Project Gutenberg's Beautiful Shells of New Zealand, by E. G. B. Moss
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Title: Beautiful Shells of New Zealand
An Illustrated Work for Amateur Collectors of New Zealand
Marine Shells, with Directions for Collecting and Cleaning
them
Author: E. G. B. Moss
Release Date: September 23, 2010 [EBook #33987]
Language: English
*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK BEAUTIFUL SHELLS OF NEW ZEALAND ***
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BEAUTIFUL SHELLS
OF NEW ZEALAND.
An Illustrated Work for Amateur Collectors
of New Zealand Marine Shells
WITH
Directions for Collecting and Cleaning them.
BY
E. G. B. MOSS,
BARRISTER, AUCKLAND.
Photographs by C. SPENCER, Auckland.
1908.
PUBLISHERS:
COLLINS BROS. & CO., LIMITED, AUCKLAND.
[Transcriber's Note: Words surrounded by tildes, like ~this~ signifies
words in bold.]
CONTENTS.
PAGE.
Preface 3
Chapter I.--Shells and their Inmates 5
Chapter II.--Collecting and Cleaning Shells 10
Chapter III.--Description of Plates 14
INDEX.
Page.
Acmæa fragilis, 43
Acmæa octoradiata, 43
Acmæa pileopsis, 43
Amphibola crenata, 26
Anatina angasi, 32
Anaitis yatei, 37
Ancilla australis, 17
Ancilla pyramidalis, 17
Anomia walteri, 46
Apollo argus, 22
Apollo australasia, 22
Arca decussata, 40
Argonauta nodosa, 14
Astralium heliotropium, 27
Astralium sulcatum, 27
Atactodea subtriangulata, 36
Bankivia varians, 29
Barbatia decussata, 40
Barnea similis, 32
Buccinulus kirki, 30
Bulla quoyi, 32
Calliostoma pellucidum, 24
Calliostoma punctulatum, 24
Calliostoma selectum, 24
Calliostoma tigris, 23
Calyptræa maculata, 42
Cantharidus fasciatus, 29
Cantharidus iris, 28
Cantharidus purpuratus, 28
Cantharidus tenebrosus, 28
Cardita australis, 39
Cardita aviculina, 38
Cassis, 23
Cerithidea, 30
Chione costata, 36
Chione crassa, 39
Chione oblonga, 36
Chione stutchburyi, 36
Chione yatei, 27
Cochlodesma angasi, 32
Cominella huttoni, 21
Cominella lurida, 21
Cominella maculata, 21
Cominella nassoides, 22
Cominella testudinea, 21
Cominella virgata, 22
Cookia sulcata, 27
Corbula zelandica, 33
Crenella impacta, 40
Crepidula aculeata, 42
Crepidula monoxyla, 42
Crepidula unguiformis, 42
Cylichna striata, 31
Daphnella lymneiformis, 29
Dentalium nanum, 43
Divaricella cumingi, 39
Dolium variegatum, 18
Dosinea australis, 40
Dosinea lambata, 40
Dosinea subrosea, 40
Drillia zelandica, 29
Emarginula striatula, 42
Ethalia zelandica, 25
Euthria flavescens, 20
Euthria lineata, 20
Euthria vittata, 20
Galerus zelandicus, 42
Glycymeris laticostata, 37
Glycymeris striatularis, 37
Haliotis iris, 37
Haliotis rugoso-plicata, 37
Haliotis virginea, 37
Haminea zelandiæ, 32
Hemimactra notata, 34
Hiatula nitida, 34
Hipponyx australis, 42
Janthina exigua, 28
Janthina fragilis, 28
Janthina globosa, 28
Kalydon, 30
Lima bullata, 41
Lima zelandica, 41
Lithodomus truncatus, 38
Lithophago truncata, 38
Litorina cincta, 29
Litorina mauritiana, 29
Lotorium cornutum, 23
Lotorium olearium, 22
Lotorium rubicundum, 19
Lotorium spengleri, 22
Lucina dentata, 39
Mactra æquilatera, 33
Mactra discors, 33
Magellania lenticularis, 38
Marinula filholi, 31
Mesodesma novæ zelandiæ, 36
Mesodesma ventricosa, 35
Mitra melaniana, 18
Modiola australis, 46
Modiolaria impacta, 40
Monodonta aethiops, 26
Monodonta lugubris, 26
Monodonta nigerrima, 26
Monodonta subrostrata, 26
Murex eos, 16
Murex octogonus, 16
Murex ramosus, 16
Murex zelandicus, 15
Myodora boltoni, 33
Myodora striata, 33
Mytilicardia excavata, 38
Mytilus edulis, 45
Mytilus latus, 45
Mytilus magellanicus, 46
Natica zelandica, 25
Nerita nigra, 25
Ophicardelus costellaris, 31
Ostrea angasi, 46
Ostrea glomerata, 46
Panopea zelandica, 32
Paphia, 35
Parmophorus, 41
Patella radians, 43
Patella stellifera, 43
Pecten convexus, 44
Pecten medius, 44
Pecten zelandiæ, 45
Pectunculus, 37
Pholadidea tridens, 32
Pinna zelandica, 45
Pisania, 20
Placunanomia zelandica, 46
Pleurotoma, 30
Polytropa, 17
Potamides bicarinatus, 30
Potamides sub-carinatus, 30
Psammobia lineolata, 34
Psammobia stangeri, 34
Purpura haustrum, 17
Purpura scobina, 17
Purpura succincta, 17
Ranella, 22
Resania lanceolata, 34
Rhynchonella nigricans, 38
Rotella, 25
Saxicava arctica, 33
Scalaria tenella, 30
Scalaria zelebori, 30
Scaphella gracilis, 18
Scaphella pacifica, 18
Scutum ambiguum, 41
Semi-cassis labiata, 23
Semi-cassis pyrum, 23
Siliquaria australis, 30
Siphonalia dilatata, 19
Siphonalia mandarina, 19
Siphonalia nodosa, 19
Siphonaria australis, 41
Siphonaria obliquata, 41
Solenomya parkinsoni, 40
Solenotellina nitida, 34
Solenotellina spenceri, 34
Solidula alba, 30
Spirula peroni, 15
Standella elongata, 34
Standella ovata, 33
Struthiolaria papulosa, 19
Struthiolaria vermis, 20
Sub-emarginula intermedia, 41
Surcula cheesemani, 30
Surcula novæ zelandiæ, 29
Tapes intermedia, 39
Taron dubius, 29
Tellina alba, 35
Tellina disculus, 35
Tellina glabrella, 35
Tellina strangei, 35
Tenagodes weldii, 30
Terebra tristis, 30
Terebratella rubicunda, 38
Terebratella sanguinea, 38
Tralia australis, 31
Tricotropis inornata, 31
Triton, 19
Trivia australis, 31
Trochus chathamensis, 24
Trochus tiaratus, 24
Trochus viridis, 24
Trophon ambiguus, 16
Trophon cheesemani, 17
Trophon duodecimus, 30
Trophon plebeius, 31
Trophon stangeri, 16
Turbo granosus, 26
Turbo helicinus, 27
Turritella rosea, 31
Turritella vittata, 31
Vanganella taylori, 34
Venericardia australis, 39
Venerupis elegans, 39
Venerupis reflexa, 39
Venus, 36 and 39
Volsella australis, 46
Volsella fluviatilis, 46
Voluta, 18
Waldheimia lenticularis, 38
Zenatia acinaces, 34
Zizyphinus, 23
PREFACE
Often have I heard my young friends regret the great difficulty
experienced in identifying the things of beauty found on our coast; and
some time back it occurred to me that the time had arrived when an
attempt should be made to remedy this. New Zealand is a maritime
country, most of its inhabitants living near the sea, and there are few
indeed who do not enjoy occasionally the pleasure of wandering along the
seashore, gathering shells, seaweed, echini, and the numerous other
relics of the deep. This pleasant hobby is robbed of a great deal of its
interest by a lack of knowledge as regards the names, habits, and mode
of preserving the various finds, and especially the finds of shells.
When properly preserved and carefully classified they are much more
attractive than otherwise they would be. In almost every home shells are
seen; some highly prized as ornaments, others as mementoes of pleasant
hours in foreign lands; but seldom are our really beautiful shells
represented in a collection.
In this work marine shells alone are dealt with, our numerous land and
fresh water shells being, with six or seven exceptions, small and
insignificant. Of land and fresh water shells about two hundred
varieties, and of marine shells about four hundred and fifty varieties,
have up to the present been discovered in New Zealand. For some
inscrutable reason, however, the New Zealand authorities are continually
changing the classical names of our shells. The names I have used are
taken from the late Professor F. W. Hutton's last list, published in
1904. It is really time some attempt was made to stop this foolish
proceeding. Most of the shells, since I began collecting 20 odd years
ago, have had their names changed once, many of them twice, and some
even three times. It is more than probable some of the names will be
altered while this volume is in the press. These frequent changes in the
names cause great confusion, and but for the kindly help and
encouragement given me by Mr. T. F. Cheeseman, F.L.S., of Auckland, I
should have hesitated to undertake its publication. What most ennobles
science is the willingness to give assistance to beginners shown by
really scientific men, and doubly pleasing is that help to the recipient
when given spontaneously and without stint.
This is the first attempt to publish a popular work on New Zealand
shells, and is written by an amateur for amateurs. Nearly every shell
likely to be met with by an ordinary collector (except the minute
shells) will be found in the ten plates at the end of this work. I have
endeavoured to describe the shells in simple language, as the scientific
words may puzzle some of my readers. For instance, Professor Hutton
describes a certain shell as "thick, irregular, sharp ribbed, with the
margin dentated or lobed, very inequivalve; upper valve opercular,
compressed, wrinkled, with thick concentric laminae; lower valve
cucullated, purple, white within, edged with purple or black; lateral
margins denticulated; hinge generally attenuated, produced, pointed."
When a shell is found that fully answers this description you will know
it is an Auckland rock oyster. Errors and omissions will, I trust, be
charitably dealt with, as the inevitable mistakes of a man who is
blazing a track. I have endeavoured to give the Maori names also, but,
unfortunately, in different parts of New Zealand the same name is
frequently used for different shells.
My own collection of New Zealand marine shells, made during my residence
in Tauranga, Bay of Plenty, is, I believe, the best and largest yet
made, and among the specimens I can number no less than a dozen new
shells which I had the pleasure of adding to the recognised list. Over
90 per cent. of the known species of New Zealand marine shells were
found there by my friends or myself during the 15 happy years I spent in
that delightful, though not very progressive, part of New Zealand.
My thanks are especially due to Mr. Charles Spencer, of Auckland, an
ardent conchologist, and for many years my colleague in collecting
shells, for the care taken with the photographs, and for valuable
suggestions and help.
CHAPTER I.
SHELLS AND THEIR INMATES.
Before the study of shellfish, or molluscs, was conducted on the
scientific principles of the present day, shells were classified as
univalves, bivalves, and multivalves. The univalves were shells in one
piece, such as the whelk; the bivalves those in two pieces, such as the
mussel or oyster; and the multivalves those in more than two pieces,
such as barnacles or chitons, barnacles, however, being no longer
classed with shells.
The highest of the five types, or natural divisions, of animals are the
Vertebrata, the Mollusca, and the Annulosa. The vertebrates usually have
vertebrae, or jointed backbones, and from this the highest division
takes its name; but the real test is the colour of the blood, which in
the vertebrates is always red.
The molluscs have soft bodies and no internal skeleton, but in lieu of
this the animal is usually protected by an external shell, harder than
the bones of vertebrates. The annulosa, like the molluscs, have soft
bodies and no internal skeletons; but the external shell is divided into
joints or segments, and is usually softer than the bones of vertebrates.
Fishes belong to the vertebrate division, oysters to the mollusc, and
crabs and starfish to the annulosa.
The remaining two of the five divisions are the Caelenterata, in which
the general cavity of the body communicates freely with that of the
digestive apparatus, and the Protozoa, which includes all animals, such
as sponges, etc., not included in the above four divisions.
The shell of an oyster takes the place of the bones of a dog; and
although it may seem strange for an animal to have its bones on the
outside of its body, it is really no more strange than for a fruit, such
as the strawberry or raspberry, to have its seeds on the outside. Lime
is the principal ingredient of all bones; and the bones of vertebrate
animals contain a large proportion of phosphate of lime, while the
shells of molluscs, or shellfish (as they are popularly called), consist
almost entirely of carbonate of lime.
When scientists began more carefully to examine the structure of
shellfish, they found that those similarly constructed had shells with
certain marked peculiarities. The days of conchology were then doomed;
and the study of the mollusc, or malacology, took its place.
Besides those necessary for digesting food, most shellfish have organs
equivalent to those of vertebrate animals, such as feet, arms, eyes,
head, heart, and tongue. Although bearing the same names, these organs
rarely have a similar shape to those of the vertebrates, being
necessarily adapted to the different mode of living. The foot of a
cockle, shaped like an animal's tongue, enables it to move slowly from
place to place, as well as to burrow in a sandy beach with the comical
jerks so well known to observers. The tongues are beautifully designed
for their work. The long, narrow tongue of the vegetarian mollusc works
like a scythe, and mows down the delicate marine grasses on which the
animal feeds. The powerful tongues of those that prefer an animal diet
are able to bore through the strongest shells; and woe betide the
unfortunate shellfish which, having shown signs of weakness, or disease,
is surrounded by its active, carnivorous brethren. The tongue, sometimes
longer even than the shell itself, is covered with rows of very hard
spikes, or teeth, arranged similarly to the burrs on a file. As these
teeth break, or are worn out, they are replaced by others that push
themselves forward when wanted. Under a microscope of moderate power,
the radula, or tongue, of a shellfish, especially a limpet, is a most
interesting sight, and many molluscs can be identified merely by
examining the tongue under a microscope. The shape of the teeth, the
number, and the arrangement of them will settle the question.
The appetites of molluscs verge on the voracious. Break up a few
cockles, or other shellfish, and place them in shallow water on a calm
day, and watch the result. If in the vicinity of rocks, and during a
rising tide, all the better. First come the wary little shrimps to the
feast. Some are creeping cautiously, and some are jumping and racing, as
if afraid of not being in time. Then the carnivorous shellfish approach
from all directions, foremost amongst them being the different species
of Cominella. While they are lumbering along, shells appear to be
actually running; but a close inspection shows that these contain active
little hermit crabs, whose tender tails, having no hard covering of
their own, are snugly stowed in the empty shells of defunct molluscs.
Then the sand or gravel moves, and crabs appear. The shrimps, crabs, and
hermit crabs run off with the smaller morsels; but the molluscs gather
round the remnants and pull and haul and roll over one another until the
feast is ended, when some, being satiated, contentedly burrow into the
sand; while others, with their appetites only sharpened, will wander
away in search of fresh prey.
In many shells, such as the Triton, or Lotorium as it is now called
(Plate III.), every increase in growth can be traced in the thick lip
formed by the animal when it has increased the size of its shell. Others
again, such as the Struthiolaria (Plate IV., Fig. 4), only form a lip
when their full size has been attained, and by this the difference
between an old and young Struthiolaria can at a glance be seen. Others
form a lip at each growth, and then dissolve the lip before starting
again. Vertebrate fish are supposed to grow, and increase in size, till
the day of their death, but shellfish do not do this. The shell becomes
stronger and thicker with age, the animal having the ability to add
layer after layer of nacreous, or pearly deposit, on the inside of the
shell; and as the animal shrivels and lessens in size the thickness of
the shell increases. And some, when they become too large, have power to
dissolve the partitions in the shell, and deposit the material on the
outside of the shell.
The time it takes a shellfish to grow to its full size varies a great
deal. Oysters take about five years; but the giant Tridacna, the largest
bivalve in the world, has been found so enclosed in the slow-growing
coral that it could hardly open its valves.
The young of most shellfish are active little things, and are usually so
different from their parents as to be unrecognisable. Some swim, or
frisk about, and travel even long distances in search of suitable
quarters to settle in. Others float on the surface, and are driven where
the winds and currents list. Some, like mussels, are distributed all
over the world, others again are found, perhaps, on one rock, or on one
small sandbank in a large district. Many shells are rare, because we do
not know where to look for them; but if we know and can find their food,
we will find the shellfish not far away. Some change their shape so much
that, as they age, they have to dissolve all the partitions made in
their youth in the shell. The eggs of some are scattered on the surface
of the water, while the eggs of others are hatched by the mother before
being turned adrift.
Marine shellfish live in all kinds of places below high water mark; and
some of the semi-amphibious ones thrive even above ordinary high water
mark, where for days at a time nothing but the tops of the waves could
reach them. They are found on seaweed and on rocks, and on sand or
mud-banks; but especially in places near rocks on marine grass banks
bare at low spring tides. Some live on the surface of the water, some
burrow in sand or mud, and some bore holes for themselves in the softer
rocks. Some live in deep water; but the better coloured shells are found
near low water mark, or in shallow water; for light is as necessary to
the perfecting of colour in shells as in flowers. Shells that have grown
in a harbour are more fragile than those grown in the ocean, and are
usually less brilliant in colour, as harbour water is not as clean as
ocean water. The colour of shells (as of insects) depends largely on
environment, and is only one, and by no means the most reliable, method
of deciding the species. An expert can at a glance tell whether a given
shell has come from shallow or deep water, and whether from an exposed
or sheltered spot. Most shellfish move about a great deal, and migrate
into deeper water in summer; and on bright clear days retire into dark
corners amongst, and even under, stones. On a dull day a collector is
frequently more successful than on a bright, sunny day; and in spring or
early summer the best hauls of live shells can be made. Nearly all
shells have an epidermis, or outer skin. In some this is very apparent,
as in the Lotorium olearium (Plate V., Fig. 1), or the Solenomya
parkinsoni (Plate IX, Fig. 18), while in others it is nearly
transparent, and hardly perceptible. To enable the true colours of a
shell to be seen the epidermis must be removed.
The supposed original form of a shell was that of a volute univalve,
such as the Triton (now Lotorium), or Struthiolaria. To properly enclose
the animal, and make it safe from enemies, an operculum, or lid, was so
formed that when the animal retired into the shell this filled up the
opening. The operculum is usually like a piece of thin, rough brown
horn, and where no reference is made to an operculum in this work, it
must be understood that the operculum is horny. Some shells, such as the
Astralium sulcatum (Plate VI., Fig. 18), and the Turbo helicinus (Plate
VI., Fig. 17), have a shelly operculum; that of the latter being the
well-known cat's eye.
In some shells the operculum is small, in others large, and progressing
step by step we find some, such as the scallop and oyster, with one
side round, and the other (really an operculum) flat and as large as the
shell; until we come to the perfect type with each valve the same shape
and size. Then the operculum disappears, as in the limpet, and the
covering shell becomes smaller and smaller, till in the Scutum ambiguum
(Plate IX., Fig. 23) the shell bears about the same proportion to the
animal that the little bonnet, fashionable a few years ago, bore to the
lady that wore it. The shell is built up of very thin layers of nacre,
or mother of pearl, and calcareous or chalky matter, the thinner being
the layers of nacre the more lustrous and iridescent is the shell.
As would be expected from its isolated position, many of the genera of
New Zealand shells are not found elsewhere. The late Professor Hutton
mentions nine genera in this position.
The dispersal of shells is an interesting natural phenomenon. The eggs
of molluscs are so small that they can easily be carried by currents,
attached to floating seaweed or floating timber, on the hulls of ships,
or in the feathers or feet of our migratory birds, such as the godwit,
which every year travels from New Zealand to Siberia and back. A great
many of our shells are found on the Australian coasts; and a surprising
number are common to both New Zealand and Queensland.
In describing the illustrations, length means extreme length, and by
measuring the shell on the plate the proportionate width can be
ascertained. The illustrations are, generally speaking, half the natural
length of the shell depicted; and the shell photographed, although in
most cases an average full-sized specimen, in some instances was smaller
than the average.
[Illustration]
CHAPTER II
COLLECTING AND CLEANING SHELLS.
Shells are described as live and dead shells. Live shells are those
found with the animal enclosed, and are more likely to be perfect in
form and colour than dead shells. Dead shells found amongst rocks are
nearly always battered and worn, and useless from the collector's point
of view. Live shells are found below high water mark, among rocks, or in
the sand, or amongst seaweed and marine grasses.
Wait till a storm from the sea is ended, and then, if the wind is
blowing from the land, a rich harvest of live and dead shells will be
found on the sandy beaches and amongst the seaweed and wrack that comes
ashore. Many of the smaller shells will be found amongst the leaves and
roots of kelp. Start early in the morning, or pigs, rats, and seabirds
will have destroyed the choicest specimens. Even such solid bivalves as
the Dosinia will be carried skywards by the gulls and dropped on to a
hard part of the beach, so that the shells may be cracked and the gulls
get the contents. Most birds have this habit; even thrushes can be seen
carrying snails up in the air and dropping them on to paths. Soak the
dead shells in hot water for a few hours to get rid of the salt, and
then scrub with a hard brush, or, if encrusted or very dirty, rub with
sand, using a brush or cloth. No need to fear hurting them, unless very
fragile, in which case the best thing is a soft toothbrush, with fine
sand. If patches of dirt, or encrustations, still remain, scrape with a
piece of hard wood or a knife. As a last resource use muriatic acid,
diluted with an equal volume of water; but be careful to put it only on
the spots to be cleaned, using a penholder, or small stick, with a small
piece of rag tied to the point. The inside of the shell, if discoloured,
can be cleaned in the same way. When cleaned, wash again carefully, and
dry thoroughly. Then rub the shell with a mixture of sewing machine oil
and chloroform in equal parts. The machine oil, being fish oil, will
replace the oil the shell has lost, and chloroform is the best restorer
of colour we have. For very delicate shells poppy oil is sometimes used;
but it is expensive and difficult to obtain.
The greatest trouble is getting the animal out of live shells. Anthills
are few and small in New Zealand, so the lazy man's method of putting
shells on an anthill, and letting the insects do the work, is
impracticable. Boiling for a minute will not hurt the stronger and
heavier shells; but even pouring boiling water on the more delicate
shells will cause them in time to fade. After taking the shells out of
the boiling water, let them cool, and then place them in cold, fresh
water for a couple of days in summer or for a week in winter, changing
the water every day. The animal can then usually be removed with a
bradawl, or, better still, a sail needle stuck into a cork. Although
soaking in fresh water for a few days makes the animal slip out more
easily, still a large proportion will break during extraction. The piece
left behind must also be extracted, or the shell will be offensive. The
coarser shells can be buried for a few months in sandy soil, or for a
few weeks on a sandy beach below high water mark, or put in baskets or
bags made of twine or netting, and placed in tidal pools, or fastened to
stakes at low water mark, where the marine insects will quickly do their
share of the work. Or they may be buried in a boxful of clean sand or
sandy soil, and the sand kept moist by watering it every few days. The
box is all the better for being put away in a damp place under a tree,
or on the shady side of a building or fence. This, however, is a slow
process, and if the specimens are required at once, the best way is to
extract all you can of the animal by the hot water and soaking process,
and then keep the shell half-full of water in a shady place, every
morning holding it under a water tap and shaking it carefully. After
each shaking a very little pure muriatic acid may be put into the shell,
and when all the effervescing from the acid is over, wash and shake it
again. Two or three mornings of this treatment should clean the shell.
The more delicate shells will lose their colour if put into boiling
water, so first put the boiling water in a basin and then place the
shells in it. Nearly all salt water shellfish, if soaked for a few hours
in fresh water, will die. The only exceptions I know of are the Nerita
and Littorina, families which are semi-amphibious. The best way to
remove coral or vegetable growths from shells is to leave them for a few
weeks, or if very hard, for a few months, in a shady place, where the
wind and rain can get at them, but not the sun. The growths will then be
sufficiently soft to be scraped off with a piece of hard wood or a
knife, or rubbed off with sand. It is a good plan to oil or paste
calico over portions not covered with growths, so as to reduce the risk
of the colour fading. When the animal is removed and the growth cleaned
away, wash, scrub, and dry, as with dead shells.
Shellfish are sometimes obtained by dredging with a naturalist's dredge,
or by diving for them, or lifting them out of the water with instruments
such as hay forks and hooks. Sandy beaches and banks yield many of the
most beautiful specimens, but only with experience will the collector be
able to identify the marks of the syphons of the various shellfish.
Nearly all shellfish that burrow have two syphons, or tubes, which they
push through the sand. The water is drawn down one syphon and up the
other; and as it passes through its stomach the mollusc absorbs the
animal and vegetable particles in the water. Some of these shellfish
live feet below the surface of the sand; some, such as the common
cockle, only a fraction of an inch. Apparently even cockles do not come
to the surface, except to die. Some instinct seems to urge a shellfish,
when sick unto death, to save its fellows from infection by leaving the
common shelter. Cockles found on the surface are to be avoided as
unhealthy, and, unless they die naturally, are soon killed by the
carnivorous shellfish. It does not take one of the whelk family long to
bore a hole in the centre of the cockle shell. It knows too much to risk
having its radula, or tongue, nipped off by putting it between the
partly-open valves of the dying cockle. The end of the syphon, which
projects from the sand, is like a miniature sea anemone. Each
sand-burrowing shellfish has a different shaped end to its syphon, and
the skilled collector can tell at a glance what shellfish is down below.
If he can grip the syphon with his hand he will have no difficulty in
digging up the shellfish, even such a deep-living one as the Panopaea
(Plate VIII., Fig. 3), one of which was captured by Mr. C. Spencer on
Cheltenham Beach, near Takapuna Head, in Auckland Harbour. I believe
this was the only Panopaea captured in New Zealand in situ, and was
about eighteen inches below the surface of the sand at half-tide mark.
If he miss gripping the syphon he will probably lose the shellfish; as
it can burrow nearly as fast as a man can dig with his hand. A beginner
cannot do better than take a small spade, and walk along a sandy beach
at low water. As the tide begins to rise, and the buried shellfish feel
the water, he will see the sand moving, or showing signs of life; and if
he digs quickly enough he may unearth rare and beautiful specimens for
his cabinet.
Wherever animals or vegetables are crowded, disease appears. This is
true of molluscs, and it is seldom worth while looking for a specimen
fit for a collection where any particular kind of shellfish lives in
great numbers. Animal and vegetable parasites will be found wherever
shellfish are crowded together. For instance, a perfect cockle, or one
good enough for a collection, will not be found on a cockle bank, but
solitary ones must be looked for elsewhere.
[Illustration]
CHAPTER III.
DESCRIPTION OF PLATES.
Amongst the best known shells in any part of the world the Nautilus
takes a leading position. Named Argonauta by scientific men, after the
Argonautae, or sailors of the Argo, it has been the subject of many
legends from the earliest times. Aristotle describes it as floating on
the surface of the sea in fine weather, and holding out its sail-shaped
arms to the breeze. This is now known to be incorrect, as the use it
makes of these arms is to help it in swimming through the water. New
Zealand's specimen, the Argonauta nodosa, also known as Argonauta argo,
the most beautiful of the four known species, is depicted on Plate I.
Being a floating shell, and found even hundreds of miles from land, our
Nautilus is not peculiar to New Zealand. Its beautiful white,
horny-looking shell can be obtained from most parts of the Pacific and
Indian Oceans, but in no part of the world can finer specimens than ours
be found. It is known to the Maoris as Muheke or Ngu, and colloquially
as the Paper Nautilus.
The animal that produces this shell belongs to the octopus, or
cuttlefish, family. The male is an insignificant-looking octopus, about
an inch long. The female grows many times larger, as can be imagined
from a glance at the shell in the plate, which measured nine inches
across, and was found at Mayor Island, in the Bay of Plenty, and is now
in the possession of Mr. C. Spencer.
In the shell the female lays her eggs, and in it the young are hatched.
Unlike all other shells, the Nautilus is not moulded on the animal, nor
is she even attached to her shell by muscles. When washed ashore she can
wriggle out of her shell and swim away. In her shell she lies as in a
boat, propelling herself by slowly sucking up water, and violently
ejecting it through a funnel, or syphon, at the same time using her arms
as oars, to increase her speed. Dame Nautilus can sink to the bottom of
the sea if she chooses; and when wishing to crawl about the sand or
rocks she turns over and carries her shell on her back, like a snail.
Beside the Nautilus is her little cousin, the Spirula peroni, which
sometimes, although not quite scientifically correct, is called an
Ammonite. Our Nautilus is frequently found alive, but only one living
specimen of this Ammonite has hitherto been caught, though several
shells have been obtained from different parts of the world with
portions of the fish attached.
Neither towing nets nor dredges have been successful in catching the
Ammonite, so it evidently does not live either on the surface or bottom
of the sea, but probably between the two, in deep water. The shell is in
a number of divisions, connected by a fine tube, and no doubt its use is
to regulate the depth at which the animal wishes to stay. This the
creature does by filling a number of the divisions with water or air,
according as it wishes to sink deeper or float upwards. After a gale, on
looking amongst the wrack cast up by the highest waves, large numbers of
our Spirula will be found. Light and fragile the shells are, and they
ride ashore without injury, and frequently are found covered with small
barnacles, a proof that many weeks must have elapsed between the death
of the owner and the casting ashore of its shell. In places in New
Zealand, and elsewhere, large fossil deposits of Spirula peroni occur.
It is worth remembering that, even though this shell is found as far
away as England, the only living specimen was caught on the New Zealand
coast. Our only other floating shells are three species of Janthina, or
violet shells, two of which are shown on Plate VII., Figures 1 and 2.
The first three shells on Plate II. belong to the Murex family. From
this species the ancient Tyrians obtained a portion of their celebrated
purple dye. The Janthina family (Plate VII.), however, contributed the
greater portion. The dye was extracted by bruising the smaller shells in
mortars.
~MUREX ZELANDICUS~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 1 is known as the spider shell, from
the spines, which look like spider's legs. It is a white or greyish
shell, about two inches in length. The long spines would interfere with
the growth of this Murex if it had not the power of dissolving them as
the outside of one whorl becomes the inside of the next. The removal is
supposed to be assisted by chemical action, as the saliva of some
shellfish is known to contain a small percentage of muriatic acid. Such
powers have some shellfish of dissolving or altering the form of their
shells, that the Cyprae, or Cowry, our representative of which family is
the Trivia australis (Plate VII., Fig. 29), not only can dissolve the
inner part of its shell, but can deposit new layers on the outside. This
Murex lives on sand in the open ocean, and is found in the North Island
only.
~MUREX OCTOGONUS~ (Plate II.).--Fig 2 is a slightly longer shell than the
Murex zelandicus, and, like it, is found only in the North Island. But
in place of being round or oval, this shell is octagonal, from which
peculiarity it derives its name. The grooves that cross the shell are
deep, and between them are small curved spines. The shell is thick and
solid, the exterior being reddish white, sometimes stained with brown.
There is a smaller variety of this shell, darker in colour and with more
numerous spines than the photographed specimens shown.
~MUREX EOS~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 3 is a beautiful pink shell, about an inch
long. Dead shells only have been found, and a good specimen is much
prized. None of the Murex family are common, and they are seldom found
alive. Murex eos, although existing in Tasmania and Australia, has so
far been found in New Zealand nowhere South of the Bay of Islands.
~MUREX RAMOSUS.~--Two specimens of this well-known Island shell have been
found in Tauranga during the last five years. One excellent specimen,
8-1/2 inches long, was a live shell, and is now in the possession of
Mrs. T. M. Humphreys, of Tauranga. An illustration of this shell will be
found on Plate X., Fig. 10.
~TROPHON STANGERI~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 4 is a rough grey shell, with a dark
purple interior. It is covered with parallel ridges and lines, which are
known as varices, very thin and close together, and running from the
apex to the mouth of the shell. It is over an inch in length, and
usually found on cockle banks in harbours.
~TROPHON AMBIGUUS~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 5 is in shape very like the Murex
stangeri, but twice the dimensions, and can be easily distinguished, as
the varices are much higher and further apart; besides which they cross
one another at right angles, forming a perfect network, and the interior
is pinkish brown. This shell is found on ocean beaches, as well as on
cockle banks.
~TROPHON CHEESEMANI~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 6 is a small, grey Trophon, with a
dark interior. The shell is deeply grooved, and about three-quarters of
an inch long. Found, so far, only on the West Coast, near Waikato Heads.
We have 3 other small Trophons, two of which are shown on Plate VII.,
Figs. 22 and 23.
~ANCILLA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate II.)--Fig. 7 (also known as the New Zealand
Olive) is a beautiful clean bright shell, and looks as if covered with
shining enamel. The upper part of shells of the Ancilla family is kept
polished by the mollusc's foot, which swells to such an extent when the
animal is moving about that the whole shell is concealed in its folds.
The broad band in the centre is usually dark chestnut or brownish
purple, the points of the shell being tipped with darker shades of the
same colour. The interior is purplish. Large numbers are found on the
edges of channels in harbours, buried in the sand; but their presence is
easily located by the oval-shaped mound under which they conceal
themselves. When washed up on ocean beaches, they are frequently
bleached to a brown or chocolate colour. The Maoris sometimes use them
for buttons, and very pretty buttons the medium-sized ones make. The
largest I have seen were two inches long. There are two other kinds of
Ancilla found in New Zealand, the one much larger, and the other much
smaller, than the one depicted. The larger is Ancilla pyramidalis, the
smaller Ancilla mucronata. The native names are Pupurore and Tikoaka.
~PURPURA SUCCINCTA~ (Plate II.).--Figs. 8 and 9 is found all over the
North Island, on ocean beaches and in harbours. It may have a
comparatively smooth exterior, as in Fig. 8, or be deeply grooved, as in
Fig. 9. The interior is usually yellow or brown, and generally has a
pale band round the margin of the outer lip. It is very variable in
colour and general outside appearance, and although at one time divided
by naturalists into 3 or 4 varieties, under different names, it is now
believed to be only one very variable species.
~PURPURA SCOBINA~ (Plate II.)--Fig. 10 (late Polytropa scobina) is a
rough, thick, brown shell, with a dark interior. It varies in colour and
shape, and is found everywhere in New Zealand on surf-beaten rocks. It
is usually under an inch in length.
~PURPURA HAUSTRUM~ (Plate II.).--Fig 11 (late Polytropa haustrum) is a
brown shell, with a greyish or yellow interior. It is found in great
numbers on rocks in all parts of New Zealand. Sometimes it is over
three inches in length. The animal equals the Cominella in voracity. The
Maori name is Kakare, or Kaeo, both of which names are also given to the
Astralium sulcatum (Plate VI., Fig. 18).
~SCAPHELLA PACIFICA~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 12 (late Voluta pacifica) is a
yellow or chestnut-coloured shell, with dark markings, and is sometimes
nine inches in length. It is found in large numbers washed up on the
beaches in both Islands after gales, and varies so much in colour,
markings, and shape that a good pair is seldom procurable. Sometimes
even the nodules, or lumps, shown in the plate, are wanting, and
sometimes the markings are wanting. It was until lately known as the
Voluta pacifica, being one of the well-known Volute family. It lives in
the sand on exposed beaches. The Maori name is Pupurore, which name is
also used for the Ancilla australis (Plate II., Fig. 7).
~SCAPHELLA GRACILIS~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 13 (late Voluta gracilis), besides
being smaller and narrower than the Scaphella pacifica, is distinguished
by the markings, which in the latter appear to form bands, while in the
former they do not. With such a variable shell, however, it is difficult
to distinguish the one from the other.
~MITRA MELANIANA~ (Plate II.).--Fig. 14 is a dark chocolate-coloured
mitre-shaped shell. Being smooth and of the same colour, both internally
and externally, it cannot be mistaken. About a score of dead ones,
varying from one and a-half to two inches in length, have been found by
my friends and myself on the ocean beaches near the entrance to Tauranga
Harbour, and at Maketu, in the Bay of Plenty. This is a particularly
interesting discovery, as the Mitre shells (so called from their shape
resembling that of a bishop's mitre) hitherto found out of the tropics
were minute. We have one other Mitre shell, which is pink or brownish,
and under one-third of an inch long.
Plate III. represents two of our largest and most handsome shells.
~DOLIUM VARIEGATUM~, the upper figure (from Latin dolium--a jar with a
wide mouth) is a yellowish brown shell, with dark brown spots, and
exceeds six inches in length. Being fragile, and having a very wide
mouth, perfect specimens are rare, although numbers of broken shells are
from time to time washed up on the ocean beaches in the Province of
Auckland. It lives in sand, but sometimes may be found crawling amongst
rocks. It has no operculum. The Australian specimens are more handsome
than the New Zealand ones. The Maori name is Pupuwaitai.
~LOTORIUM RUBICUNDUM.~--The lower figure, until lately known as the Triton
nodiferus, from the old legend that it was the shell on which Triton
blew at the bidding of Neptune to calm or rouse the waves, is a heavy,
solid shell, varying a great deal in shape and colour; but usually
brownish pink, variegated with dark brown. No difficulty will be found
in identifying it. The specimens from Australia have more pink and less
brown, and are not quite as fine as those of New Zealand. It is found on
rocks and grassy banks in the North Island, but from being sluggish in
its habits the point of the spire in large shells is usually worm-eaten,
and good specimens over six inches long are seldom seen. The Lotorium
tritonis, the largest univalve in the world, is similar to the Lotorium
rubicundum, but not quite as solid or heavy. It has occasionally been
found in the Northern part of New Zealand. The Maoris used it as a
trumpet, fastening a mouth-piece to the spire. The Polynesian specimens
of the Lotorium tritonis attain a length of nearly three feet, but nine
or ten inches is the extreme length of our specimens. The Maori name is
Pupukakara, or Putara.
~SIPHONALIA DILATATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 1 has a pale yellow or greenish
interior, the outside being reddish brown. Common on sandy, exposed
beaches, and is sometimes over five inches long. The Maori name is Onare
roa.
~SIPHONALIA MANDARINA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 2 grows to the same length as
the Dilatata; but is a narrower and more graceful shell. The interior is
usually greenish. Found in the same localities as the Siphonalia
dilatata.
~SIPHONALIA NODOSA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 3 is a pretty shell, sometimes
2-1/2 inches long. The interior is whitish, and the exterior the same
colour, with purple and white markings. It is common on ocean beaches
and sand banks in harbours.
~STRUTHIOLARIA PAPULOSA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 4 is a handsome yellowish
shell, with brown or purplish stripes. The interior is purple. The
nodules on the whorls are very prominent. This shell is sometimes four
inches long, and the lip, when the shell has attained full size, is
remarkably strong and solid, forming a shell ring. From this it is
known as the ring shell. In some places the lips, bleached to a perfect
whiteness, come ashore in great numbers, the more delicate body of the
shell having been broken to pieces among the rocks. These rings are
sometimes seen strung together as ornaments. The lip does not form till
the shell has attained its full growth, and though the shell is fairly
common in the North Island, it is rare in the South. It is edible, and
much esteemed by some people. The Maori name is Kaikai karoro, which is
also the name for the Chione costata (Plate VIII., Fig. 26), and the
Mactra æquilatera (Plate VIII., Fig 10). It is also called Tote rere.
~STRUTHIOLARIA VERMIS~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 5 is smaller than the
Struthiolaria papulosa, which it resembles in its habits of growth. It
is a pale brownish or yellowish shell, usually without nodules; and on
the edge of each whorl nearest to the spire is a groove, as shown in the
plate. The best Struthiolaria papulosa are found in the clean sandy
margins of tidal channels, but their burrowing habits make them
difficult to detect. I have never found the Struthiolaria vermis except
cast up on ocean beaches, and it is comparatively rare. The
Struthiolaria family, which derives its name from Struthio, an ostrich,
as its mouth is supposed to be shaped like an ostrich's foot, is found
only in New Zealand, Australia, and Kerguelen's Land. The Maori name is
Takai.
~EUTHRIA LINEATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 6 (late Pisania lineata) is a solid,
heavy shell, varying from grey to brown, and the lines shown in the
plate are almost black. It is sometimes one and a-half inches long, and
is found under stones and rocks. The colours vary very much, and the
lines, in number and breadth, vary even more.
~EUTHRIA FLAVESCENS~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 9 (late Pisania flavescens) is a
whitish or orange variety, with very pale markings, and much smaller
than the Euthria lineata.
~EUTHRIA VITTATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 10 (late Pisania vittata) is a
yellowish-brown shell, with broad brown bands. Another variety of the
Euthria is somewhat like the Cominella lurida (Plate IV., Fig. 7) in
shape and size. Another, the Euthria littorinoides, is an orange-brown
shell, but the interior of the aperture is a pale flesh-colour. In other
respects, it is like the Euthria lineata. It is very difficult to draw
any distinct line of demarcation between the varieties of this variable
shell.
Figs. 7, 8, 11, 12, 13, and 14 are of the Cominella family, the New
Zealand representatives of the voracious English whelks.
~COMINELLA LURIDA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 7 is the most active and, for its
size, the most voracious of our shellfish. Found in all harbours in the
Province of Auckland, even up to high water mark, this greedy little
animal, seldom more than an inch long, is well worth watching. In some
localities, when a cart has been driven along a beach, the track, as
soon as the tide reaches it, will swarm with the Cominella lurida. They
are looking for cockles or other shellfish smashed by the wheel, and
will even burrow in the sand to get at them. If you lift up a broken or
injured cockle, some will cling to it with their rasp-like tongues till
they are lifted out of the water. In calm, sunny weather, what looks
like little bits of fat or candle-grease will be seen floating with the
rising tide in very shallow water. These are Cominella lurida, which
have perhaps eaten up everything in their vicinity, and have therefore
decided to emigrate. A Cominella lurida, when shifting camp, will turn
upside down, spread out its large white foot into a cup-shape, and let
the rising tide sweep it along. They vary very much, from grey to purple
or black, and sometimes even a mixture of two or more of these colours.
~COMINELLA HUTTONI~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 8 is a small pale brown shell,
spotted with reddish-brown. The ridges on the exterior of the shell make
it easy to identify.
~COMINELLA MACULATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 11 is a yellowish shell, with
reddish-purple spots on the outside, the interior being also yellow. Its
length is sometimes over two inches, and it is found in large numbers on
sandy or shelly beaches, near low-water mark, in the North Island.
Although a heavy, solid shell, it is of coarse texture, and therefore
open to attacks by animal and vegetable parasites. A large specimen in
good order is by no means common, the spire, or upper end of the shell,
as shown in the plate, being usually worm-eaten.
~COMINELLA TESTUDINEA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 12 is a handsome purple shell,
the interior being darker than the exterior. It is about the same length
as the Cominella maculata, but narrower, and the shell is thinner and
harder. The exterior is covered with brown and white spots and splashes.
It is common in the North Island and as far south as Banks' Peninsula.
It is found on cockle banks and amongst rocks, especially those where
sand is mixed with mud. The name Testudinea, from Latin testudo, a
tortoise, is an appropriate one, as when held up to the light this
Cominella looks like tortoise-shell.
~COMINELLA VIRGATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 13 is a greyish-brown shell, the
raised lines, or ridges, that cross it being almost black. I have rarely
found it, except amongst rocks in the harbours. It is much narrower than
the Cominella testudinea, and not quite as long. The best way to obtain
good specimens of these two Cominella is to break limpets, or other
shellfish, and throw them into shallow water, close to rocks. In a few
minutes, on revisiting the baits, the best specimens can be selected for
the cabinet.
~COMINELLA NASSOIDES~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 14 is a pinkish-yellow shell,
with very pronounced ridges on the exterior. The interior is brownish.
So far, I have heard of its being found only in the South Island and the
Chathams.
~LOTORIUM OLEARIUM~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 1 (late Triton olearium) is a
mottled brown and white shell, similar in its habits to the Lotorium
rubicundum (Plate III.), but usually found on grassy banks in harbours
at or below low water mark. The second figure on the plate is a good
specimen of this shell, with its epidermis untouched, while the first
figure has had the epidermis removed. To such shells as this and the
Solenomya parkinsoni (Plate IX., Fig. 18) the epidermis adds an
additional beauty, and to preserve it I have used a preparation of
glycerine and chloride of calcium, being careful to put it on before the
epidermis has time to dry or crack.
~APOLLO ARGUS~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 2 (late Ranella argus) is a white or
light grey shell, covered with a thin chestnut-brown epidermis. The
lines that show so distinctly on the figure are dark chestnut. It is
found on ocean beaches in both Islands, and attains a length of four
inches.
~APOLLO AUSTRALASIA~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 3 (late Ranella leucostoma) is a
reddish-brown shell, covered with a fine hairy epidermis. The interior
is purple. It is found amongst rocks in the open sea around the North
Island. The edge of the lip is very deeply grooved. It attains a length
of 4 inches.
~LOTORIUM SPENGLERI~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 4 (late Triton spengleri) is a
yellowish-white shell, covered with a pale brown transparent epidermis.
The lines shown on the plate mark the grooves which cross the shell,
and are slightly darker in shade than the ridges. It attains a length of
five inches, and is found on the grass banks in sheltered places.
~SEMI-CASSIS PYRUM~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 5, the helmet shell, from the Latin
cassis, a helmet, is familiar to residents on the seaside, both in
Australia and New Zealand, as it is a handsome shell, sometimes upwards
of four inches in length. The colour varies a good deal, but is usually
pinkish-white or pale chestnut, the wavy spots arranged in bands round
the shell being usually dark brown. Sometimes the shell is nearly white.
After heavy gales numbers are washed up on ocean beaches from the sandy
banks on which they live.
~SEMI-CASSIS LABIATA~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 6 (late Cassis achatina) is a
smaller and narrower shell than the former, and somewhat rare. The dark
markings are splashed, and not arranged in bands, thereby giving the
shell a mottled appearance. The interior is brown or purplish.
~LOTORIUM CORNUTUM~ (Plate V.).--Fig. 7 is a bright reddish-yellow shell,
covered with a very long epidermis, which makes the shell appear more
than double its real size. I have found a dozen or more of them on the
ocean beaches in the Bay of Plenty. They were all dead shells, about one
and a-half inches long, and the epidermis was wanting. The uneven,
blunt-pointed lumps, with which this shell is covered, make it easily
recognised. I have not heard of its being found anywhere in New Zealand,
except in the Bay of Plenty, but it is fairly common in Sydney.
~CALLIOSTOMA TIGRIS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 1 (late Zizyphinus tigris) is a
whitish shell, striped or dotted in rows with red. Although sometimes
over two inches across, the shell is thin and light. Its glistening
interior, and shapely lines, make it one of our most handsome shells.
These shells are sometimes found at low water mark, under and amongst
rocks in harbours, as well as amongst kelp in the surf. When once a
rock, or small patch of rocks, frequented by them is found, subsequent
visits in the spring or early summer will nearly always be successful.
It is common to both Islands. During the hot weather of summer, they
apparently move to below low-water mark, and remain there in the deeper
water until the winter. I obtained a considerable number of excellent
specimens from a strip of rocks near the water tank at the entrance to
Tauranga Harbour, but never found them except in spring or early summer.
The Maori name is Mata-ngo-ngore, which name is also used for the
Cantharidus family, on Plate VII.
~CALLIOSTOMA SELECTUM~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 2 (late Zizyphinus cunninghamii)
is about the same width, but not the same height as the Tigris. The
colour is white, with pale red spots arranged in rows around the spire.
~CALLIOSTOMA PELLUCIDUM~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 3 (late Zizyphinus selectus)
is a whitish shell, covered with chestnut-coloured spots and splashes.
It is about 1-1/2 inches across.
~CALLIOSTOMA PUNCTULATUM~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 4 (late Zizyphinus
punctulatus) is the commonest and least fragile of this family. It is
seldom more than 1-1/4 inches across. Its rounded whorls, and prominent
chestnut and white granules, make it easily distinguishable.
~TROCHUS VIRIDIS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 5 is a greenish, cone-shaped shell.
The interior is nacreous, and the exterior covered with coarse granules.
The base, which is flat, is greyish. The figure but faintly shows the
contour of this shell, which is a perfect cone. The young differ
somewhat from the adult shells, and have a bright pink tip to the spire.
In the plate the upper shell is a young one, and the two lower are
adults. They are found amongst rocks at low water mark, in harbours, as
well as in the surf. It is very difficult to extract the animal from the
shell. Its maximum size is one inch across.
~TROCHUS TIARATUS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 6 is usually white, with large grey
or brownish-purple dots and bands on both the upper surface and the
base, but it is a very variable shell. It is seldom as much as half an
inch in length, and has a nacreous interior. It is covered with fine
granules, and the base is flat. It appears to live slightly below low
water mark, and can be easily obtained by dredging in harbours. The
cup-shaped hollow at the base of the spire is much more pronounced than
in the Viridis.
There is another not shown on the plate, the Trochus chathamensis, a
small white shell, with pink or brownish-purple markings, that hitherto
has only been found in the Chatham Islands.
~ETHALIA ZELANDICA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 7 (late Rotella zelandica) is a
well-polished, smooth shell, washed up in large numbers on the ocean
beaches. The colours of the upper side vary, but are usually chestnut or
purple waving lines on a yellowish-white ground. On the base is a
circular band of purple round the columella, which is white. The
interior is nacreous. Occasionally a shell is entirely pink, and then
the circular band on the base is pink also. The largest shell I have
seen was nearly one inch across, and, being very flat, would be only
half an inch high. They appear to live in sandy ground, below low water
mark in the ocean; and a dredge if drawn over one of their favourite
spots will be filled with them. I have dredged half a bucketful at one
cast between Karewa and Tauranga in five fathoms of water. The former
name was Rotella zealandica, and Rotella, meaning a little wheel, well
described the appearance of the shell, the waving line representing the
spokes.
~NATICA ZELANDICA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 8, a yellowish or reddish-brown
shell, with chestnut-brown bands, the interior being pale brown, the
mouth and its vicinity white. It is a clean, bright little shell,
upwards of an inch across. Those in the ocean are lighter in colour, and
larger and more solid than those found in harbours. As the tide falls in
harbours, they conceal themselves near low water mark, especially in the
vicinity of marine grass banks. When the tide is rising on a warm, sunny
day, they spring out of the sand, dropping sometimes two or three inches
from where they had been concealed. The operculum is horny, with a
shelly outer layer; and the animal is prettily mottled and striped red
and white.
There are two other Natica found in New Zealand, neither of which
exceeds one-third of an inch across, and in shape are very like the N.
zelandica. The Natica australis is a brown or grey shell, and the Natica
vitrea is white.
~NERITA NIGRA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 9 (late Nerita saturata) is a heavy,
solid blue-black shell, with a whitish interior. This sombre-looking
member of a handsome tropical family (of which the bleeding tooth Nerita
is the best known) is sometimes over an inch in length, and found in
large numbers clinging to the surf-beaten rocks of the North Island,
quite up to high water mark. The operculum is shelly and prettily
mottled with purple. This shell will stand boiling water, and, in fact,
boiling water is required to kill the animal, which is quite as
tenacious of life as an oyster. The Maori name is Mata ngarahu.
~AMPHIBOLA CRENATA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 10 (the New Zealand winkle), lately
known as Amphibola avellana, is an uneven, battered-looking shell of a
mixed brown and purple colour, the interior being purple and the mouth
whitish. It is an inch or more in length. Most mud flats up to high
water mark are strewn with Amphibola. The natives eat this shellfish,
which they call Titiko or Koriakai, in large numbers; but the muddy
flavour, according to our ideas, makes it unpalatable.
~MONODONTA SUBROSTRATA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 11 is a yellowish shell, about
half an inch across, and is usually found near half-tide mark in
harbours. The exterior is covered with black or bluish irregular bands.
The interior is nacreous, and of a greenish colour, with a white patch
round the columella.
~MONODONTA AETHIOPS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 12 is a purplish-black shell,
tesselated with white between the grooves. These grooves look like lines
in the plate. The interior of the mouth is white. Besides being usually
covered with vegetable growth, part of which is seen in the
illustration, the point of the spire is frequently worm-eaten and
defective. This is the usual state in which all shellfish that herd
together are found. It is upwards of an inch across, and found in large
numbers amongst rocks, especially at the entrance to harbours, and from
half-tide mark downwards.
~MONODONTA NIGERRIMA~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 13 has a smooth, purplish-black
exterior, sometimes with small blue spots. The interior is white, and
the shell about half an inch across.
~MONODONTA LUGUBRIS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 14 is a thick, solid black shell,
sometimes over half an inch across, and covered with coarse, irregular
granules. The interior is white. This shell is found in large numbers
under stones, at the entrances to harbours and sheltered beaches, almost
up to high water mark.
There are six or seven other Monodonta in New Zealand, but they are
small, and the four above described are the ones most likely to be met
with.
~TURBO GRANOSUS~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 15 is a reddish-purple shell, varied
with white, and is sometimes over 2-1/2 inches across. The specimen
photographed was much below the average size. The exterior is covered
with well-defined rows of granules, while the interior is iridescent.
It is found on rocks in the open sea in both Islands, but is a rare
shell. The operculum is white and shelly.
~TURBO HELICINUS~ (Plate VI.).--Figs. 16 and 17 (late Turbo smaragdus) is
a blackish-green shell, found in great numbers at half tide mark on
rocks all over New Zealand, especially at the entrance to harbours and
in sheltered bays. Some are as much as 2-1/2 inches across. The inside
is white and glistening. The operculum is a solid, round, shelly one,
with a greenish centre. In some specimens the outer side of the whorl,
instead of being round and smooth, has two or three prominent raised
ribs or bands on it. This variety is called Tricostata, and is
represented by Fig. 16. I am inclined to believe it is only the young
form of the ordinary variety. The Maori name is Ata marama.
~ASTRALIUM SULCATUM~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 18 (late Cookia sulcata) is a
pinkish-brown shell, sometimes over 3-1/2 inches wide. The interior is
pearly, and the operculum is shelly, solid, and white. The laminae which
cover the shell are easily bleached off, and when the shell is cleaned
it has a handsome appearance. It is found in considerable numbers at low
water mark amongst rocks on exposed beaches all over the North Island.
The Maori name is Kakara or Kaeo, both of which names are also given to
the Purpura haustrum (Plate II., Fig. 11).
~ASTRALIUM HELIOTROPIUM~ (Plate VI.).--Fig. 19 is generally known as the
circular-saw shell, and, although found all over New Zealand, is
comparatively rare. It is reddish-purple, with an iridescent interior,
and is sometimes over four inches in width. The shells on the plate are
adults. The spines of the younger shells are much longer than those of
adults. The best specimens have been dredged by oyster boats.
Plate VII.--Figs. 1 and 2 are Janthina, or violet shells,
representatives of which are found all over the warmer parts of the
world. The Janthinae live in great numbers on the surface of the ocean,
being unable to sink, and are swept by gales and currents in every
direction. At intervals, after very heavy gales, they come ashore in the
Northern part of New Zealand in cart-loads; but after any ordinary gale
a few specimens can be procured amongst the grass cast up by the highest
waves. The animal, when touched, emits a quantity of violet-coloured
fluid, the same colour as the shell. The shells are very light and
fragile. A singular provision for its eggs is found attached to the
female Janthina, in the shape of a float, or raft, to the under surface
of which the eggs in little bags or capsules are attached, and there
they remain until hatched.
~JANTHINA EXIGUA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 1 is the smallest of the Janthina
found in New Zealand, being rarely half an inch in width. The whorls are
more rounded than in the other two varieties, and the spire is usually
the same violet colour as the mouth, and the grooves on the shell are
deep and prominent.
~JANTHINA FRAGILIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 2 is sometimes over an inch in
width, the spire being much lighter in colour than the rest of the
shell, frequently indeed being white. The grooves on the shell are fine,
but clearly visible.
There is another variety occasionally found in New Zealand, the Janthina
globosa, like the Janthina exigua in shape, but larger, and the grooving
being very faint the shell has a glistening appearance. This variety is
rare.
~CANTHARIDUS IRIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 3, from Iris, a rainbow, well
describes the colour of this pretty little shell, seldom more than one
and a-half inches in length. Pink, purple, yellow, and red seem to be
the prevailing colours; and they are arranged in irregular waving lines
on its smooth and polished surface. The interior is highly iridescent.
It lives amongst seaweed and rocks below low water mark. The Maori name
is Mata-ngo-ngore, which is also used for the Calliostoma shells on
Plate VI.
~CANTHARIDUS TENEBROSUS, var. Huttoni~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 7 is a little
bluish-black shell, about a-third of an inch long, with fine striæ or
grooves running down the whorls. Alive, it is found in great numbers at
low water on marine grass banks in harbours, and seems to be very
active, as the anchors and cables of boats, moored for a few hours over
one of their favourite haunts, will be liberally sprinkled with them.
~CANTHARIDUS PURPURATUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 8 is a heavier and rougher
shell than the Iris, and of a rose-pink colour. Sometimes the whole
shell is of this colour, but frequently only the top of the spire. It
also lives amongst seaweed and rocks; but when living on grassy banks in
harbours seems to lose its pink colour and become a pale grey.
~CANTHARIDUS FASCIATUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 9 (lately known as Bankivia
varians) is found in Westland. White, green, rose, purple, or black in
colour and plain or banded, and sometimes even with longitudinal wavy
lines. It is about half an inch in length.
All of the Cantharidus family have beautiful nacreous interiors, and are
the favourite New Zealand shells for necklaces and bracelets. When
cleaned with acid, they are much admired. We have six or eight other
varieties of Cantharidus, but they are small, and are not figured on the
plate.
~TARON DUBIUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 4 is a shell about three-quarters of an
inch long, and found under rocks in partly-sheltered harbours. The
exterior varies from chocolate to black. The interior varies between
purple and white. The lip end of the spire is usually reddish.
~LITORINA CINCTA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 5 is a semi-amphibious shellfish
common to both Islands. It is found amongst rocks in the open sea near
high water mark. The exterior is brown, or bluish-black, with fine
grooves or lines round it. The interior is violet, and the extreme
length about 3/4 inch.
~LITORINA MAURITIANA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 6 is a very common shell in the
North Island, where it is found on rocks in the open sea, or in harbours
up to, and even above, high water mark. The shell is under half an inch
long, and usually not more than a quarter of an inch. The colour outside
is bluish-white, with a broad spiral band of dark blue. The interior is
violet.
~DAPHNELLA LYMNEIFORMIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 10 is a very thin, whitish
shell, with irregular brown markings, and is often dredged up in the
vicinity of Auckland. Its extreme length appears to be 1-1/4 inches.
~SURCULA NOVÆ-ZELANDIÆ~ (Plate VII.).--Figs. 11 and 12 (late Drillia
zelandica) is a pale rose-coloured shell, nearly 1-1/2 inches in length.
It belongs to the Pleurotoma family, any of which can easily be
identified by the notch in the outer lip, as shown near the centre of
the figure. All of this family live below low water mark, and are
obtained by dredging. It is found in both Islands.
~SURCULA CHEESEMANI~ (Plate VII.)--Figs. 15 and 16 (late Pleurotoma) is a
shell varying from pale pink to brown in colour. Interior rose or
purple. The spire end is usually smooth. It is found in Auckland, and is
about one inch in length.
~SOLIDULA ALBA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 14 (late Buccinulus kirki) is a
whitish shell, found in the North of Auckland. Its extreme length is 3/4
inch.
~POTAMIDES SUB-CARINATUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 13 (late Cerithidea
subcarinata) is a dull black shell seldom over half an inch long. The
colour is usually concealed by the reddish-brown epidermis. The interior
is dark purple.
~POTAMIDES BICARINATUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 19 (late Cerithidea
bicarinatus) is a reddish-brown or purple shell, covered with a blue or
brown epidermis. The interior is purple. It is found in the North Island
in large numbers on banks of sand mixed with mud near high water mark.
Its extreme length is one inch.
~SCALARIA ZELEBORI~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 17 is the New Zealand
representative of the Wentletrap family. It is a pure white shell,
sometimes over an inch in length. The numerous ribs across the whorls
are very prominent, and look like the steps of a ladder, whence it
derives its name. It lives in the ocean below low water mark, and I have
dredged it up with the Ethalia zelandica (Plate VI., Fig. 7). The Maori
name is Totoro.
~SCALARIA TENELLA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 18 is a dirty yellow, almost
transparent, shell about a-third of an inch long. There is usually a
pale brown band near the centre of the whorl. Found about half-tide mark
in sheltered water.
~TEREBRA TRISTIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 20 is a bluish or blue-grey shell,
slightly over half an inch in length. The interior is brownish-white,
with a yellow band in the centre of the whorl. The varices on the
exterior are not so prominent as in the Potamides (Fig. 13).
~TENAGODES WELDII~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 21 (late Siliquaria australis) is a
small white shell, not more than one inch long. It is found in Hauraki
Gulf.
~TROPHON DUODECIMUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 22 (late Kalydon duodecimus) is a
pale yellow shell, usually covered with a thick, rough grey or brown
coralline growth. The length is under half an inch; and it is found in
the North Island amongst rocks on partly-sheltered beaches.
~TROPHON PLEBEIUS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 23 (late Kalydon plebeius) is a
brown or slate-coloured shell half an inch in length. The interior is
reddish-purple, with six or eight narrow darker lines on the whorl.
~TRICOTROPIS INORNATA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 24 is a pale brown or white
shell, under half an inch in length, and found all over New Zealand.
~MARINULA FILHOLI~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 25 is a pale chestnut-coloured
shell, with two large and one small white plaits on the inner lip. It is
about a-third of an inch long, and is found in Auckland and Massacre
Bay.
~TRALIA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 26 (late Ophicardelus costellaris)
is a brown, horny-looking shell, over half an inch long. It has two
plaits on the inner lip. It is found in Auckland amongst mangroves near
high water mark, and is also found in Australia. The maturer shells have
narrow, dark brown bands on them.
~TURRITELLA VITTATA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 27 is a yellowish-white shell,
with spiral brown bands. It is under two inches in length, and found in
the North Island.
~TURRITELLA ROSEA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 28 is a reddish-brown, or
yellowish, shell, finely banded with purplish-brown. It is found over
three inches in length, and, though common enough in the North Island,
is rare in the South. It is found amongst grassy banks during very low
tides, point down, and almost buried in the sand. A sand bank of
considerable size near Rangiawahia, in Tauranga Harbour, was inhabited
by nothing but Turritella rosea. Four other kinds of Turritellæ are
found in New Zealand, all smaller, but similar to the above.
~TRIVIA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 29 is the New Zealand Cowry shell.
It is less than 1/2 inch in length, and is white, with one or more
flesh-coloured spots. It is found in the Northern part of Auckland
Province and in Australia.
~CYLICHNA STRIATA~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 30 is a small, very narrow, smooth
white shell. It is found in Auckland.
~HAMINEA ZELANDIÆ~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 31 is an exceedingly thin, horny,
white or grey shell. It is sometimes called the sea snail, and is found
on the marine grass in harbours, as well as in the open sea. Stray ones
may be found in mud or sand.
~BULLA QUOYI~ (Plate VII.).--Fig. 32 is a smooth, greenish shell, an inch
and a-half long. It is sometimes marbled with purplish-grey, or with
white dots. This shell is found in Auckland and Australia. The Maori
name is Pupu wharoa.
~BARNEA SIMILIS~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 1 is a white rock borer, up to two
and a-half inches long. It is found all over the North Island, and at
Waikowaiti, in the South Island.
~PHOLADIDEA TRIDENS~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 2 is also a white rock borer,
found up to nearly two inches in length. It seems particularly fond of
the soft sandstone in the Auckland Harbour.
~PANOPEA ZELANDICA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 3 is a widely-gaping white shell,
upwards of four inches long. It is common in the North Island, but rare
in the South. It lives a considerable distance below the surface of the
sand in the open sea or on exposed beaches. One, caught in situ, by Mr.
C. Spencer at Cheltenham Beach (Auckland) was about eighteen inches
below the surface of the sand at about half-tide mark. One species of
the Panopea family, which is found in South Africa, lives at a depth of
several feet. All bivalves that live in the sand have shells which gape
more or less, apparently to enable them to push their syphons through
the sand to the water. The deeper in the sand the shellfish lives, the
longer and stronger the syphon must be. The Panopea burrows deeper than
any other of our shellfish, and therefore requires the largest gape. As
mentioned on page 12, bivalves do not leave their beds to feed, but push
the syphon through the sand to the water and draw the water down one
syphon and eject it through the other, absorbing the animal and
vegetable matter as it passes through the mollusc's stomach. The Maori
name is Hohehohe, which is also given to the Tellina family, on Plate
VIII.
~COCHLODESMA ANGASI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 4 (late Anatina angasi) is a
very white, almost transparent, thin shell, three and a-half inches
long. One valve is nearly flat, and the shell gapes to a considerable
extent at the narrower end. It is found in the open sea in sand in the
North Island, Cook Strait, and Australia.
~CORBULA ZELANDICA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 5 is a yellowish or pinkish-white
shell, with fine longitudinal lines on it. The interior is brownish, and
the shell over half an inch long. It is common in the North Island and
Australia.
~SAXICAVA ARCTICA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 6 is a rough, distorted,
yellowish-grey shell, about three-quarters of an inch long. The interior
is whitish. It is usually found in the roots of kelp or in sponges, and
is obtained in both Islands.
~MYODORA STRIATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 7 is a whitish or greyish-white
shell, with fine longitudinal lines, the interior being pearly. It is
1-3/4 inches long. The right valve is rounded and the left valve flat.
It is found in harbours, as well as on ocean beaches. The flat valves
make excellent counters for card-players.
~MYODORA BOLTONI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 8 is a smaller and narrower shell
than the Myodora striata, and the left valve is flat. In colour it is
similar to the Striata. It is seldom over half an inch long, and lives
on flat, sandy beaches. It is often found when sifting sand for small
shells through a fine meshed sieve.
~MACTRA DISCORS~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 9 is a large, rotund, greyish-white
shell, with a blackish-brown epidermis. It is over 3-1/2 inches across,
and is found on sandy ocean beaches all over New Zealand. The Maori name
is Kuhakuha.
~MACTRA ÆQUILATERA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 10 is a yellowish or white shell.
It generally has a bluish-purple patch round the hinge. It is found on
ocean beaches, and is over two inches long. The Maori name is
Kaikaikaroro, which is also used for the Struthiolaria (Plate IV.), and
Chione costata (Plate VIII.).
~STANDELLA OVATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 11 is a thin, brownish-white, and
somewhat wrinkled, shell over three inches long. The edge of the shell,
and sometimes the whole shell, is covered with a brownish epidermis, the
interior being yellowish. This shell is found all over New Zealand on
muddy beaches, and especially near mangrove bushes in Auckland Harbour.
~STANDELLA ELONGATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 12 (late Hemimactra notata) is a
solid, greyish-white shell, four inches long. It is covered with an
epidermis of pale chestnut, sometimes with darker chestnut bands, dots
and splashes. The interior of the shell is yellowish.
~RESANIA LANCEOLATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 13 (lately known as Vanganella
taylori) is a smooth, white shell, covered with a thin, pale chestnut
epidermis, the interior being white. It is upwards of four and a-half
inches in length. It inhabits sandy ocean beaches in both Islands of New
Zealand.
~ZENATIA ACINACES~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 14 is a greyish-yellow shell, four
inches long, and covered with a brown epidermis. The interior is
bluish-green, pearly, and iridescent. This shell also inhabits the sandy
ocean beaches of both Islands.
~PSAMMOBIA STANGERI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 15 is a purplish-white shell,
sometimes rayed with darker purple. The interior is pinkish-purple. Its
length is 2-1/2 inches, and the shell is found in both Islands on sandy
ocean beaches. The natives call it Wahawaha.
~PSAMMOBIA LINEOLATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 17 is a purplish-pink shell,
with darker concentric bands. Its interior is reddish-purple. This
shell, which is found in both Islands on open ocean beaches, attains a
length of 2-1/2 inches. The Maori name is Kuwharu, or Takarape.
~SOLENOTELLINA NITIDA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 16 (late Hiatula nitida) is a
thin, almost transparent, purplish-white shell, covered with a smooth,
polished, horny epidermis. The interior is much the same colour as the
exterior. Its length is about two inches. It is found in both Islands on
sandy banks in harbours, and on sandy ocean beaches, but those found in
harbours have sometimes little or no colour. The Maori name is Pi-Pipi.
~SOLENOTELLINA SPENCERI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 18 is a thin, almost
transparent, milky-white shell. The interior is white. It is very like
the Tellina alba (Fig. 21) in colour and general appearance, but much
narrower, and the posterior end is curved and comes to a finer point.
Its length is about two inches. I have found over a dozen live specimens
washed up on Buffalo Beach, in Mercury Bay.
~TELLINA GLABRELLA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 19 is a smooth white, or pale
yellow, shell, 3 inches in length, with a thin brown epidermis on the
outer edge. The interior is chalky white. It is found on ocean beaches,
but is also common on cockle banks in harbours. It lives some inches
below the surface. Dead shells are found in considerable numbers, but
the live ones are rare. The Maoris call this shell Hohehohe or Ku waru
or Peraro. The name Hohehohe is also given to the Panopea (Plate VIII.,
Fig. 3).
~TELLINA DISCULUS~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 20 is a clean smooth
yellowish-white shell, with a bright yellow centre, the interior being
the same colour as the exterior. Its length is 1-1/2 inches, and it is
found only in the North Island.
~TELLINA ALBA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 21 is a very thin, flat, nearly
transparent, glistening white shell, the interior being the same colour.
Its length is 2-1/2 inches, and it is found on sandy ocean beaches in
both Islands. The native name for this shell is Hohehohe, which name is
also used for the Tellina glabrella.
~TELLINA STRANGEI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 22 (late Tellina subovata) is a
whitish shell, similar to the Tellina alba, but more globose. It is
under an inch long.
~MESODESMA VENTRICOSA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 23 (late Paphia ventricosa) is
an opaque white, solid, smooth shell, found in the North Island,
especially on the ocean beach near Kaipara. It is one of the many useful
food molluscs we have. In the Kaipara district the natives take horses
and ploughs on to the beach, and plough up the Mesodesma ventricosa like
potatoes. Under the native name of Toheroa, a factory at Dargaville
preserves these bivalves in tins. The specimen photographed was only a
half-grown shell. In the Bay of Plenty I have found this shell seven
inches long and extremely solid and heavy, and I am inclined to think
from the shape and structure of the valve that the Bay of Plenty
Mesodesma is different from the Ventricosa; but I never secured a live
one while in Tauranga.
~MESODESMA NOVÆ-ZELANDIÆ~ (Plate VIII.)--Fig. 25 (late Paphia
novæ-zelandiæ) is the common oval Pipi, or Kokota, of the Maoris. This
whitish shell, covered with a thin, horny epidermis, is sometimes 2-1/2
inches long. It is found in both the North and South Islands on sandy
banks in harbours and in tidal rivers.
~ATACTODEA SUBTRIANGULATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 24 (late Paphia spissa) is
a white shell, found in considerable quantities on sandy ocean beaches
at half-tide mark. When the tide is flowing it is a very common sight to
see great numbers of these bivalves washed up by the surf from their
beds, and it is very interesting to watch the speed with which they can
bury themselves again. They attain a length of about two inches, and are
known to the Maoris as Tuatua or Kahitua.
~CHIONE COSTATA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig 26 (late Venus costata) is a strong,
solid white shell, with thick radiating ribs. The only live ones I have
found were either washed up on ocean beaches, or inside schnappers. This
fish appears very fond of the Chione costata, and swallows it without
attempting to crack the shell. It attains a length of about two inches,
and the Maoris call it Kaikai karoro, which name is also given to the
Struthiolaria papulosa (Plate IV.) and the Mactra æquilatera (Plate
VIII.).
~CHIONE STUTCHBURYI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 27 (late Venus stutchburyii) is
the common round cockle, found in both North and South Islands. Although
when found on clean sandy banks it is usually reddish-brown on the
outside and bluish-white inside, it varies in colour if the sand
contains an appreciable quantity of mud. It is called Anga or Huai or
Pipi by the Maoris, and attains a length of two inches.
~CHIONE OBLONGA~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 28 (late Venus oblonga) is a brown
or brownish-white shell, with a white interior, and is rather larger and
more solid than the Stutchburyii, besides being more oval.
~ANAITIS YATEI~ (Plate VIII.).--Fig. 29 (late Chione yatei) is a pale
yellowish or brown shell, with a purple or slate-coloured patch round
the hinge. The ridges on the outside, especially on the young shells,
are thin and very high. As the shell attains its full size these ridges
wear down. The old shells become thick and heavy, and are over two
inches in width. It is found on exposed or ocean beaches in the North
Island, and rarely in the South. The Maoris call it Pukauri.
~HALIOTIS IRIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 1 is the Pawa or Papa of the Maori, and
the Mutton fish of the colonist. The outside is brown, and the inside a
dark metallic blue and green, with an iridescent play of yellow and
other colours. It is found on rocks in the open sea or on exposed
beaches, and is six or seven inches wide.
~HALIOTIS RUGOSO-PLICATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 2 is about half the size of
the Haliotis iris, and is known to the Maoris as the Pawa-rore or
Koro-riwha. The outside is pinkish-brown, the interior being pale and
highly iridescent. It is usually found with the Haliotis iris, but is
not so common.
Another Haliotis, named the Virginea, is much smaller and thinner than
either of the above. The interior of this is like that of the Haliotis
rugoso-plicata, but the exterior is variegated, and dotted and splashed
with every conceivable colour. It is rare, and usually found on the
sheltered side of small islands in the open sea.
~GLYCYMERIS LATICOSTATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 3 (late Pectunculus
laticostatus) is a very solid, reddish-brown shell, sometimes
(especially in the immature shells) splashed with chestnut and white.
The six or eight teeth near the hinge on both valves are of even size
and shape. It is usually found cast up on ocean beaches. The shell
attains a length and breadth of three and a-half inches. The younger
shells have ridges or ribs on the outside, but these wear off with age.
The Maori name is Kuakua.
~GLYCYMERIS STRIATULARIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 4 (late Pectunculus
striatularis) is a small brownish shell, irregularly marked with
chestnut, red, or white. The interior is whitish and brown, the exterior
being smooth, and the extreme length of the shell about an inch. The
markings of the hinge and teeth are similar to those of the Glycymeris
laticostata.
~CARDITA AVICULINA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 5 (late Mytilicardia excavata) is
an irregular-shaped white shell, with yellow, pink, or dirty brown
markings. The longitudinal grooves on the outside are very rugged and
deep. The shell is over an inch in length, and is found in both Islands
and in Australia.
~RHYNCHONELLA NIGRICANS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 6 is an irregular-shaped,
ribbed, black or dark brown shell, the left valve being much more
rounded than the other. It is found up to one and a-quarter inches in
breadth in the South Island and in the Bay of Plenty.
~TEREBRATELLA SANGUINEA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 7 (late Terebratella cruenta)
is an orange-red, evenly ribbed, shell up to one and three-quarter
inches in breadth, found in the South Island. The left valve in this
shell is nearly flat.
~TEREBRATELLA RUBICUNDA~ (not shown on plate) is a smooth, pink, or dark
red shell, of the same shape, but only half the size, of the
Telebratella sanguinea, and found in considerable numbers in both
Islands amongst stones. It is particularly plentiful amongst the stones
on Rangitoto Island, in Auckland Harbour.
~MAGELLANIA LENTICULARIS~ (late Waldheimia lenticularis) is not shown in
the plate, but is a large, smooth, red or brown shell, two inches long,
similar in shape to the above. All the above four shells, namely, the
Rhynchonella, Terebratella (2), and Magellania, belong to the
Terebratula family, and the right valve is longer than the left, and
there is a small round orifice at the hinge end for the foot of the
animal. On account of the resemblance these shells bear to the old Roman
lamp, they are known as Lamp shells.
~LITHOPHAGO TRUNCATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 8 (late Lithodomus truncatus) is
a thin brown shell, covered with a black or dark brown epidermis. It is
found in the North Island, and attains a length of over one and a-half
inches. It is a rock borer, and can bore into very hard rock. I have
seen a small one that had bored into a thick Glycymeris shell.
~VENERUPIS REFLEXA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 9 is a very irregular-shaped
greyish shell, with prominent ridges on the outside. The interior is
yellow, with a large blackish-purple patch. It is sometimes an inch in
length, and is found in both Islands in the sand or mud, amongst rocks.
~VENERUPIS ELEGANS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 10 is a white shell, with a white
interior, and up to one and a-half inches long. The ridges on one end
are very prominent. This shell is found only in the North Island.
~DIVARICELLA CUMINGI~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 11 (late Lucina dentata) is a
milk-white shell, sometimes 1-1/4 inches in length. The grooves or
furrows on the outside bend in the centre to almost a right-angle,
giving it a peculiarly beautiful appearance, and making it easily
recognisable. Found in both Islands on ocean beaches and in harbours.
~VENERICARDIA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 12 (late Cardita australis) is
a pale brownish-white shell, with prominent ribs. Sometimes the outside
is marked and splashed with reddish-brown. The interior is white, with
pink or rose-coloured patches. The shell is about one and three-quarter
inches wide. It is found in both Islands attached to kelp roots, which
usually discolour one end of the shell. The Maori name is Purimu.
~CHIONE CRASSA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 13 (late Venus mesodesma) is a white or
brown shell, one inch in length. It is found in large numbers on ocean
beaches after a gale. The markings on it vary very much, and consist of
radiating bands, or zigzag lines, of brown or purple brown. The interior
is white, with a violet band round the margin.
~TAPES INTERMEDIA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 14 is a brown or yellowish-white
shell, with a white or grey interior. The young shells are marked with
brown wavy or zigzag lines. It is found in both Islands on ocean beaches
and in harbours, being sometimes over two inches wide. It is known to
the Maoris as Hakari.
~DOSINIA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 15 is a pale, pinkish-brown shell,
with a white interior, turning to violet round the margin. It is found
on ocean beaches in both Islands, and attains a length of three inches.
The Maoris call it Tupa or Tuangi haruru.
~DOSINIA SUBROSEA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 16 is a smooth copy of the above. It
is pale pinkish-white, and found up to two inches long in the same
localities as Dosinia australis. The Maori name for this shell is
Hakari, the same as for Tapes intermedia.
There is another species of Dosinea (not shown in plate), about one inch
long and pure white, found in the North Island. It is called Dosinia
lambata.
~BARBATIA DECUSSATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 17 (late Arca decussata) is an
irregular-shaped, brown or yellowish shell, the interior being white,
varied with brownish-purple. It is covered with a long, brown, hairy
epidermis. It is found in both Islands on ocean beaches and under rocks,
and is up to three inches in length.
~SOLENOMYA PARKINSONI~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 18 is a dark brown, delicate
shell, rayed with paler brown. The interior is greyish. The shining,
thick, chestnut and black epidermis, which covers this shell, cannot be
mistaken. It is found in both Islands on sandy banks in harbours, and is
up to two inches in length. When the mantle is spread out in shallow
water, this shellfish looks like a pink and purple flower.
~MODIOLARIA IMPACTA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 19 (late Crenella impacta) is a
brown shell, frequently with a mixture of green near the edge. The
centre is smooth, but both ends are ornamented with fine radiating
ridges. The interior is highly iridescent. The shell attains a length of
1-1/2 inches, and is found in both Islands, in seaweed or grass and
under rocks, both in harbours and on ocean beaches. The Maori name is
Korona.
~LIMA BULLATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 20 is a white shell, about one and
a-half inches long, and found in the North Island. Both it and the Lima
zelandica are rare shells.
~LIMA ZELANDICA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 21 (lately known as Lima squamosa and
recently renamed Lima lima) is a beautiful white shell, with eighteen
ribs. The spikes on the ribs are sometimes tinted with brown. It is
found at Whangaroa North, and has also been dredged up at Stewart's
Island. It attains a breadth of 2-1/2 inches. Although Lima lima is the
latest name given this shell, I trust the name of Lima zelandica given
it by Sowerby will be adhered to. It is quite as silly to duplicate the
names of the family, to describe a species, as to have a kind of horse
known as "horse horse." Crepidula crepidula (Fig. 27) is a similar
instance.
~SUB-EMARGINULA INTERMEDIA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 22 (late Parmophorus
intermedia) is a white limpet-like shell, covered with a thin brown
epidermis. It is sometimes 1-1/2 inches long, the animal being like a
large yellow slug.
~SCUTUM AMBIGUUM~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 23 (late Parmophorus unguis) is a
white shell, covered with a thin brown epidermis, and is sometimes over
2-1/2 inches long. The animal is like a big black slug, and, in
comparison with the size of the slug, the shell is very small. A slug
the size of a man's fist would have a shell about an inch long. Most
shell-hunters would pass by a Scutum abiguum, not thinking it had a
shell embedded in its folds. The shell is found amongst rocks in
sheltered places on ocean beaches.
~SIPHONARIA OBLIQUATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 24 is like a brown limpet, about
one and three-quarter inches long. On the right side is the siphonal
groove, which is much more clearly defined in the Siphonaria australis
(Fig. 25). The shell is found in Dunedin.
~SIPHONARIA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 25 is a brown or
chestnut-coloured limpet, up to one inch in length. The siphonal groove
can be seen on the upper side of the figure. The best specimens I have
found were on the piles of Tauranga Wharf.
~EMARGINULA STRIATULA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 26 is a whitish limpet, about an
inch in length. The notch, or fissure, which is a peculiar feature of
this shell, is seen on the end of the shell facing the Lima zelandica
(Fig. 21).
~CREPIDULA UNGUIFORMIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 27 is a parasite shell, over an
inch long, and found inside the lips of other shells. It is a thin,
clear white shell, and is well named, from unguis, a finger-nail, which
it much resembles. It varies in shape from nearly flat to semi-circular,
according to the curve of the part of the shell on which it grows. The
Crepidula shells are easily identified by the shelly internal appendage,
or lamina, in which the body of the animal rests. From the peculiar
effect of this lamina the Crepidula shell looks like a boat. This shell
has recently been renamed Crepidula crepidula, a silly duplication, like
Lima lima (Fig. 21). The Maori name for the Crepidula is the same as for
a limpet, namely, Ngakahi or Ngakihi.
~CREPIDULA ACULEATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 28 (late Crepidula costata) is an
oval-shaped white parasite shell, with purplish lines on the edge. It is
a common shell in the North Island, and found on rocks and amongst roots
of kelp, and on the outside of other shells, especially mussels. It
varies in colour and shape, but is usually deeply ribbed, and attains a
length of 1-1/2 inches.
There is another species of the Crepidula, viz., Monoxyla, similar in
shape to the Crepidula aculeata, but white and smooth, and much smaller.
~CALYPTRÆA MACULATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 29 (late Galerus zelandicus) is a
circular shell, found on rocks or kelp, and sometimes is attached to
other shells, especially mussels. It attains a width of 1-1/2 inches,
and is covered with a brown, hairy epidermis.
~HIPPONYX AUSTRALIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 30 is a limpet, which takes its
name from its shape, being like a horse's foot. There was a colony of
some hundreds of this Hipponyx under a flat rock, resting on other
rocks, on the ocean side of Mount Maunganui, at the entrance to Tauranga
Harbour. Although there were thousands of other rocks round it, I never
found the Hipponyx except under the one rock I have mentioned, and as
far as I know it has never been found alive in any other part of New
Zealand.
~DENTALIUM NANUM~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 31 is like a miniature white tusk of
an elephant. It is about 1-1/2 inches long. It is really a limpet,
which, having chosen mud and sand as its habitat, has adapted itself to
its surroundings and become long and thin, instead of broad and flat,
like the rock-loving limpet. It is found on the West Coast of Auckland
Province, especially between Manukau and Raglan.
~ACMÆA OCTORADIATA~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 32 is one of the dozen Acmæa found
in New Zealand. It is a very flat shell, and lives amongst rocks in the
surf.
~ACMÆA PILEOPSIS~ (Plate IX.).--Fig. 33 is a nearly round, smooth limpet,
the outside being blackish, spotted with white, and the interior bluish,
with a black margin. It is about an inch across.
Amongst the other ten Acmæa found in New Zealand the most noticeable is
the Acmæa fragilis, a very delicate, thin, green shell, with narrow
brown bands. There is a green ring in the interior of the shell. It is
found under stones, and is about 1/2 inch across.
~PATELLA RADIANS~ (Plate IX., Fig. 34), and ~PATELLA STELLIFERA~ (Fig. 35)
are two representatives of the many species of beautiful limpets we
have. The limpet family has not had the attention of our scientists
which it merits. The shells vary so much that it is extremely difficult
to classify them. In the attempt to do so, Patella radians has been
subdivided into five sub-species, but even this division is not a
success. We have few more beautiful or interesting shells than limpets.
We have them of every shape, and from three inches in width down to
microscopic specimens. The limpet resides on one spot, but moves about
with the rising tide in search of the vegetation on which it lives. This
it mows down with its long scythe-like tongue, and, when satisfied, it
returns to rest in its favourite spot. Limpets have the reputation of
being indigestible, if not poisonous, but this is due to the head not
being removed before the mollusc is eaten. If the head be removed
carefully, the tongue, or radula, which is usually the length of the
shell itself, will come with it. The 2000 or so fine teeth found on the
average limpet's tongue will quite account for the belief that the fish
is poisonous, as great irritation must be caused by these sharp little
teeth. The Patella stellifera is usually found in caves or sheltered
places amongst rocks exposed to the ocean swell. It is always covered
with a coraline growth, usually of a pinkish tint, which growth has to
be removed before the markings can be seen. Stars of all shapes, regular
and irregular, will be found on the spire of the Patella stellifera.
There is a reputation yet to be made by the man who can classify our New
Zealand limpets. The Maori name for the limpet is Ngakihi, or Ngakahi,
which name is also used for the Crepidula family.
~PECTEN MEDIUS~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 1 (late Pecten laticostatus) is the
well-known scallop found among the grass banks in harbours as well as in
the open sea. The shells are sometimes five or even six inches across,
and of all conceivable colours and mixtures of colours. The valve shown
in the plate is the flat valve, which looks like a fan. The other valve,
which is rounded, makes a good substitute for a scoop. This Pecten, or
scallop, is the most delicate of our edible shellfish, but is never seen
in our markets. The animal moves by opening its shell, slowly swallowing
a large quantity of water, and in a rapid manner ejecting it, thereby
pushing the shell backwards. The Maori name is Tipa.
~PECTEN CONVEXUS~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 2 is a much smaller shell than No. 1,
and quite as brilliantly coloured. The valves are nearly equal in shape.
It is found amongst rocks, but is usually dredged in comparatively
shallow water.
~PECTEN ZELANDIÆ~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 3 is a still smaller shell, and the
most brilliantly coloured of our Pecten family. The valves are similar
in shape, and covered with short spikes. It has only the one ear, or
lug, at the hinge end, but sometimes a portion of the ear is found on
the other side. This shell lives amongst rocks, or in sponges, or on the
roots of kelp, in sheltered or fairly sheltered portions of open
beaches. It is found attached to the rocks by a byssus, or beard.
~PINNA ZELANDICA~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 4 is generally known as the Horse
Mussel. It is usually found amongst the grass, about low water mark, on
sandy beaches, especially those containing a proportion of mud. The
natives call it Hururoa or Kupa, and in some places it is a staple
article of diet with them. This horse mussel is found in certain spots
in great numbers, and is then useless for a cabinet. The collector
should look for odd scattered specimens. As a rule, only about half an
inch of the shell will be found protruding above the beach, in very
shallow water, but in deep water more of the shell will protrude.
~MYTILUS LATUS~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 5 is the ordinary mussel, with a green
epidermis, and the part near the hinge is usually eroded, as shown in
the plate. It grows to a considerable size in New Zealand, being
sometimes 8 inches in length, and is found in enormous quantities in
favoured localities on rocks or attached by its beard in clusters to old
cockle and other shells on the banks. About twenty years ago hundreds of
acres of banks between the town of Tauranga and the sea were in one
season colonised by mussel spawn, and although the mussel was before
that date a rare thing on these banks, yet after the colonisation the
banks were simply a mass of mussels, and the water, being only from one
to two fathoms deep at low spring tide, they were easily procurable. On
the other hand, banks near Kati Kati Heads, that were covered a few
years ago, are now without mussels. This is probably due to some disease
breaking out through overcrowding. The Mytilus edulis (not shown on
plate) is a purplish shell, of similar shape and habits to the above,
but much smaller in size. The Maori name for a mussel is Kuku or Porope
or Tore-tore or Kutai, and for the smaller mussels Kukupara or Purewa or
Toriwai.
~MYTILUS MAGELLANICUS~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 6 is a bluish mussel, with
prominent ribs, as shown in the plate. The interior is white, and the
shell is found up to three inches in length.
~VOLSELLA AUSTRALIS~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 7 (late Modiola australis) is a
rough-looking, uneven shell, of a pale chestnut colour. It usually has a
hairy-looking growth near the edge, as shown in the plate. It is found
up to four inches in length.
There are two other of the Volsella family in New Zealand, neither of
which are illustrated. The Volsella fluviatilis, a shiny, black mussel,
shaped like the Edulis, and about 1-1/2 inches long, found in brackish
water, is the most common. The inside is bluish-white, and purplish
round the margin.
~OSTREA ANGASI~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 8 is a mud oyster, of which those
dredged at Stewart's Island are the largest we have. Fine specimens were
found in Ohiwa Harbour prior to the Tarawera eruption of 1886, but the
deposit from that eruption appears for the time being to have destroyed
them. There must be some large banks of this oyster in the Bay of
Plenty, judging by the number of dead shells washed up in places; but,
although I many times used the dredge while in Tauranga, I never had the
good fortune to find one of the banks. Cartloads of the shells were at
times washed up on the beach between the town of Tauranga and the
entrance to the harbour.
The best known oyster in New Zealand is the Auckland rock oyster, the
Ostrea glomerata (not shown in the plate), which is familiar to all who
visit the seashore in the North. The Maori name for the rock oyster is
Tio, and for the mud oyster Tiopara.
~PLACUNANOMIA ZELANDICA~ (Plate X.).--Fig. 9 is of the family known in
England as the pepper and salt oyster. The lower valve is flat and has
the large oval opening, shown in the plate, through which the foot of
the animal protrudes and holds the shell on to the rock. The shell is
thin and fragile, and is found in both Islands. Another shell of the
same family, the Anomia walteri (not shown on plate), is found at the
Bay of Islands, and is usually coloured bright yellow or orange.
~MUREX RAMOSUS~, the last figure, is the latest addition to our New
Zealand marine shells, and is described with the others of the Murex
family on Plate II., and on page 16.
[Illustration: PLATE I.
Page
Argonauta nodosa 14
Spirula peroni 15]
[Illustration: PLATE II.
Page
1--Murex zelandicus 15
2--Murex octogonus 16
3--Murex eos 16
4--Trophon stangeri 16
5--Trophon ambiguus 16
6--Trophon cheesemani 17
7--Ancilla australis 17
8 and 9--Purpura succincta 17
10--Purpura scobina 17
11--Purpura haustrum 17
12--Scaphella pacifica 18
13--Scaphella gracilis 18
14--Mitra melaniana 18]
[Illustration: PLATE III.
Page
Dolium variegatum 18
Lotorium rubicundum 19]
[Illustration: PLATE IV.
Page
1--Siphonalia dilatata 19
2--Siphonalia mandarina 19
3--Siphonalia nodosa 19
4--Struthiolaria papulosa 19
5--Struthiolaria vermis 20
6--Euthria lineata 20
7--Cominella lurida 21
8--Cominella huttoni 21
9--Euthria flavescens 20
10--Euthria vittata 20
11--Cominella maculata 21
12--Cominella testudinea 21
13--Cominella virgata 22
14--Cominella nassoides 22]
[Illustration: PLATE V
Page
1--Lotorium olearium 22
2--Apollo argus 22
3--Apollo australasia 22
4--Lotorium spengleri 22
5--Semi-cassis pyrum 23
6--Semi-cassis labiata 23
7--Lotorium cornutum 23]
[Illustration: PLATE VI.
Page
1--Calliostoma tigris 23
2--Calliostoma selectum 24
3--Calliostoma pellucidum 24
4--Calliostoma punctulatum 24
5--Trochus viridis 24
6--Trochus tiaratus 24
7--Ethalia zelandica 25
8--Natica zelandica 25
9--Nerita nigra 25
10--Amphibola crenata 26
11--Monodonta subrostrata 26
12--Monodonta aethiops 26
13--Monodonta nigerrima 26
14--Monodonta lugubris 26
15--Turbo granosus 26
16 and 17--Turbo helicinus 27
18--Astralium sulcatum 27
19--Astralium heliotropium 27]
[Illustration: PLATE VII.
Page
1--Janthina exigua 28
2--Janthina fragilis 28
3--Cantharidus iris 28
4--Taron dubius 29
5--Litorina cincta 29
6--Litorina mauritiana 29
7--Cantharidus tenebrosus 28
8--Cantharidus purpuratus 28
9--Cantharidus fasciatus 29
10--Daphnella lymneiformis 29
11 & 12--Surcula novae-zelandiæ 29
13--Potamides sub-carinatus 30
14--Solidula alba 30
15 & 16--Surcula cheesemani 30
17--Scalaria zelebori 30
18--Scalaria tenella 30
19--Potamides bicarinatus 30
20--Terebra tristis 30
21--Tenagodes weldii 30
22--Trophon duodecimus 30
23--Trophon plebeius 31
24--Tricotropis inornata 31
25--Marinula filholi 31
26--Tralia australis 31
27--Turritella vittata 31
28--Turritella rosea 31
29--Trivia australis 31
30--Cylichna striata 31
31--Haminea zelandia 32
32--Bulla quoyi 32]
[Illustration: PLATE VIII.
Page
1--Barnea similis 32
2--Pholadidea tridens 32
3--Panopea zelandica 32
4--Cochlodesma angasi 32
5--Corbula zelandica 33
6--Saxicava arctica 33
7--Myodora striata 33
8--Myodora boltoni 33
9--Mactra discors 33
10--Mactra æquilatera 33
11--Standella ovata 33
12--Standella elongata 34
13--Resania lanceolata 34
14--Zenatia acinaces 34
15--Psammobia stangeri 34
16--Solenotellina nitida 34
17--Psammobia lineolata 34
18--Solenotellina spenceri 34
19--Tellina glabrella 35
20--Tellina disculus 35
21--Tellina alba 35
22--Tellina strangei 35
23--Mesodesma ventricosa 35
24--Atactodea subtriangulata 36
25--Mesodesma novæ-zelandiæ 36
26--Chione costata 36
27--Chione stutchburyi 36
28--Chione oblonga 36
29--Anaitis yatei 37]
[Illustration: PLATE IX.
Page
1--Haliotis iris 37
2--Haliotis rugoso-plicata 37
3--Glycymeris laticostata 37
4--Glycymeris striatularis 37
5--Cardita aviculina 38
6--Rhynchonella nigricans 38
7--Terebratella sanguinea 38
8--Lithophago truncata 38
9--Venerupis reflexa 39
10--Venerupis elegans 39
11--Divaricella cumingi 39
12--Venericardia australis 39
13--Chione crassa 39
14--Tapes intermedia 39
15--Dosinia australis 40
16--Dosinia subrosea 40
17--Barbatia decussata 40
18--Solenomya parkinsoni 40
19--Modiolaria impacta 40
20--Lima bullata 41
21--Lima zelandica 41
22--Sub-emarginula intermedia 41
23--Scutum ambiguum 41
24--Siphonaria obliquata 41
25--Siphonaria australis 41
26--Emarginula striatula 42
27--Crepidula unguiformis 42
28--Crepidula aculeata 42
29--Calyptræa maculata 42
30--Hipponyx australis 42
31--Dentalium nanum 43
32--Acmæa octoradiata 43
33--Acmæa pileopsis 43
34--Patella radians 43
35--Patella stellifera 43]
[Illustration: PLATE X.
Page
1--Pecten medius 44
2--Pecten convexus 44
3--Pecten zelandiæ 45
4--Pinna zelandica 45
5--Mytilus latus 45
6--Mytilus magellanicus 46
7--Volsella australis 46
8--Ostrea angasi 46
9--Placunanomia zelandica 46
10--Murex ramosus 46]
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