The Louisiana Democrat. [volume] (Alexandria, La.) 1845-1918, 1890-04-16
HOW SOME CREATURES FEED

TIT. clam feeds with siphon, and the
oyster with its beard.
TIE leech has three saws, with which
it does good service in the phebotomy
line.
SPIDERS chew their food with horny
Jaws, which arc sharp enough to give
quite nip.
THE butterfly pumps nectar into itself
through tube and bees and flies suck
up their food with long tongue or pro-
boscis.
TIE tapcworn has neither mouth nor
stomach, but just lays along and abb
serbs the already digcsted food through
It's skin.
SNArL,s have teeth on their tongues,
hundreds of them, but, as if these wore
not enough, somo have them also in
their stomach.
THE wood pcckcr has three-barbed
tongue like Fiiian's spear, with which
it draws out tho worm which it has OK
cited by its tapping.
TIE sturgeon is toothlcss and draws
in its food by suction, but the shark
has hundreds of teeth set in rows that
sometimes number ten.
THE cuttlonsh. which among other
strange things, always walks with its
head downward, does not chow its food
at all, but rlasticates with it's gizzard.
ToADs, tortoises, turtles and most
lizards have no tcoth. Frogs have
teeth in their upper jaw only. Ant
| eaters, sloths and armadillos have 10
teeth.
TIE caterpillar feeds with two saw
edged jaws, working transversely, and
uses thcn to such good advantage that
he cats thrco or four times his own
weight every day.
GRAssUoPpERs and locusts arc very
we'll provided with the necessary ma
chincry for eating much and often.
They have saw-liko jaws, and gizzards,
too, the latter being fitted out with
horny teeth.
TIE lion and the tiger, and, indeed
most of tho carnivora, do not grind
their food, using their jaws only up ant
down, tho molars acting like chopping
knives, or, rathor, scissors. Thei1
mouths, in fact, are voritablo hash
mill.
TIE carp's teeth arc set back on thu
pharynx. so that it may be literally sait
to masticato its food in it's throat. Thu
carp, too, is about tho only cud-chcwinI
fish, tho coarsely-swallowcd food being
forced up to these throat teeth for com
pleto mastication.
Docs seize their food with their jaws
cats with their feet, and so do monkeys
somo of them pressing their prchcnsil
tails into service. Tho squirrel uses it
paws to carry it's food to its mouth; tn
elephant its trunk, tho giraffe, ant
eater and toad their tongues.
THE jolly-ish absorbs its food b
wrapping itself about the object whic
it seeks to make its own. Tho star
fish is even moro accommodating
Fastening itself to the body it wishes t
feed on, it turns its stomach inside GU
and cnwraps its prey with this nsefu
organ.
THE ray, or skate, for instance, has
mouth set transversely across it's hcac
tho jaws working with rolling motion
like two hands set back to back. In tn
Jaws arc throo rows of fiat teeth sc
like, mosaic pavement, end bctwec
these rolling jaws tho fish crushe
oysters and other moll,ysl1s like so man
nuts.
LopsTERs and crabs masticate tho
food with their lsrny jaws, but the
haye also sets of teeth in their ston
achs, where they complete the work {
chewing. But there is ono peculi;
,,sind of crab called tho King or hors
shoe crab which chews it's food with i
legs. This is an actual fact. tho lit
animal grinding its morscls bctwocn i
shighs before it passes them over to i
mouth