Page:The aquarium - an unveiling of the wonders of the deep sea.djvu/176

Rh of the new-born young, the danger they incur from predatory enemies, and the vigilant care of the affectionate parent,—are well described.

One of the most interesting of our native sea-weeds is the Peacock's Tail (Padina pavonia). It is so called from its shape, which, springing from a point, expands into a broad fan, with an outline forming, in fine fronds, nearly three fourths of a circle. A more apt comparison would perhaps be the Turkey's tail, as its form is more closely like, and the concentric bands add to the resemblance. I had been familiar with the plant on the shores of Jamaica, for it is essentially a tropical species, but had never yet seen British specimens in their native haunts: it is marked as rare in our books, and is confined to a few localities on the Channel coast. My friend Mr. Thompson, however, taught me to look for it at Weymouth.

At the foot of the Nothe, bordering its southern side throughout its length, the shore at low-tide runs off in wide flat ledges, the structure of which I have already described. On these as one dips and another rises, a number of wide shallow pools lie in a sort of chain parallel to the low cliffs. Here I was instructed to watch for the first appearance of the pretty Peacock's Tail.

Unlike most of our Algæ, it is an annual plant, to be found only in the summer. The cold of autumn withers its fan-like fronds, and the waves soon wash away all trace of their existence, and it is not until somewhat late in the spring that we detect the