82
-
THE SEAS
not sùrvive another fortnight.
Also, by being laid after,
instead of before, the highest tide, they would be unlikely to
.,
—
be washed out of the sand before they had fully developed,
since each successive high tide would be slightly lower until
_,
the spring tides started once more.
'
.
-
EARLY LIFE
-
In most cases when rst the baby sh batch they are
_
extremely small.
A young whiting (Gadus merlangus), for
instance, which is typical of many marine shes, is only
'
about a quarter of an inch in length.
It carries on its under
surface au oval sac
yolk on which it is nourishèd for the
rst few days of its free existence (Plate 29).
When this
supply is exhausted the young sh starts to feed.
At this ' ‘
stage in its life the sh is drifting freely in the water layers
above the bottom, and because of its small size and feebleness it can make no headway against the currents, but is '
-_
carried along by them.
All around is a community of other
drting animals and plants, and on these the little whiting
'
makes its meals.
After drifting thus for a fortnig‘ht or
longer the sh begins to assume its adult character and
appears as a true miniature of its parents. It is then about
an inch in length andcan swim with considerable agility, and
,
seeks out new grounds in its search for food ; some kinds
of sh at this stage take 'to the sandy bottoms, while others
seek the rocky coves ahdbays along the coasts.
In the case
of the whiting, however, a very interesting stage in its
"history has yet to be passed through. The little sh see‘ks ‘
,
"
_
out those big blue jellysh, the Cyanea (Plate 30), which
abound at the same time _of the year.
These beautiful
__
animals vary in ”colour from a deep br0wn red to the most
heavenly ultramarine blue.
They can be found of all sizes,"
:
-
'
«
from that of a small mushroom *upwards to as much as
_
foOt in‘diameter,
and they have even been recorded in the
_
-
THE SEAS
not sùrvive another fortnight.
Also, by being laid after,
instead of before, the highest tide, they would be unlikely to
.,
—
be washed out of the sand before they had fully developed,
since each successive high tide would be slightly lower until
_,
the spring tides started once more.
'
.
-
EARLY LIFE
-
In most cases when rst the baby sh batch they are
_
extremely small.
A young whiting (Gadus merlangus), for
instance, which is typical of many marine shes, is only
'
about a quarter of an inch in length.
It carries on its under
surface au oval sac
yolk on which it is nourishèd for the
rst few days of its free existence (Plate 29).
When this
supply is exhausted the young sh starts to feed.
At this ' ‘
stage in its life the sh is drifting freely in the water layers
above the bottom, and because of its small size and feebleness it can make no headway against the currents, but is '
-_
carried along by them.
All around is a community of other
drting animals and plants, and on these the little whiting
'
makes its meals.
After drifting thus for a fortnig‘ht or
longer the sh begins to assume its adult character and
appears as a true miniature of its parents. It is then about
an inch in length andcan swim with considerable agility, and
,
seeks out new grounds in its search for food ; some kinds
of sh at this stage take 'to the sandy bottoms, while others
seek the rocky coves ahdbays along the coasts.
In the case
of the whiting, however, a very interesting stage in its
"history has yet to be passed through. The little sh see‘ks ‘
,
"
_
out those big blue jellysh, the Cyanea (Plate 30), which
abound at the same time _of the year.
These beautiful
__
animals vary in ”colour from a deep br0wn red to the most
heavenly ultramarine blue.
They can be found of all sizes,"
:
-
'
«
from that of a small mushroom *upwards to as much as
_
foOt in‘diameter,
and they have even been recorded in the
_