The weekly Floridian. [volume] (Tallahassee, Fla.) 1867-19??, 1891-11-28

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Nh Dt1 y CA1xcne
in6 riank cuxicuS cxeature1
q MOI the len AxfrSor.
aeae inh1b itauts ck f6e noat.
itich are borne Ga tie cnrreni
stream Is i little hsh tllat
nest Ia the weels. Tor it1
lon from enaxiies IL II made
tae reeds themselves. being Or
ored with white spots, that one
detect the scaly animal without
aking handful Of the vege-
Ssun III which II seeks shelter and
Hizine it, The iish builds its nest
ng together punches OF the gulf
ia long, sticky gelatinous strings.
are Laid In q cavity. It's very fins
shaped, counterfeiting the form
weed fronds. They are more like
Than Tins, and are actually en-
Zed Tor walking through the seaweed,
than for swimming. The fish
them also in putting together its
VI $M4 great gulf current, In It's course
ward along the Atlantic coast and
Uund the great circuit that forms with
eddy the famous Sargasso sea Of
axinA grasses, carries along With it an
less stream Of life in connection with
1he gulf weed which floats upon 1t in
tndroWs. The weeds. Of varied
kinds, bring with them from the tropics
1neatures multifarious, conveyed by the
mighty river Of warm water through the
l1ldst Of the colder ocean. Most Of them
de when the cooler latitudes are reached,
md thus it happens that the Larvae of
many forms are found on the shores Of
Nantucket and elsewhere in places to
which the adult animals are unknown.
They never live to grow up.
The floating gulf weed is literally
crowded with life One cannot pick up
= piece that does not carry many shrimps
Or prawns Of different kinds as passen-
gers. There are crabs, too, small and
bigger, which mostly initiate the grasses
ln their colorlng. Of smaller crustacea
there are numerous species, such as the
% called s'sea deas" and barnacles.
Barnacles are crustacea which have un-
dergonea 'retrograde metamorphosis,"
- + is termed, having been free swim
znersin the early stage of their existence.
They, too, take passage on the seaweed
E4tfs and voyage to the land Of nowhere,
nealing their fortune
IA the gulf weed also is an infinite
humber of mollusks, some with shells
nd others without any. Among the
.ntter are the .ssea slugs," resembling the
Arden slugs, devourers Of plants, which
ne true mollusks also. Another mollusk
lkten picked up among the gulf weeds
y the beautiful argonaut, cephalopod,
celebrated in mythic story. It is only
the female argonaut that Is interesting.
The male has no shell, and is very small
comparatively.
There are lots Of curious marine
Worms among the gulf weed, such as
The Sea centipedes,' abundant id the
Vest Indies, which have long detach-
able bristles that sting the hand like
nettles when the animal is incautiously
grasped These worms hide in crevices
Of floating driftwood. The latter floats
pntil destroyed by the boring Of the ship
worms that attack it, meanwhile afford
ing q lodgment for barnacles and little
crustacea. Small fishes follow the
pieces of driftwood as they are carried
along by the current, feeding upon both
crustacea and barnacles, while many
seabirds skim about depending for their
meals upon the same small animals.
There is species of cray6sh, too. found
IN the weed that makes curious click
ing noise with it's claws.
What most people call the fruit or
Nsseed pods of the gulf weed are simply
little air vessels designed for the purpose
Of keeping these interesting vegetables
a4oat. Microscopic creatures called
sthrivzoa" weave around the air cham
'bs4s delicate lacework, which often
remains in shape after the vegetable
matter has decayei away and disap-
neared, thus forming exquisite filamen-
tQHs capsules. However, these are only
ntsw of the passengers that journey by
ne path of the gulf stream on RATS of
Nkifting weeds.-New York Sun.