NATURE NOTES.

Feilding Star, Volume VI, Issue 1819, 15 June 1912, Page 2 (Supplement)

NATURE NOTES.

TREE-CLIMBING CRABS

These are ,a species of land-crabs, and live in deep burrows which th-ty dig out beneath- the roots of. palm trees. They climb the trees and pull down the eocoanuts, which they break open by hammering upon on* . end of the shell, after having slipped off the outer husk, with their hugh claws. The fibre which they ■ have pulled off is often stored in xheir'burrows. These crabs rejoice in the name of "Robber-crabs." A REMARKABLE NESTLING. y ■ The hoatzin of South America has the most remarkable nestling known. It is covered with scanty down like a young pigeon, but is quite active, dimblng about the branches with its feet, beak and even wings, which are furnished with two claws at this stage. When the quills grow the claws disappear, but the bird always continues to use its wings to aid vt in scrambling through a thicket, thus often breaking and disfiguring, its plumage. THE BOTTLE TREE. A peculiar tree, which grows largely in Australia.-is called the bottle tree, on account of its curious formation. It sometimes grows to a height of fifty feet, and seems to represent bottles of all shapes, both right side up and upside downi ' The natives sometimes hollow out the trunks ot these trees, which contain a glutinous substance that gives a refreshing drink,, and make excellent canoes ■-.'■ from them. FISH. WITH LAMPS. The Prince of Monaco presented recently to the Academy of Sciences in Paris some notes about cephalopods captured by him at an average depth of about thirteen thousand feet. Cephalopods are octopuses, cuttlefish and squids. These-deep-sea creatures, he said, have such transparent bodies, that all their internal arrangemente can be seen distinctly, and even the course of the nerves, through the head and tentacles may be traced. Several years ago the Prince described some cephalopods which hac searchlights fixed upon their heads He now describes a' species with eye: of which the lower half is luminous so that the eye serves both for, see ing and for lighting. Any anima that inhabits such depths as "bhesi do must have artificial light, for thi sun's rays cannot penetrate and al is absolute darkness. So the eyes o these cephalopbds are perfectly adapted to their environment. LIGHT AND PLANTS. There is a close connection between plants and'light, or the want Oβ it Plants that are used to the shade wil pine in the open, whilst those tha are used to the open cannot prospe in the shade. The brilliant colour . of Alpine flowers are due to the per fectly clear air and the ..strong reflec ■n of the sun's rays off the snow '-nts that can grow at* differen .! eights change their -colours accord "' -■ ;to the height. The corolla of thi !•:.• ney, vetch at one "elevation is ver; pi i, at another white, and at a thin purple. Plants of the open, exposec to the full power of light, are vigor ous, of beautiful odour, and of heal thy green compared with most o those dwelling in-the shade. Evei in England one may see the effect; of an •unusually fine summer. Tb flowers that live for hours in a flooc of light are a mass of brilliant bloom There are plants that really hat< light, preferring to live in caves anc pits and evehi underground, such as the fungi and trufflesTHE SLEEP OF BIRDS. The sleep of most wild creatures whether birds or animals, is light there is #00 much danger round tc make sound sleep safe. If a Took alights in the home tree in a higl: wind, he swings his head into the wind before alighting. So when woodpigeons come home before the wind they pass over their roosting tree; and then beat up into the wind. Ai \ rgst the bird doubles its knees, as ii . were, which causes the.toes to contract, the weight of the body resting chiefly on the breast and outspread wings; not on the eggs if in a nest. The legs and feet have sinews which work an automatic locking action oi the claws, so that, roosting with knees doubled up, the feet grip the branch automatically. Some birds seem always half-awake. Wildfowlers will scratch a match at night tc test the presence or absence of wild . duck in a distant creek; if present, an instant quacking will betray them. Pheasants are always vigilant; on the darkest night it is difficult to stalk them, however quietly you move. If you come within a hundred yards of guinea-fowl, at night they will raise an alarm. They excel at talking in their sleep. THE DESPISED DOGFISH. No fisherman has a good word for the dogfish,' one of the shark tribe, which preys upon other fiehes and destroys men's nets. It seems, however (says an English writer), that it is capital eating, either fresh, or smoked and cured, or canned, while the oil ol its liver is otten employed for making cod-liver oil! Its skin is :.ti good as poor leather, and it takes a fine polish, and of its fins excellent /■lie is made. It is even whispered -' -i :t is sold at restaurants and T ""H fish s=l;"ps ii'-der u>\- name but

its own, and liked. Therefore, it is 'urged that the best way to get rid of this voracious creature is- to fish for it as well as for cod, herring, and mackerel, and' eat it off the face of the sea.