River Falls journal. [volume] (River Falls, Pierce County, Wis.) 1872-2019, 1873-03-14
The PhOsphOrescence OF the Bay of
Panama

than when the old ocean is lighted up
ut night by the phosphorescence pro-
duced by the myriads OF animalcula
that inhabit its waters. This luminous
property of organic life is denied to
the higher ranks of animals. For some
years back we have taken notes when
the sea that fills the bay of Panama ex-
hibited its periodic Examinations, and
as an occurrence that must have equal
ly excited the wonder of many of our
readers we fancy the results of our OBJ
servations will not be devoid of inter
est.
In February when the rains are all
over and the sea loses its clearness
along the shores, in sheltered bays we
begin to notice various colorcd patches
on lts surface. When said patches are
of brick red hue, the sea at night is
sure to show forth its phosphorescence
in every wave that breaks on the beach.
The track of every fish is marked out
by radiance like the tail of comet.
The oars drop drops of fire, and the
least disturbance of the waters is fol-
lowed by a corresponding flash of I'M
earthly light. Ii we take mp some of
the water and interrogate it with the
microscope, we find it contains an i'm
mense' variety of the cyclopid@, the
bell-shaped animalcula and fan-shap-
ed spicul@. But the great lamplighter
of the sea that stands first, is little
tailed vesicle, called the noctiEucn
naotiariS. We have never found it
wanting when the sea was wildly phos-
phorescent, and reddish patches were
seen by day on its surface, driven on
wards Ey the wind and current Caught
and collected in tumbler of seawater
at night, these light-giving vesicles
form gelatinous scum on its surface,
dark when quiescent but giving ont
vivid blush light when the tumb bier is
shaken. Looked at next morning the
mass of noctiluc@ has a reddish tinge,
and has sunk to the bottom as if some
modification had increased their CRAWL
ty. The spicul@ which accompany
these and aid coloring the sea, are
found to be hollow tubes, disposed in
zigzag, stellar curves or shapes like
the ribs of fan, break up in pieces.
Then there are round minute geiatinous
masses studded with minute ova, like
plums in pudding. If retained any
length of time monads appear, and
feed on the gelatine and set free the
ova, which fall to the bottom. These
monads also enter, apparently, as in
fusorial scavengers, the inside of the
spicular looking tubes filled with gela-
tine and yolk like granules, and clean
them out. They also make their way
into the inside of the nUctiluc@, con-
sumo the gelatine that distends them
and liberates the more solid granules.
Above all, the bell-shaped animalcul@
of the sea one never tires of looking
at. Every convulsive contraction of
the stalks carrying the bell is a flash of
light, like that of the stars. Watching
still further the changes that take place
IN the multiform marine infusorial lu-
minous animalcul@, we found that each
and every one of them finally extrud-
ed the ova like germs they contained
and broke up. The minute silicious
tubes fioated about empty. OF the
bell shaped animalcul@ there only re-
manned the central stalk. The bells
were gone, land the stalk empty of its
granules. 1t would be seen, then, that
all these parent forms, after carrying
about the ova germs, die and decay or
are eaten by monads, the ova like
granules are committed to the deep,
to the bottom of which they sink to
perpetuate the race; at all events, the
sea towards the end of February has
recovered in transparency, and no
relics of those lighters up of the ocean
could be detected.
With respect to the cause of phos-
phorescencc in marine animals, opin.
ions are as various rs they are satisfac-
tory. That of Professor Panceri, of
Naples, that it is due to the same con-
dition that renders dead fish luminous
no one who has witnessed the power of
emitting light by certain tropical in
sects and worms, more especially that
wonderful beetle Eidtcr rOctiiucus
ich appear at night like wandering
stars in the darkness OF the forest,
would agree to. They abound on the
Isthmus, where they are often caught
and fed on sugar cane. Left quiet and
enclosed in a cavity made in the cane
they seemed to get asleep. The light
emitting organs is dull and Opaque, but
the moment the insect is wakened up
as it were, the light also becomes bril-
liant like the letting on OF more gas
through an almost extinguished gas
burner. The light organ is evidently
under the control of the animal and
not the result of any involuntary chem
zeal condition. When the animal is in
torpid state the Sudden emission of
light strikes one with all the forcible-
ness as does the return of intelligence
to the human eye after state Of in.
sensibility. In most OF the marine in
fusora the light-giving property seems
to reside on the surface of their bodies,
rather than in special glands. There
is not more beautiful object than
certain microscopic melon.shaped Jelly