch in diameter,
tapering at each end; ordinarily one to twelve feet long, but
sometimes attaining a length of forty feet. When young the frond
is covered with fine, transparent hairs; later it is brown and
leather-like. The growth takes place at the base, just above the
disk-like holdfast, and at the apex it is constantly dying off. The
species is common on Northern shores, at and below low-water mark.
Often it is in masses which seem like meadows of waving grass under
water. Various small algæ and many zoöphytes are to be found on the
fronds. (Plate XII.)
GENUS ^Alaria^
This genus is readily distinguishable by the fact that it has
leaflets below the lamina. It is found north of Cape Cod.
^A. esculenta.^ Stem compressed, four to twelve inches long, one
fourth to one half of an inch wide, and running like a midrib
through the lamina; lamina one to ten feet long, two to ten inches
wide, frequently torn and ragged; margin wavy; leaflets three to
eight inches long and without midrib, growing on both sides of the
stem, below the lamina. The spores are produced in the leaflets in
the autumn. This is an edible alga and is used as food in Scotland
and Ireland, where it is called henware, badderlocks, murlins, and
so on. (Plate XII.)
GENUS ^Agarum^
The sea-colanders.
^A. Turneri.^ Stem two to twelve inches long, round below,
flattened above, and extending like a midrib through the lamina;
lamina one foot to four feet long, with holes over the whole
surface; margin wavy. The perforations in the lamina are produced
by conical hollow papillæ which cover the young frond and which at
length burst, leaving a hole which enlarges as the plant expands.
This species is found from Cape Cod to Greenland.
There are other species, which differ from this one in the size of
the perforations, the shape of the lamina, and the prominence of
the midrib. Harvey describes the plant as an arctic genus growing
ten to twelve feet long. (Plate XII.) [pg070]
GENUS ^Laminaria^
The plants of this genus are all large, varying from one foot to
twelve feet or more in length. They are of wide geographical range,
and are more numerous in species than any others of the order. They
are commonly known as oarweeds, tangle, devil's-aprons, sole-leather,
kelp, sea-furbelows, and so on.
^L. longicruris^ ("long-stalked"). Stem six to twelve feet long,
one to two inches thick, slender and solid at base, hollow and
inflated at the middle, contracted at the top; attached by a
strong, branching, root-like holdfast; color light brown. The
large, single, leaf-like lamina, usually shorter than the stem, is
five to twenty feet long, two to three feet broad, with much waved
and folded margin, outlined with two rows of depressed spots. The
spores form a band in the center of the blade. Found from Cape Cod
northward and on the Pacific coast.
^L. saccharina^, the sea-tangle. This species differs from /L.
longicruris/ in having a short, solid stem and narrow, ribbon-like
lamina. Stem three inches to four feet long; lamina three to
thirty feet long, six to eighteen inches wide, with central
band of depressed spots; margin much waved; color olive-green,
semi-transparent. It is named from the saccharine matter, called
/mannite/, which it contains. Found on northern shores of the
Atlantic and the Pacific oceans. (Plate XII.)
^L. digitata^ ("fingered"). Stem one to five feet long, thick,
round, and solid; lamina oval at base, leathery, smooth, brown,
deeply cleft into segments of unequal breadth. It is named from the
hand-like form of the lamina. This species is found in Long Island
Sound, but is not common south of Cape Cod. The stem is used by
fishermen for knife-handles. Pieces of it, placed on the blades
while green, contract in drying and become solid. (Plate XIII.)
For the genera ^Macrocystis^, ^Nereocystis^, ^Lessonia^, and
^Thalassiophyllum^, see the Introduction, pages 35, 36.
ORDER =DICTYOTACEÆ=
GENUS ^Dictyota^
^D. fasciola.^ Fronds olive-brown, expanded, membranaceous, erect,
flat; many times forked narrow branches; grows in tufts six to ten
inches long, matted at the base.
^D. dichotoma.^ Same as /D. fasciola/, except that the divisions of
the forked frond are one eighth to one half of an inch wide. Found
in tide-pools in Southern waters. (Plate XIII.)
[Illustration: PLATE XIII. Laminaria digitata. Dictyota dichotoma.
Taonia atomaria. Padina pavonia.]
[Illustration: PLATE XIV. Haliseris polypodioides. Cutleria
multifida. Fucus vesiculosus.]
GENUS ^Zonaria^
^Z. lobata.^ Thallus flat, fan-shaped, but not so rounded as
in /Padina pavonia/, twelve or more inches in height, cleft
irregularly into many [pg071] narrow lobes, the clefts
extending nearly or quite to the base; olive-green, with concentric
zones of darker color; edges thin and bordered with a dark line.
Found in southern California and in tropical and subtropical seas.
GENUS ^Taonia^
^T. atomaria.^ Spreading, fan-shaped frond; clefts irregular and
not extending to the basal stem; spores arranged in dark wavy
lines and spots on the frond, giving it a mottled appearance and
beautiful gradation of color. Found in tropical seas. (Plate XIII.)
GENUS ^Padina^
^P. pavonia^, the peacock's-tail. Frond broadly fan-shaped;
substance between membranaceous and leathery; powdery on the
outer surface; deeply and variously cleft or entire; several
laminæ emanating from a stalk-like base; each lamina fan-shaped;
concentric lines numerous; variegated in zones. This beautiful alga
is always regarded as a prize. It is found on stones at low-water
mark, and is not uncommon south of Charleston, South Carolina, but
is more luxuriant in tropical seas. (Plate XIII.)
GENUS ^Haliseris^
The sea-endive.
^H. polypodioides.^ Fronds flat, forked, notched on lower part;
divisions about one quarter of an inch wide; distinct midrib;
olive-green; grows in tufts. It is found in North and South
Carolina, and is abundant on the Florida Keys. (Plate XIV.)
ORDER =CUTLERIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Cutleria^
^C. multifida.^ Frond erect, flat; branches in a forking manner;
ultimate branches fine and short, and with branchlets on the tips.
This species resembles /Taonia/. It is found in Southern waters.
(Plate XIV.)
ORDER =FUCACEÆ=
GENUS ^Himanthalia^
^H. lorea^, the sea-thong. A cup-shaped base, from the center of
which arises a flat, strap-like frond one fourth to one half of an
inch wide and two to twenty feet long, branching dichotomously (or
by forking), and dotted with pits, or conceptacles, in which the
spores are formed. Found in the extreme North. [pg072]
GENUS ^Fucus^
The rockweeds. The plants of this genus grow in thick bunches, and
are found in great abundance between tide-marks. The plants are
attached by sucker-like disks to the rocks, from which they hang like
fringe when the tide recedes; when it rises they float and sway in
the water in beautiful bouquet-like forms. In color they are brown or
olive-green, in texture thick and leathery, but they sometimes expand
into thin membranes. They are many times forked in the same plane,
which produces a flat thallus. They often have a distinct midrib. The
air-vessels, whose function it is to float the plant, are disposed
along the midrib, usually in pairs.
The species are named according to the divisions of the frond,
and the disposition, or presence, of the air-bladders and the
/conceptacles/, or spore-chambers.
The conceptacles congregate in particular portions of the frond and
give its surface a roughness which is very perceptible; such portions
are then known as the /receptacles/. In /Fucus/ this usually occurs
on the bulbous extremities of the branches. Under the microscope a
section of one of these little pointed spots shows a spherical cavity
filled with a beautiful arrangement of /paraphyses/, or threads,
some of which hold spores, while others protrude through a small
opening in the outer membrane. Conceptacles are peculiar to the
order =Fucaceæ=. In them spore-production is carried on in a manner
as complicated as is the formation of seeds in flowering plants.
Although rockweeds are such a conspicuous feature of sea-shore
vegetation, two species only, /Fucus vesiculosus/ and /Ascophyllum
nodosum/ (formerly called /Fucus nodosus/), are common on the
Atlantic coast, and these do not occur south of New York, owing to
the fact that a long stretch of sand-beach extends beyond that point.
^F. vesiculosus.^ Midrib distinct through all the forked branches;
margin entire, often wavy; air-vessels spherical or oblong, usually
in pairs along the midrib; receptacles on terminal branches, which
are swollen and filled with gelatinous matter, heart-shaped or
forked, in oblong or pointed divisions; frond tough and leathery,
often two feet long. (Plate XIV.)
[Illustration: PLATE XV. Fucus serratus. Fucus ceranoides.
Ascophyllum nodosum.]
[Illustration: PLATE XVI. Phyllospora Menziesii. Halidrys osmunda.
Sargassum vulgare.]
^F. serratus.^ Frond distinctly toothed or serrated along the
margin; midrib conspicuous through the main axis and forked
branchings; no air-vessels. This species is rare on the Atlantic
coast. (Plate XV.)
^F. furcatus.^ Frond narrow, tough, without air-vessels; regular
forked branching; midrib distinct below, inconspicuous above;
receptacles long, narrow, not inflated. Found from Boston northward.
^F. ceranoides.^ Frond flat, rather membranaceous, or less leathery
than in the preceding species; repeatedly forked; midrib not
running through every division; no air-vessels. (Plate XV.)
GENUS ^Ascophyllum^
^A. nodosum.^ This species, formerly called /Fucus nodosus/, is
next to /Fucus vesiculosus/ the most common rockweed. Frond one to
five feet long, dark brown, strap-like, leathery; width of main
stems one fourth of an inch or more, and uniform throughout; large,
single, oblong air-vessels distend the frond at intervals. Branches
of various length emerge from the sides of the main stem. Ovoid or
ellipsoidal branchlets or receptacles, single or in groups, occur
at intervals along the sides of both stem and branches. These fall
off after a time and are found in quantities in tide-pools. (Plate
XV.)
GENUS ^Phyllospora^
^P. Menziesii.^ Branching holdfast; short stem which immediately
divides into strap-like branches; branches edged with leaves
varying in length, rounded at top, narrow, stalked at base; leaves
placed at intervals, or crowded together, and interspersed with
air-vessels which are often tipped with leaflets; stems expand at
summit into leaf-like laminæ and are edged with leaflets at the
base; plant often one hundred and twenty feet or more in length;
tough and leathery in substance. Very common on the California
coast. (Plate XVI.)
GENUS ^Cystoseira^
^C. expansa.^ Frond long, slender, repeatedly branched; air-vessels
ellipsoidal and "chained" together in the lower half of the
branches. The plant grows in deep water, ad shows iridescent colors
when seen through the water. It is found on the California coast.
GENUS ^Halidrys^
^H. osmunda^, the sea-oak. Frond flat, alternately toothed
or indented below; branched apex, bearing air-vessels like
long-stalked pods; substance leathery. Found on the coast of
southern California. (Plate XVI.)
GENUS ^Sargassum^
^Sargassum^ is distinguished by its differentiation into stem and
leaf, resembling in outward appearance the higher plants. It [pg074]
is a tropical and subtropical genus, and has one hundred and fifty
species. Two of these, /S. vulgare/ and /S. Montagnei/, are found as
far north as Cape Cod. See Introduction, page 34.
^S. vulgare.^ Stems cylindrical; branches alternate; leaves long,
narrow, toothed, with short stalk and midrib; minute dark spots
on its surface; air-vessels small balls resembling berries set on
stalks and usually tipped with a long point; receptacles small,
twig-like forms in the axils of the leaves; color olive-brown;
plant one foot to three or more feet long. Common in Long Island
Sound. (Plate XVI.)
^S. Montagnei.^ This species resembles /S. vulgare/, but is more
slender in all its parts, and the receptacles are more elongated.
From south of Cape Cod.
^S. bacciferum.^ Particular interest attaches to this species from
the fact that it is the one which forms the floating vegetation
of the Sargasso Sea. It grows attached on the Florida Keys and in
the West Indies. Specimens are sometimes carried by the currents
northward, and are found washed ashore. It differs from /S.
vulgare/ in the leaves, which are thicker, more attenuated, and
sharply toothed, and in having a greater number of air-vessels.
A branch of this species brought from the Sargasso Sea had
air-vessels so numerous and closely set that it resembled a bunch
of small grapes.
III
RED SEAWEEDS
(RHODOPHYCEÆ OR FLORIDEÆ)
TABLE SHOWING THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE RED SEAWEEDS DESCRIBED IN
THIS CHAPTER
Class =ALGÆ=
Subclass =Rhodophyceæ or Florideæ= (/Red Seaweeds/)
Order =NEMALIONACEÆ=
Suborders Genera Species
~HELMINTHOCLADIEÆ~ ^Nemalion^ ^N. multifidum^
^Liagora^
~CHÆTANGIEÆ~ ^Scinaia^ ^S. furcellata^
~GELIDIEÆ~ ^Gelidium^ ^G. corneum^
Order =GIGARTINACEÆ=
^Chondrus^ ^C. crispus^
^Gigartina^ ^G. mamillosa^
^G. radula^
^G. spinosa^
^G. microphylla^
^Phyllophora^ ^P. membranifolia^
^P. Brodiæi^
^Sternogramme^ ^S. interrupta^
^Gymnogongrus^ ^G. Norvegicus^
^Ahnfeldtia^ ^A. plicata^
^Callophyllis^ ^C. variegata^
^C. laciniata^
^Iridæa^
Suborders Genera Species
~RHODOPHYLLIDEÆ~ ^Cystoclonium^ ^C. purpurascens^
^C. cirrhosa^
^Euthora^ ^E. cristata^
^Rhodophyllis^ ^R. veprecula^
^Rhabdonia^ ^R. tenera^
^R. Coulteri^
^Eucheuma^ ^E. isiforme^
Order =RHODYMENIACEÆ=
~SPHÆROCOCCEÆ~ ^Gracilaria^ ^G. multipartita^
^Hypnea^ ^H. musciformis^
~RHODYMENIEÆ~ ^Rhodymenia^ ^R. palmata^
^Lomentaria^ ^L. Baileyana^
^Champia^ ^C. parvula^
^Chylocladia^ ^C. articulata^
^Plocamium^ ^P. coccineum^
~DELESSERIEÆ~ ^Nitophyllum^ ^N. laceratum^
^N. Ruprechteanum^
^N. punctatum^
^Grinnellia^ ^G. Americana^
^Delesseria^ ^D. sinuosa^
^D. alata^
^D. Leprieurii^
~RHODOMELEÆ~ ^Polysiphonia^ ^P. fastigiata^
^P. nigrescens^
^P. parasitica^
^P. dendroidea^
^P. Baileyi^
^P. Harveyi^
^P. Olneyi^
^P. fibrillosa^
^P. violacea^
^P. urceolata^
Var. ^formosa^
^P. variegata^
^P. Woodii^
^Laurencia^ ^L. pinnatifida^
^Dasya^ ^D. elegans^
^D. plumosa^
^Bostrychia^ ^B. rivularis^
^Rhodomela^ ^R. subfusca^
^R. Rochei^
^R. larix^
^R. floccosa^
^Chondria^ ^C. dasyphylla^
^C. tenuissima^
^C. striolata^
Suborders Genera Species
~CERAMIEÆ~ ^Callithamnion^ ^C. americanum^
^C. Pylaisæi^
^C. Baileyi^
^C. seirospermum^
^C. byssoideum^
^C. floccosum^
^Griffithsia^ ^G. Bornetiana^
^Ptilota^ ^P. serrata^
^P. elegans^
^P. densa^
^P. hypnoides^
^Spyridia^ ^S. filamentosa^
^Ceramium^ ^C. rubrum^
Var. ^proliferum^
Var. ^secundatum^
^C. strictum^
^C. diaphanum^
^C. fastigiatum^
^C. tenuissimum^
Var. ^patentissimum^
^Microcladia^ ^M. Coulteri^
^M. borealis^
Order =CRYPTONEMIACEÆ=
~GLOIOSIPHONIEÆ~ ^Gloiosiphonia^ ^G. capillaris^
~GRATELOUPIEÆ~ ^Halymenia^ ^H. ligulata^
^Grateloupia^ ^G. Cutleria^
^Prionitis^ ^P. lanceolata^
^P. Andersonii^
~DUMONTIEÆ~ ^Pikea^ ^P. Californica^
^Halosaccion^ ^H. ramentaceum^
~RHIZOPHYLLIDEÆ~ ^Polyides^ ^P. rotundus^
~SQUAMARIEÆ~ ^Peyssonnelia^ ^P. Dubyi^
^Petrocelis^ ^P. cruenta^
^Hildenbrandtia^ ^H. rosea^
~CORALLINEÆ~ ^Corallina^ ^C. officinalis^
^Melobesia^
Order =BANGIACEÆ=
^Bangia^ ^B. fusco-purpurea^
^Porphyra^ ^P. vulgaris^
^P. laciniata^
[pg079]
RED SEAWEEDS
In =Rhodophyceæ=, known also as =Florideæ= and =Rhodospermeæ=,
algæ attain their highest development. This is marked by the mode
of reproduction, which, more nearly than in the other subclasses,
resembles that of flowering plants. The fronds, however, are not as
large and do not as closely resemble stem and leaf as do some species
of the brown algæ.
The species of this subclass are very numerous, and the variety in
their fronds, their delicate texture, and their colors, which vary
from pink to purple, make them the most attractive of the seaweeds.
They grow mostly in deep water, but are often found washed ashore,
and many grow just below low-water mark and on the shady side of
tide-pools.
In the simplest species the frond consists of branched cell-rows.
In some of these the filaments are so fine that a pocket-lens is
required to determine the differences in branching and fully to
appreciate the beauty of the plant (/Callithamnion/). Some have a
cell-surface. In /Delesseria/ the membrane assumes the outline of a
foliage-leaf. /Dasya/, which is an abundant variety, is especially
beautiful in its feather-like appearance. The corallines are singular
in that they are incrusted with lime and resemble corals.
ORDER =NEMALIONACEÆ=
SUBORDER ~HELMINTHOCLADIEÆ~
GENUS ^Nemalion^
The threadweeds.
^N. multifidum.^ Frond six to twelve inches long, cylindrical,
solid, cord-like, elastic, tough, shiny, very gelatinous; branches
repeatedly in [pg080] a wide-forking manner; sometimes a branch
will divide into several parts at the same point; color dark brown
or purple. It is found, in summer only, from Long Island Sound
northward, growing on smooth rocks which are exposed to the action
of the waves.
GENUS ^Liagora^
Fronds filamentous; branching regularly in a forking manner to the
very top, forming thick bunches; slightly incrusted with lime, yet
somewhat viscid. It is found in Florida and California, and abounds
in tropical waters.
SUBORDER ~CHÆTANGIEÆ~
GENUS ^Scinaia^
^S. furcellata.^ Frond cylindrical, one eighth of an inch in
diameter, tapering at base, sometimes constricted at intervals,
regularly and several times forked, ending in short divisions;
branches of same length, giving a level top; two to four inches
high; lake-red. When pressed the axis is visible, giving the
appearance of a flat frond with a midrib. This species is found
in summer only, washed ashore from Cape Cod southward and on the
California coast. It is not common. (Plate XVII.)
SUBORDER ~GELIDIEÆ~
GENUS ^Gelidium^
^G. corneum.^ Frond flat and horny, one inch to four inches high,
narrow, erect, branched several times in the same plane; ultimate
branchlets club-shaped, or swollen at the tips with masses of
spores; color purple-red. It grows in tufts on mud-covered rocks,
and on algæ at low-water mark. The typical form is found in Florida
and on the Pacific coast. Smaller plants are found all along the
Atlantic shore. It is an extremely variable plant, and is often
difficult to distinguish on this account. (Plate XVII.)
[Illustration: PLATE XVII. Scinaia furcellata. Gelidium corneum.
Gelidium Coulteri. Chondrus crispus.]
ORDER =GIGARTINACEÆ=
GENUS ^Chondrus^
Carrageen or Irish moss.
^C. crispus.^ Frond begins with flattened stem, which divides and
subdivides many times in a broad-forked, fan-like manner; varies
greatly in length and breadth of divisions, also in size and color,
according to conditions of its habitation. In shallow tide-pools
it is pale and [pg081] stunted; but under the shelter of
rocks, in deep water, it grows in dense masses and is a dark
purplish-red or reddish-green. Often it appears iridescent when
seen through the water, with the sun shining on it. It is firm and
leathery in substance. It is an edible alga, and was formerly very
generally used for culinary purposes. At Hingham, Massachusetts,
large quantities are gathered as an article of commerce. It is a
beautiful and very common plant found from New York northward.
(Plate XVII.)
GENUS ^Gigartina^
Of the species of this genus but one is found on the eastern coast;
on the Pacific coast there are several, and they are large and
conspicuous.
[Illustration: PLATE XVIII. Gigartina mamillosa. Gigartina radula.
Gigartina spinosa. Gigartina microphylla.]
^G. mamillosa.^ Frond three to six inches high, one inch to two
inches broad, flat, leathery, gelatinous; forking near the base,
then dividing and subdividing in the same plane; segments more or
less wedge-shaped and with a tendency to roll inward; covered with
numerous small nipple-like protuberances which contain the spores.
These projections distinguish this genus from /Chondrus/, which it
otherwise resembles, and with which it grows. The color is dark
purple. It is found from Boston northward. (Plate XVIII.)
^G. radula.^ Frond flat and thick; rising from a short stem
and widening to several inches; sometimes tapering to the top,
sometimes blunt or divided, sometimes cleft on the sides, but
usually simple; covered with wart-like projections; color dark,
livid red. It is found on the Pacific coast at all seasons, growing
on rocks between tide-marks. Large specimens are one foot to three
feet long and six to ten inches wide. (Plate XVIII.)
^G. spinosa^ ("thorny"). Frond thick, leathery; surface rough and
spiny; form variable, the divisions sometimes emanating from a
broad, flattened base, or again branching from a main axis; all
covered with the protruding processes peculiar to the genus; color
dark red, brown, or purple. It is found on the California coast.
(Plate XVIII.)
^G. microphylla^ ("small-leaved"). Plant rises from short, flat
stem, and rapidly expands into a flat, wide, thin frond which is
simple or divided into two or three segments, each of which tapers
into a long, pointed apex; thickly covered with long, slender
spines, and on its edges bearing small, thin leaflets; color
brownish-red. It is abundant on the California coast. (Plate XVIII.)
GENUS ^Phyllophora^
Leafweed. Fronds cylindrical; branched stalks which expand into
rigid, membranaceous, simple or cleft, wedge-shaped laminæ; laminæ
bear leaflets on their edges or on their surface; spores in masses
form projections on the surface, or are on stalks at the summit;
color dark red. Found washed ashore from New York northward. [pg082]
^P. membranifolia.^ Several stems rise from same disk; branches
expand into wedge-shaped, cleft or forked laminæ; lobes bear on the
summit other laminæ or leaflets divided in the same manner.
^P. Brodiæi.^ Stem less branched and leaf-expansions broader and
larger than in /P. membranifolia/; laminæ wedge-shaped and deeply
lobed. (Plate XIX.)
GENUS ^Sternogramme^
^S. interrupta.^ Frond a thin membrane repeatedly forked, widely
spreading, divisions one fourth to one half of an inch wide;
fertile plants have the spores arranged in an interrupted line
through the center of the segments resembling a midrib; frond two
to eight inches high; bright red. It is found on the California
coast. The illustration shows a plant on which the hydroid
/Sertularia pumila/ is growing. (Plate XIX.)
GENUS ^Gymnogongrus^
^G. Norvegicus.^ Frond two to four inches high, thin but leathery
in substance, flat, narrow, divided in a regular forking manner;
spreading ends of terminal forks obtuse; axils rounded; spores form
spherical masses in the upper segments, and project on both sides
like hemispheres. It resembles a simple form of /Chondrus crispus/,
but is more delicate. The color is red or purple. This species is
found in deep tide-pools from New York northward. (Plate XIX.)
GENUS ^Ahnfeldtia^
^A. plicata.^ Frond coarse, stem-like filaments, stiff, wiry,
irregularly and profusely branched; sometimes regularly forked and
upper segments equal; entangled; six to eight inches long; tufts
several inches in diameter; dark purple or black. Specimens long
exposed on the beach are faded to white. It is very common from New
York northward. (Plate XIX.)
GENUS ^Callophyllis^
^C. variegata.^ Deeply cleft, wide-spreading, flat, membranaceous
frond; all parts notched more or less angularly; color dark to
bright red; spores form hemispherical warts on surface. Some
varieties differ from this one in having long and narrow, and
others in having short and broad segments. It is a beautiful and
common alga on the Pacific coast, resembling /Euthora/ of the
eastern coast. (Plate XX.)
^C. laciniata.^ Frond deeply cleft; segments wedge-shaped. It is
found on the Pacific coast. (Plate XX.)
[Illustration: PLATE XIX. Phyllophora Brodiæi. Sternogramme
interrupta. Gymnogongrus Norvegicus. Ahnfeldtia plicata.]
[Illustration: PLATE XX. Callophyllis variegata. Callophyllis
laciniata. Iridæa. Cystoclonium cirrhosa.]
GENUS ^Iridæa^
Frond rises from stalk and widens into a flat, thick, leathery, oval
expansion, one to two feet long, and one to three inches broad;
[pg083] simple or lobed; surface sometimes roughened by collections
of spores in dots; dark red, often glittering in the water with blue
and purple tints. It is found on the Pacific coast. (Plate XX.)
SUBORDER ~RHODOPHYLLIDEÆ~
GENUS ^Cystoclonium^
^C. purpurascens.^ The translucent, fleshy, juicy main stem, one
eighth of an inch or less in diameter, runs through the whole
plant; irregularly branched all around main stem; branches again
branch in same manner; branches attenuated at the base, and taper
to a long point; smaller branches distended in places by spores
into bladder-like swellings, hence the name; color rose-red to
dark purple; plants exposed on the beach often faded to orange
and white; six to eighteen inches long. It grows on rocks between
tide-marks as well as in deep water. With the exception of
/Ceramium rubrum/, this is the most common red alga on the eastern
coast from New York northward. It differs from /Rhabdonia/ in
having bladdery branches; otherwise it is easily mistaken for it.
^C. cirrhosa.^ Ends of branches terminate in spirals like tendrils;
otherwise identical with /C. purpurascens/. (Plate XX.)
GENUS ^Euthora^
^E. cristata.^ Frond one inch to five inches high, membranaceous,
broadly spreading; divisions wide and numerous, ultimately becoming
fine like minute branchlets, each one of which, under a glass,
shows a notch in the tip. This beautiful, bright-red alga is found
in abundance north of Cape Cod. It differs from /Delesseria alata/
in having no midrib or veins. It grows in deep water on stones,
shells, and algæ. (Plate XXI.)
GENUS ^Rhodophyllis^
("/Rosy leaf/")
^R. veprecula.^ Frond two to five inches long, one fourth of an
inch to one and one half inches broad, membranaceous, forked;
margin covered with leaflets which are in turn edged with minute
branchlets; color deep red. It is found on the northern New England
coast. (Plate XXI.)
GENUS ^Rhabdonia^
("/A wand/")
^R. tenera.^ Frond six to eighteen inches long, cylindrical,
fleshy, translucent, juicy; irregularly and profusely branched,
branches longest at the base, erect, tapering at both ends,
numerous branchlets; sometimes the main stem runs through
the plant, sometimes it is lost in the [pg084] branching;
spore-masses sometimes form knotty bunches on the side of
branches. It resembles a large /Cystoclonium purpurascens/. It is
characteristic of Long Island Sound, and is not found north of
Cape Cod, but common from there southward along the whole Atlantic
coast. (Plate XXI.)
^R. Coulteri.^ This species is common on the Pacific coast, and
differs from /R. tenera/ in having a more pronounced leading stem,
and branches shorter and crowded at the top of the frond.
GENUS ^Eucheuma^
^E. isiforme.^ Frond grows in tufts a foot or more in diameter;
stems branch in all directions from a central point, and taper
gradually to the end; secondary branches spread to all sides;
all branches swollen at intervals and armed with several spines
spreading from a conical base; color dark red, becoming on exposure
orange or yellow, and at length semi-transparent and horn-like;
substance firmly cartilaginous. Abundant at Key West.
ORDER =RHODYMENIACEÆ=
SUBORDER ~SPHÆROCOCCEÆ~
GENUS ^Gracilaria^
^G. multipartita^ ("many times divided"). Frond four to twelve
inches long; starting from a short, cylindrical stem, it flattens
and broadens as it rises, dividing in an irregular, forking manner,
or cleft into palmate segments which broaden as they rise, and
which divide in the same manner; often cleft or branched on the
edges; conical spore-masses scattered over the frond during July
and August; dingy purple in color. The plant is variable and
sometimes is difficult to determine. It is common from Cape Cod
southward. A narrow variety is most abundant in Long Island Sound.
In Florida and on the California coast there are broad varieties
which may be mistaken for /Rhodymenia/. (Plate XXI.)
GENUS ^Hypnea^
^H. musciformis^ ("moss-like"). Frond six to twelve inches long;
main stem running through, thick below and tapering to the size of
a bristle; much and irregularly branched, especially at the base;
branches wide-spreading in every direction, and longest at the
base; branches branch again in the same manner; all parts beset
with short, horizontal spines; color purplish-red. A characteristic
feature, by which the plant can easily be distinguished, is that
the ends of the long branches are naked and are turned over like a
hook, or nearly twisted. It is found washed ashore, often in large,
intricately twisted tufts, from Cape Cod southward and on the
Pacific coast.
[Illustration: PLATE XXI. Euthora cristata. Rhodophyllis veprecula.
Rhabdonia tenera. Gracilaria multipartita.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXII. Rhodymenia palmata. Rhodymenia palmata.
Lomentaria Baileyana. Chylocladia articulata.]
SUBORDER ~RHODYMENIEÆ~
GENUS ^Rhodymenia^
("/Red membrane/")
^R. palmata^ ("hand-shaped"). The plant commonly known as dulse.
Frond rises from a disk in a short cylindrical stem which spreads
into a thin, broad, fan-shaped membrane six to twelve inches long
and four to eight inches wide at the top; deeply and irregularly
cleft into many wedge-shaped segments; margin usually entire, but
often with leaflets; ends of segments indented, showing where
divisions will ultimately occur; color dark purplish-red. It grows
on rocks and on algæ below low-water mark, and is common on the New
England and California coasts. This is an edible alga, and, like
/Chondrus crispus/, is an article of food in seaports. (Plate XXII.)
GENUS ^Lomentaria^
^L. Baileyana.^ Fronds two to five inches high; grows in tufts;
filaments tubular, irregularly branched; branchlets often all on
one side; branches and branchlets curved or arched, and tapered at
both ends; color brownish-red. It is found washed ashore from Cape
Cod southward. (Plate XXII.)
GENUS ^Champia^
^C. parvula.^ Frond two to six inches long, irregularly branched;
grows in tufts; filaments hollow and constricted, so that they
appear somewhat like a string of beads; color brownish-purple. It
is found washed ashore from Cape Cod southward. (Plate XXIII.)
GENUS ^Chylocladia^
^C. articulata.^ Frond filamentous, three to twelve inches long,
hollow, constricted at intervals; branches emanate from constricted
joints; has the appearance of a series of pink, delicate, oval
sacs. (Plate XXII.)
GENUS ^Plocamium^
^P. coccineum^ ("scarlet"). Frond a flat, semi-cartilaginous main
stem one eighth of an inch, or less, wide, three to eight inches
long, with alternate branches of unequal length emanating from the
edges; branches have alternate branchlets arranged in groups of
three or four in a row; branchlets have pinnulæ on the upper side,
like the teeth of a comb (this peculiarity in branching makes the
genus easy to identify); color dark lake-red. It is not found on
the eastern coast, but is plentiful in California. (Plate XXIII.)
SUBORDER ~DELESSERIEÆ~
GENUS ^Nitophyllum^
^N. laceratum.^ Frond expands from narrow base and divides almost
at once into long, narrow, strap-shaped segments; minute leaflets,
showing [pg086] a dot or spore-cluster, occur at intervals on the
margin; plant six to eight inches long; thin and silky in texture.
Abundant on the California coast. (Plate XXIII.)
^N. Ruprechteanum.^ Frond one foot to two feet long, spreading
from narrow base and dividing by forking into deep-cut, broad,
strap-like lobes; top divisions rounded; traversed lengthwise by
parallel veins; margin of the older parts bordered with a narrow
frill of thin ruffled membrane which sometimes extends also over
parts of the surface of the frond; substance somewhat rigid; color
dark red to purple. It is found on the California coast. (Plate
XXIV.)
^N. punctatum.^ Frond six to twenty inches long and of the same
width, dividing in a forking manner; crowded at top; when in fruit,
covered with dark dots; substance thin and silky; color rose-pink.
It is found on the California coast. (Plate XXIV.)
GENUS ^Grinnellia^
(/Named for Mr. Henry Grinnell of New York/)
^G. Americana.^ Frond a delicate membrane, rose-red or purplish in
color, leaf-shaped, four to eight inches long, one inch to four
inches wide, tapering at both ends; margin entire, but much waved;
a line of darker color through the center resembles a midrib;
masses of spores form dots or specks irregularly over the whole
surface; grows from a disk and short slender stem in bunches on
shells and stones in deep water. It is found washed ashore from
Cape Cod southward, and is luxuriant in New York Bay, where it can
be found at any season, but is in perfection in August. (Plate
XXIV.)
GENUS ^Delesseria^
^D. sinuosa.^ Delicate, leaf-like membrane, with midrib and veins,
much indented and resembling in general outline an oak-leaf; four
to eight inches long, two to four inches broad; short stem; color
dark red, often flecked with green. It grows in bunches in deep
water, and is easily distinguished, since it is the only alga
having a midrib and veins, and resembling the leaf of a tree. It is
found washed ashore from Cape Cod northward. (Plate XXIV.)
^D. alata^ ("winged"). Frond rises from short stem, which flattens
and divides irregularly into many branches and appears like a
midrib, all bordered with narrow membrane one eighth of an inch to
one inch wide; frond two to four inches long; color light red or
pink. It is found on the shore from Cape Cod northward. (Plate XXV.)
^D. Leprieurii.^ Frond one inch to two inches long, very narrow,
with delicate midrib, forked, constricted at intervals; branches
start from constricted points; thin and delicate; color purple.
It is found in tidal rivers near New York, and is common on the
southern coast. (Plate XXV.)
[Illustration: PLATE XXIII. Champia parvula. Champia parvula,
magnified. Plocamium coccineum. Nitophyllum laceratum.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXIV. Nitophyllum Ruprechteanum. Nitophyllum
punctatum. Grinnellia americana. Delesseria sinuosa.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXV. Delesseria alata. Delesseria Leprieurii.
Polysiphonia fastigiata (on Ascophyllum). Polysiphonia parasitica.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXVI. Polysiphonia dendroidea. Polysiphonia
dendroidea, a piece magnified. Polysiphonia Harveyi. Polysiphonia
Harveyi, a piece magnified.]
SUBORDER ~RHODOMELEÆ~
The genera included in this suborder are easily distinguished when in
fruit by the spore-cases, or cystocarps, which appear [pg087]
like little balls, either adherent to the branches, or raised on
short stalks. It is the largest group, and contains many of the most
beautiful of the red algæ.
GENUS ^Polysiphonia^
("/Many tubes/")
A filament of ^Polysiphonia^ appears, when seen under the microscope,
like a bundle of filaments made up of a central tube, or axis,
surrounded by a number of other tubes. It is by the number of these
parts, called siphons, which vary in number from four to twenty, that
the species is determined. In some plants the siphons are surrounded
by a layer of cells, called corticating or bark cells, which give
the filaments a solid, uniform appearance. In others the siphons are
naked, and the filaments then seem striped or banded with color. It
is difficult, without a microscope, to be sure of the classification.
There are, however, other characteristics which separate many of the
species, and some of these are described below. Two hundred species
of /Polysiphonia/ have been named by algologists. The plants are
plentiful on all shores, especially in warm, shallow waters. Some
species are perennial, but most of them are annuals and disappear in
winter.
^P. fastigiata.^ This species grows on /Ascophyllum nodosum/ in
a globular tuft, and appears like a dark-brown ball, one inch
to three inches in diameter. The frond is a dense mass of rigid
filaments branching many times in a forking manner and at broad
angles. The ends are of nearly equal length, giving the plant
a spherical shape. It is common from New York northward at all
seasons, and is easily recognized by its general form and place of
growth. Egg-shaped cystocarps, or spore-cases, occur in the ends of
the terminal filaments. (Plate XXV.)
^P. nigrescens.^ Frond three to twelve inches long, rigid below,
soft above; main stem thick as a bristle, but not always easy to
distinguish; branches alternate and densely branched at the ends;
siphons twelve to sixteen in number; filaments banded; color black
or very dark brown. (Plate XXVII.)
^P. parasitica.^ Frond one inch to three inches long; branched in
a pinnate or feather-like manner; filaments flat; all branches
and branchlets emanating from the edges and on the same plane,
giving a flat frond; color reddish-brown; resembles a fine /Ptilota
plumosa/; cystocarps on short stalks. It is found on the California
coast. (Plate XXV.)
^P. dendroidea.^ This is a variety of the species /P. parasitica/.
Frond four to five inches long; main branches placed at irregular
intervals, but the secondary branches at regular intervals and
alternate; branches [pg088] set at acute angles, giving the plant
a slender appearance; color black or dark brown. It is common on
the California coast. (Plate XXVI.)
^P. Baileyi.^ Frond three to six inches high, flat; branches
emanate from edges of the flat stems; main branches wide-spreading
and irregularly placed, secondary branches regular and alternate;
branchlets one eighth to one half of an inch long, covered on the
edges and around the top with incurved ramuli; branchlets broken
off near the base of the branches in mature plants; branchlets
usually uniform in length, but occasionally one is longer and
branches like the primary stem; color black. Common on the
California coast.
^P. Harveyi.^ Frond two to six inches high; grows in globose tufts,
and has a bushy aspect; branches stiff and wide-spreading; stems
and branches beset with simple or branched spine-like branchlets;
color dark brown, or black when dry; does not collapse when taken
from the water; cystocarps on short stalks; siphons four in number.
It grows on eel-grass and algæ, and is common in Long Island Sound
and northward. Called locally /niggerhair/. (Plate XXVI.)
^P. Olneyi^ (dough-balls). Fronds two to five inches high, densely
tufted; soft filaments of hair-like fineness, much branched, and
spreading; when in fruit covered with tiny balls or cystocarps;
siphons four in number. It is common from Cape Cod to New York.
^P. fibrillosa.^ Frond four to ten inches high, rather robust
below; main stem quickly lost in a number of prominent stems and
spreading branches; irregularly and profusely branched, becoming
ultimately very fine; numerous branchlets covered with colorless
fibrils in hairy tufts, which give it a misty appearance; fibrils
so delicate that they do not show well in dried specimens, but a
distinct feature by which to recognize the species in the young
plant; color light to dark brown; cystocarps adherent to branchlets
or on short stalks; siphons four in number; main branches only
corticated. It is common in summer on stones and on eel-grass, at
low-water mark, from Cape Cod to New York. (Plate XXVII.)
^P. violacea.^ Fronds six to twenty-four inches high, pyramidal
in general outline; main axis with long, wide-spreading branches
at the base; branches rather robust and naked below, but numerous
and becoming very fine and tufted at top; cystocarps adherent or
on short stalks; siphons four in number; main stems corticated;
ultimate branchlets show articulations; color brownish-red. It is
common from New York northward. (Plate XXVII.)
^P. urceolata.^ Frond three to ten inches high; main stem
bristle-like; branches naked below, divided and subdivided above;
branches with short branchlets set at a wide angle and often
recurved; siphons four in number; shows articulations; color deep
red. Name refers to cystocarp, which resembles a pitcher. The plant
grows in loose tufts, and is common from New York northward and on
the California coast.
Variety ^formosa^. Filaments soft and finer than in /P. urceolata/;
branches long and flexuous; articulations five to ten times longer
than broad; color bright red. It grows in tufts sometimes a foot
long, and is found only in the spring.
[Illustration: PLATE XXVII. Polysiphonia nigrescens. Polysiphonia
fibrillosa. Polysiphonia violacea. Polysiphonia Woodii.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXVIII. Laurencia pinnatifida. Dasya elegans.
Dasya plumosa. Dasya plumosa, magnified.]
^P. variegata.^ Fronds four to ten inches high; filaments thick as
a bristle below, and branched in a forking manner to the very top;
divided at long intervals below, at the top becoming of hair-like
fineness [pg089] and dividing rapidly, forming a densely
tufted mass, which collapses when taken from the water; color
purple-brown; when mounted, silky in appearance; filaments banded;
siphons six in number. It forms purple tufts on woodwork and on
eel-grass from Cape Cod southward.
^P. Woodii.^ Fronds four to six inches high; branches flat, long,
wide-spreading, emanating from the edges in one plane; younger
branches show articulations; ultimate branchlets inclined to curve
inward; color light brown. Found on the California coast. (Plate
XXVII.)
GENUS ^Laurencia^
^L. pinnatifida.^ Frond flat, thick, leathery; main stem with
opposite, or alternate, branches of about the same size and
character as itself; all pinnatifid, or cut on the edges into
branchlets, some of which are again divided; color bright purple,
often unevenly faded. It is found on the Pacific coast. (Plate
XXVIII.)
GENUS ^Dasya^
Chenille-weed.
^D. elegans.^ Fronds from six inches to three yards long; main stem
and branches cylindrical, and all densely clothed with a fine,
hair-like fringe, which gives the plant the appearance of chenille;
cystocarps on stalks along the branches; color pink or lake-red.
Out of water it seems like a mass of purple jelly. It is found at
or just below low-water mark from Cape Cod southward, and is very
plentiful in New York Bay. (Plate XXVIII.)
^D. plumosa.^ A species found on the California coast. The fringe
covering the stems consists of minute leaflets instead of hairs, as
in /D. elegans/. (Plate XXVIII.)
GENUS ^Bostrychia^
^B. rivularis.^ Fronds one inch high; color dark purple; branches
fine and irregularly bent. It grows where the water is not very
salt, and is found in patches on submerged logs near New York.
Common from Charleston, South Carolina, southward. (Plate XXIX.)
GENUS ^Rhodomela^
^R. subfusca.^ Frond six to eighteen inches long; main stem
cylindrical, and branching widely on all sides; branches longest
at base and gradually shortening to the top of the stem; branches
naked below, but at the ends profusely branched, forming tufts of
branchlets. It is a perennial plant, and changes in aspect with
the season. When mature it is stiff and coarse, and when dry it is
quite black. Common from New York northward.
^R. Rochei.^ This species resembles in form /R. subfusca/, but
is much finer and more delicate. In spring it is a soft, fine,
feathery, and beautiful [pg090] alga of a red-brown color. It
is found washed ashore, or in deep tide-pools, south of Cape Cod.
(Plate XXIX.)
^R. larix.^ Frond cylindrical, robust, six to fourteen inches high;
branches of unequal length standing out horizontally all around the
main stem; clusters of branchlets growing spirally around stem and
branches. Found on the northern California coast. (Plate XXIX.)
^R. floccosa.^ Frond four to ten inches high; less robust than /R.
larix/; stem and branches flat and divided in one plane; branches
alternate; ultimate branchlets somewhat incurved; color black. In
fertile plants the terminal branchlets are gathered in a mass.
Found on the California coast. (Plate XXIX.)
GENUS ^Chondria^
Plants of this genus are distinguished by having the ultimate
branches attenuated at the base.
^C. dasyphylla.^ Frond four to eight inches high; general outline
pyramidal; branches alternate on main stem; stem and branches
covered with short, club-shaped (blunt at top, attenuated at base)
branchlets; cystocarps, or spore-cases, adherent to branchlets or
on short stalks; color light or dull brown. It grows in tufts, and
is common from New York to Cape Cod. (Plate XXX.)
^C. tenuissima.^ This species is similar to /C. dasyphylla/, but
is more slender, and the branchlets taper at both ends instead of
being club-shaped.
^C. striolata.^ A species similar to /C. tenuissima/. The
branchlets bear secondary branchlets, and the cystocarps are on
short stalks. It is plentiful in Long Island Sound.
SUBORDER ~CERAMIEÆ~
GENUS ^Callithamnion^
These are very beautiful and delicate plants, growing in small,
soft, silky tufts, bright red in color, with darker dots along the
much-branched filaments. There are many species, and they are common
on the northern shores of both oceans; but the different species are
not easy to distinguish with the naked eye, and so but a few of them
are described below. The special characteristics by which the genus
may be recognized are: fronds filamentous, of cobweb fineness, one
inch to six inches long, much branched, and closely crowded at the
top; brilliant red color.
[Illustration: PLATE XXIX. Bostrychia rivularis. Rhodomela Rochei.
Rhodomela larix. Rhodomela floccosa.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXX. Chondria dasyphylla. Callithamnion
americanum. Callithamnion Pylaisæi. Callithamnion Pylaisæi, a piece
magnified.]
^C. americanum.^ Frond three to six inches long, densely tufted;
filaments of extreme fineness; main branches alternate; much
branched; main and secondary branches have pairs of branched
ramuli along the [pg091] branches; color rose-pink. It grows
on wharves and on algæ below low-water mark, and is a common and
beautiful species. It is found (but only in the spring) from New
York northward, and is abundant in Long Island Sound. (Plates XXX,
XXXI.)
^C. Pylais[oe]i.^ Fronds three to six inches long, more robust
and darker in color than in /C. Americanum/; main and secondary
branches alternate, decompound, all bearing at short intervals
short opposite branchlets, which in turn are covered with ramuli.
It is found in spring on wharves and on algæ from Boston northward.
(Plate XXX.)
^C. Baileyi.^ Fronds one inch to three inches long, with main
stem as thick as a bristle, and running to the top of the frond;
branches around the main stem longer at the base than at the
apex, giving the plant a pyramidal outline; branches also have a
main stem and short branches beset with branchlets; shrub-like in
aspect; color purplish-red. Common in summer from New York to Cape
Cod.
^C. seirospermum.^ Frond two to five inches high, pyramidal in
outline; has main stem and alternate lateral branches; branches
have secondary branches beset with delicate, erect branchlets;
hair-like in fineness. It is common from Cape Cod southward, and is
plentiful in Long Island Sound. (Plate XXXI.)
^C. byssoideum.^ Fronds one inch to three inches long; filaments
very delicate; main branches many times divided; secondary branches
long; many branchlets; rose-colored. It grows in globose tufts, and
is common in Long Island Sound. (Plate XXXI.)
^C. floccosum.^ Fronds three to six inches long, hair-like in
fineness; flaccid; main branches sparingly branched below;
numerous alternate branches above; all clothed with short, simple
branchlets; color dark brownish-red. The plant is so exceedingly
fine that it is difficult to distinguish the divisions. It grows on
eel-grass and on algæ below low-water mark, and is found from New
York to Cape Cod. (Plate XXXI.)
GENUS ^Griffithsia^
(/Named for Mrs. Griffiths, an English algologist/)
These are among the most beautiful of seaweeds, because of their
brilliant color and exceedingly delicate structure. They grow in deep
water, and specimens cast ashore are usually torn and imperfect, but
they may often be gathered from deep tide-pools, and sometimes are
found growing on eel-grass. If placed in fresh water they discharge
their coloring-matter and quickly decompose.
^G. Bornetiana.^ Fronds two to five inches high; filaments jointed,
the divisions being long and pear-shaped, growing shorter as they
near the top; repeatedly forked; very soft and fragile. It grows
in tufts, resembling corals; attains perfection in July, and
disappears later in the summer. Found from Cape Cod southward,
washed ashore after storms. (Plate XXXII.) [pg092]
GENUS ^Ptilota^
Feather-weed.
^P. serrata.^ Fronds three to six inches long, dark red in color,
cartilaginous; flattened main stem with opposite, flattened
branches, one of which is minute, so that it appears like alternate
branching; branches also have lateral branchlets and pinnulæ,
looking like feathers or ferns; all branching in one plane, making
a flat frond. It is found in the drift on the beach after a storm,
and is common from Cape Cod northward, and also on the California
coast. (Plate XXXII.)
^P. elegans.^ Narrower and more delicate than /P. serrata/,
otherwise it has the same essential features. It is common in
summer from New York northward, growing on cliffs, under /Fucus/,
near low-water mark, and it is also found washed upon the beach.
(Plate XXXII.)
^P. densa.^ Frond three to twelve inches high, one eighth of
an inch wide, flat, cartilaginous; has leading stem with flat
alternate branches; branches simple or branched again; edges of
whole plant beset with notched, curved pinnulæ alternating with
smaller feather-like pinnulæ, giving a dense edge to all parts of
the frond. It is found on the California coast. (Plate XXXIII.)
^P. hypnoides.^ Flat, cartilaginous main stem, much branched, and
all beset with pinnulæ. It differs from /P. densa/ in having the
alternate pinnulæ straight and club-shaped, instead of toothed and
curved, and the plant is not so dense and compact. Found on the
California coast. (Plate XXXIII.)
GENUS ^Spyridia^
^S. filamentosa.^ Fronds four to eight inches long; filaments as
thick as bristles, irregularly and repeatedly branched; young
branches show articulations and seem to be striped; all branches
clothed with short, very delicate, transparent filaments, which
give the plant a hazy appearance; color purplish-red, which becomes
brown when dried; does not collapse when taken from the water. It
grows in tufts below low-water mark, and is found in the drift on
the beach from Cape Cod southward. (Plate XXXIII.)
GENUS ^Ceramium^
The pitcher-weed. This genus is easily recognized by the ends of the
filaments, which are forked and incurved, resembling minute pincers
or claws. The filaments are also more or less distinctly banded. It
is widely distributed.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXI. Callithamnion americanum, a piece
magnified. Callithamnion seirospermum. Callithamnion byssoideum, var.
fastigiatum. Callithamnion floccosum.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXXII. Griffithsia Bornetiana. Ptilota serrata.
Ptilota serrata, magnified. Ptilota elegans.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXXIII. Ptilota densa. Ptilota hypnoides.
Ptilota hypnoides, magnified. Spyridia filamentosa.]
^C. rubrum^, red ceramium. This is a very common and robust
species, found everywhere, and growing on everything. It is
variable in appearance, becoming quite coarse when old, the
incurving, claw-like ends, which are characteristic of the genus,
being less pronounced. It branches by repeated forking, and, under
the microscope, shows a bark-like [pg093] layer of cells over
the whole surface, which make the ring-like bands on the filaments
less conspicuous.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXIV. Ceramium rubrum, var. proliferum.
Ceramium rubrum, top of frond magnified. Ceramium diaphanum.
Ceramium tenuissimum, var. patentissimum.]
Variety ^proliferum^. Fronds beset on all sides with simple or
forked branchlets. (Plate XXXIV.)
Variety ^secundatum^. Branchlets generally arranged on one side of
the filaments, or secund.
^C. strictum^ ("straight"). Brown or purplish-red filaments of
hair-like fineness, growing in tufts two to six inches high,
branching in narrow forks more and more closely as they reach the
top of the frond. There are no principal branches, the filaments
being of about the same diameter and regularly dividing in a
forking manner throughout. The filaments are banded, the red rings
being relatively very narrow. The white interstices at the base are
several times longer than broad, but shorten gradually until at the
top they are of equal length with the red bands. This species is
common from Cape Cod to New York.
^C. diaphanum.^ This species has comparatively stout leading
branches, with secondary alternate branches which are finer than
the main stems and divide in a forking manner throughout, and
ultimately become very fine. The color is brown or purplish-red,
distinctly banded. It grows on eel-grass and algæ, and is found
from Cape Cod to New York. (Plate XXXIV.)
^C. fastigiatum.^ Filaments of hair-like fineness and of about same
size throughout; branched in regular forking manner throughout,
the divisions being wide and distant at the base, but gradually
becoming closer and narrower as they reach the top; the upper
segments about equal, giving a level top and regular outline in
mounted specimens; the terminal forks erect, or less incurved than
in other species; small points or branchlets emanate from some of
the nodes or joints between the bands of color; tufts globe-shaped,
two to five inches high; color lake-red. This species grows on
mud-flats and mud-covered rocks as well as on algæ and eel-grass.
^C. tenuissimum.^ Fronds two to four inches high, densely tufted;
the forked divisions very wide or open; color rose-pink.
Variety ^patentissimum^. Fronds small; the forked divisions distant
and very wide open. A mounted specimen appears somewhat like
network. The species is common in Long Island Sound. (Plate XXXIV.)
GENUS ^Microcladia^
^M. Coulteri.^ Cylindrical, slightly flattened main stem; branches
set uniformly and alternately, short at the base, gradually
lengthening as far as the center, and from there diminishing to
the apex of the stem, giving a leaf-like outline. The same mode
of branching and the same outline are repeated in the branches.
The ultimate divisions are like forked divisions, and are somewhat
incurved. The plant is six to eight inches high, and in color is
of many shades of red and pink. It is found in abundance on the
Pacific coast at all seasons. (Plate XXXV.)
^M. borealis.^ Branches and branchlets placed on one side of arched
main stems; secondary branches curved in opposite direction and
bearing branchlets, also divided on one side only; color dark
brown. It is found on the northern Pacific coast. (Plate XXXV.)
[pg094]
ORDER =CRYPTONEMIACEÆ=
SUBORDER ~GLOIOSIPHONIEÆ~
GENUS ^Gloiosiphonia^
("/Viscid tube/")
^G. capillaris.^ Frond six to ten inches high, solitary or in
tufts; main stem cylindrical, solid above, hollow below; from about
an inch above the base densely beset with short, wide-spreading
branches arranged evenly and all around the stem; branches again
branched in the same way; branches and branchlets attenuated at
base and apex; soft, tender, juicy; shrinks much in drying. The
species is easily recognized by its delicate gelatinous substance,
tapering branchlets, and brilliant red color. It is found in early
summer in tide-pools on the New England coast.
SUBORDER ~GRATELOUPIEÆ~
GENUS ^Halymenia^
^H. ligulata.^ Frond membranaceous, repeatedly and regularly
divided in a forking manner; the larger divisions one half of an
inch wide and growing very narrow at the top; four to five inches
high, spreading in a fan-shape; color rose-red. It is found at Key
West.
GENUS ^Grateloupia^
^G. Cutleria.^ Frond coarse, flat, variable; either simple,
long, and narrow, or short and broad, tapering at both ends, or
blunt at the apex, or deeply cleft into many segments; sometimes
with leaflets along the edges; height two to three feet; color
reddish-brown; in fading, changes to purple and green, and may be
variegated. When simple, the plant resembles /Iridæa/. Found on the
northern California coast.
GENUS ^Prionitis^
^P. lanceolata.^ Frond narrow, flat, smooth; leathery stems, which
branch irregularly and sparingly from the edges; branches bordered
with lance-shaped leaflets; color dark brownish-red; plant ten or
more inches high, and varies considerably. (Plate XXXV.)
There are other species, among them ^P. Andersonii^ (Plate XXXVI.);
all are easily distinguished by the lance-shaped leaflets. Common
on the Pacific coast.
[Illustration: PLATE XXXV. Microcladia Coulteri. Microcladia
Coulteri, magnified. Microcladia borealis. Prionitis lanceolata.]
[Illustration: PLATE XXXVI. Prionitis Andersonii. Pikea Californica.
Halosaccion ramentaceum. Polyides rotundus.]
SUBORDER ~DUMONTIEÆ~
GENUS ^Pikea^
^P. Californica.^ Divisions of frond thick, narrow, cartilaginous;
central axis one eighth of an inch to one inch wide, three to four
inches high, thickly set with similar branches irregularly placed;
all bordered [pg095] with numerous forward-pointing branchlets,
which in turn have spine-like ramuli of various lengths; frond
flat, broadly spreading; dark red. It is common at all seasons on
the California coast. (Plate XXXVI.)
GENUS ^Halosaccion^
^H. ramentaceum.^ Fronds brownish-purple, six to fourteen inches
long, coarse and cartilaginous, cylindrical, hollow, compressed,
attenuated at the base; more or less covered with simple or forked
hollow branches half the size of the main stem. In exposed pools
the plants are short and densely branched; in sheltered places they
are larger and more delicate in texture. They are common on the
northern New England and northern California coasts. (Plate XXXVI.)
SUBORDER ~RHIZOPHYLLIDEÆ~
GENUS ^Polyides^
^P. rotundus.^ Frond three to six inches high, cylindrical,
cartilaginous, repeatedly forked, ends obtuse; spore-masses form
numerous lighter-colored excrescences on the upper divisions of the
frond; dark red. Common from New York northward, in deep pools and
washed ashore. (Plate XXXVI.)
SUBORDER ~SQUAMARIEÆ~
GENUS ^Peyssonnelia^
^P. Dubyi.^ Frond completely adherent to the rock or stone on
which it grows; color dark purple; somewhat calcareous; redder and
thicker than next species. It is found at low-water mark or in deep
water on the northern New England and northern California coasts.
GENUS ^Petrocelis^
^P. cruenta.^ Frond closely adherent, forming dark-purple velvety
patches of indefinite outline on rocks and stones. Common north of
Cape Cod.
GENUS ^Hildenbrandtia^
^H. rosea.^ Forms continuous pink incrustations of considerable
extent on stones and rocks at low-water mark. Common everywhere.
SUBORDER ~CORALLINEÆ~
The genera of this suborder are characterized by a calcareous or
stony incrustation of the fronds, which gives them the appearance of
corals. Most of the species are tropical. [pg096]
GENUS ^Corallina^
("/Coral-like/")
^C. officinalis^, common coralline. Frond grows from a disk in
tufts more or less dense. The plant is rigid, and seems like
jointed, branched coral. The articulations are cylindrical at the
base, wedge-shaped and flattened above. Branches emanate from the
top of the articulations. The color varies from reddish-purple to
gray-green, and is often bleached white when exposed to the sun.
Common in tide-pools and on rocks at low-water mark from New York
northward. (Plate XXXVII.)
GENUS ^Melobesia^
This genus will attract attention, although it cannot be gathered. It
is a thin, brittle, scaly substance of indefinite form, which expands
horizontally and resembles a lichen. It forms brown and pink crusts
on other algæ and on rocks, stones, and shells.
ORDER =BANGIACEÆ=
GENUS ^Bangia^
^B. fusco-purpurea^ ("brown-purple"). Fine, hair-like, unbranched,
dark-purple filaments, one inch to six inches long. It grows in
large patches on rocks and woodwork, floating free, but falling
into soft, silky, fleece-like masses when left by the tide. Common
on northern shores. (Plate XXXVII.)
GENUS ^Porphyra^
("/Purple dye/")
This plant, except in color, is like the green alga /Ulva/. In
color it is purple of various shades. The species are named from
variations in the outline of the frond. They are found everywhere,
and throughout the year. The plants are edible, being the laver of
commerce, eaten principally by the Chinese, who make them into soup.
^P. vulgaris.^ Frond a broad, thin membrane of purple color, three
to twelve inches across; margin much waved; sometimes attached at
the center, often widely expanded and folded, sometimes deeply
lobed. (Plate XXXVII.)
^P. laciniata.^ Differs from /P. vulgaris/ in being divided into
narrow segments or into wavy, ribbon-like forms. (Plate XXXVII.)
[Illustration: PLATE XXXVII. Corallina officinalis. Bangia
fusco-purpurea. Porphyra vulgaris. Porphyra laciniata.]
PART II
MARINE INVERTEBRATES
I
PORIFERA
(SPONGES)
TABLE SHOWING THE CLASSIFICATION OF THE SPONGES DESCRIBED IN THIS
CHAPTER
Phylum and Class =PORIFERA=
Subclass =Calcarea=
Order =HETEROC[OE]LA=
Family ~SYCONIDÆ~
Genera Species
^Grantia^ ^G. ciliata^
^Leucosolenia^ ^L. botryoides^
Subclass =Non-Calcarea=
Order =CHONDROSPONGIÆ=
Family ~SUBERITIDÆ~
^Suberites^ ^S. compacta^
^Polymastia^ ^P. robusta^
^Cliona^ ^C. sulphurea^
Order =CORNACUSPONGIÆ=
Family ~DESMACIDONIDÆ~
^Esperiopsis^ ^E. quatsinoensis^
^Microciona^ ^M. prolifera^
Family ~HETERORRHAPHIDÆ~
^Tedania^
Family ~HOMORRHAPHIDÆ~
Genera Species
^Halichondria^ ^H. panicea^
Family ~SPONGIDÆ~ Subfamily ~EUSPONGINÆ~
^Chalinopsilla^ ^C. oculata^
^C. arbuscula^
^Euspongia^ ^E. officinalis^
Var. ^adriatica^
Var. ^mollissima^
Var. ^rotunda^
Var. ^dura^
^Hippospongia^ ^H. equina^
Var. ^cerebriformis^
Var. ^meandriformis^
Var. ^elastica^
^H. canaliculata^
Var. ^gossypina^
Var. ^flabellum^
Family ~SPONGIDÆ~ Subfamily ~STELOSPONGINÆ~
^Hircinia^ ^H. campana^
[pg101]
SPONGES
There are many animals which consist of but one cell. These are
called /Protozoa/, and comprise the /Infusoria/ and other microscopic
organisms. The animals next higher in the scale are /Metazoa/, or
multicellular animals, and the first group of this subdivision is
=Porifera=, the sponges, the lowest of the many-celled animals.
For a long time sponges occupied a disputed ground between the animal
and vegetable kingdoms. Aristotle was the first to point out that a
sponge is not a plant. The assertion was doubted and combated, but at
last the animal nature of the sponge was established. Sponges were
then believed to be colonies of one-celled animals, but finally it
was decided that they were individuals with cells of different kinds
that performed functions analogous to those of higher organisms.
The sponge, as commonly seen, is only the skeleton or framework, so
to speak, of the living animal. In its natural state it is a very
different-looking object. Its entire surface is covered with a thin
slimy skin, usually of a dark color, which is perforated with holes
corresponding to the apertures of the canals. The organic portion
of the sponge is a soft, jelly-like substance composed of three
layers--the external (/ectoderm/), the internal (/endoderm/), and
the middle (/mesoderm/). The external layer is composed of flat
cells. The endoderm has cylindrical cells, each one of which has a
flagellate hair. The main mass of the body, the mesoderm or middle
layer, is made up of cells having various functions, some being
concerned in the formation of framework, some in digestion, and some
in reproduction.
The framework is secreted in the mesoderm, and in different
[pg102] genera consists respectively of a horny or silicious or
calcareous substance, or of the first two of these substances
combined. The sponge of commerce has the first kind and is compo
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