Shenandoah herald. [volume] (Woodstock, Va.) 1865-1974, 1891-01-30
STARS OF THE SEA.
A FISH THAT PLAYS Havoc
WITH OYSTERS.
It's Mouth in the Centre of Its BODY
and It's Eyes at the ZIP OF
Its Arms-Lost Arms
Grow on Again.

eyed observer will often discern star
shaped creature with round or oval
central body, and several radiating arms
numbering in the different species from
five to twenty. 1t color il. Stimulates TO
greater or less extent the botsS'1y isus
is often of reddish hue. These little
creatures are apparently fixed to the bot
tom, and we might watch them all day
and not notice any evidence of motion.
These star-like objects are star. fishes
marine forms common in all seas, and
found in the Pacific waters in many
beautiful shapes. In shallow water we
find large ones, sometimes eight or nine
inches across, with blunt radiating arms,
while every rock or stone brought up
from the bottom contains delicate forms
with round or fiat arms, so brittle that
they break at the slightest touch. In
places the bottom is fairly alive with
them. especially in southern waters
where bunch of coral is often the home
of myriads Of these living stars.
On this coast, owing to the fact that
rocky shores arc not always available
star.fshes are not seen in extraordinary
numbers. but in tue South and East the
hunters can collect them in any Quantity.
think the most remarkable view Of star
fishes I ever obtained was at New Lon
don. Conn. where the common asterias
so covered the bottom that | could not
mt down an oar without striking one.
They were literally swarming, and were
playing havoc on the oyster beds of the
neighb0ring sound, as an oyster on the
half she'll is quite to the fancy Of star
fish
Let us assume that We have five
rayed astoria in our hands. We lift 1t
from the water and see that it has life,
rs it slowly bends this way and that,
while on the under side myriads of little
suckers or feet are in constant motion.
The upper side is covered with short
SHINES which work on ball-and-socket
nlan. while the careful eye will note
among them curious wormlikc ohs7Ss'.
provided with three hard jaws, that are
continually opening and shutting like 50
many teeth. What are they used TORT
Drop the star-fsh back into the water
and we shall see. Now sprinkle some
irritating substance upon the creature and
these organs are seen to act as so many
hands. The little atoms are deity
picked up and handed from one to an
other downward and finally dropped oil,
so that the little nippers-predlceh aral
the naturalists call them-are defensive
organs. In looking over the surface of
the star-fish we shall see a round spot
harder than the rest and perforated with
holes-like sieve, in fact. This re-
ceives water, which passes down into the
body and circulates through the star
fish. The eyes are conveniently placed
at the tip of each ray, while upon the
under side are the feet or tentaclcs, and
in the centre Of all the mouth.
The star-fsh is the natural enemy OF
shell fish of all kinds, and especially in
the East devours many thousands Of dol
lars in oysters every season. The star-fsh
is very obliging fellow. If an arm is
bitten off by hungry fish another will
grow again, while some, like the ophio,
thela, divide themselves spontaneously,
each part becoming perfect star-fsh.
Some years ago while wading over a cora
reef in Southern waters, thrust my hano
doyn under a coral branch to secure wha'
l took to be large cypr@a, but insteaC
grasped something which felt like mas
of snakes 1t seemed to close over M
hand, and drew out what appeared tC
be marine head of Medusa, a ball 0
slowly moving snakes, wound up and en-
tangled in a singular manner. But the
strange part of it was to come. Th'
moment raised it above the water it be
gan to drop apart, and if | had not hel(
it over the boat | was dragging it woulc
have been almost entirely lost. As it wa
I had little but the round central bod,
left.
The singular creature was a star flsf
known as the basket fish (Astrophyton),
from the fact that it coils up in its tan
gled way, resembling basket. I'M
many arms are simply branches, each oil
which bifurcates until perfect mass o.
coiiing, twisting branches is the result
presenting when closely coiled singula
aud, to say the least, unprepossessine
appearance. These strange forms arr
found as high up as Massachusetts in tn
Atlantic and in the Pacific.
Some of these stars Of the sea carrl
out the star idea even in the matter o
light, the one known as Ophiacanth
spinulosa, dredged in great numbers mo-
far from our shores by the exploring
ship Challenger, emitting vivid phos
phorescent light.
The star fishes range from minut
forms of great delicacy to giants a foo
or more across, common in the. South Ia
oifc, where they are collected and sent t
this and other countries as curioslties.
The young are usually produced frol
; eggs, which hatch into free-swimmin
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