318
'
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THE SEAS
_
most abundant of’British Crustaceans (Plate 117).
It is
found round the boasts where the bottom is sai1dy——unlike
the
prefer rocks—and is very difcult to see
on account of its greyish-brown colour and habit of burying
itself in the sand.
The catching of shrimps in large nets
attached.to long handles which are pushed over the surface
of the sand in shallow water forms an industry of some
importance in many parts of the country.
In some
regions a large type of shrimp—traw1 is drawn through the
water behind a horse and cart.
Few of the lower types of Crustacea are eaten, but the
Barnacles form an exception.
One of the sessile barnacles
(Balcmus psz‘tzacus), which is found on the Chilean coast,
Where it attains a length of about nine inches and a breadth
'
of three inches, was reported by Darwin to be “ universally
esteemed as a delicious article of food,” and another large
barnacle is'eaten on the coasts of British Columbia, while
a
stalked species (Polliciÿes cownucopia) is eateri by the
maritime population of Brittany and Spain.
Another use
_
for them has been found in Japan, where a species of sessile
barnacle is collected on bunches of bamboo (in very much
‘
the same manner as _oyster spat), which after some three
months are removed and the barnacles beaten off and sold
as manure.
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