The Arizona sentinel. [volume] (Arizona City [Yuma], Yuma County, A.T. [Ariz.]) 1872-1911, 1892-01-09
WALKING STCMkCfiS,
How the Star Fish Works Destruction to
the Oyster Beds.

How the Star Fish Works Destruction to
the Oyster Beds.
A star-ish is a unique instrument Of
destruction. The body is depressed
and divided into rays like a star; the
upper surface is studded with rough
knobs, between which are the open
ings Of many minute tubes for the
passage of water in and out Of the
body. On the external edges Of the
rays are stiff spines, which serve as
protectors, and at the end Of each ray
is a small reddish eye-speck. The
mouth opens in the stomach cavity.
It is very flexible and will admit large
mollusks with the shell, the hard
parts being elected after the soft por-
tons are digested.
A Norwich man picked up beauti-
full specimen at Watch hill few days
ago, but it lacked that sponge-like
elasticity for which they are noted.
He tipped up the stomach and out
tumbled a big clam. shell and all,
measuring four inches in diameter.
The fish measured but five. But the
most peculiar thing about the star-fsh
is its great power of regeneration of
lost parts. If one of the arms or rays
become broken off the fish will grow
another; if four of the five are lost it
will live to reproduce them all; but Il
the five meet with destruction the fish
dies.
These walking stomachs drift leis-
urely along the shore devouring all the
accumulated garbage, but always point
ed for one particular spot-an oyster
bed. Armed with a natural saw and
syringe they march upon the bivalves,
cut small opening in the she'll and
inject fluid which stupefies the oyster
and renders it an easy prey. When
once they arrive destruction is swift,
and hundreds of acres of oysters are
destroyed before their presence is dis
covered.
Young stars live on 'iingles" until
they are able to cope with an oyster.
These are small shells about the size Of
a mans thumb, which are planted by
oystermen for oyster spat or seed to ad-
here to, and to lose them means the
loss of a seasons crop. At six months
a star-fsh is big enough to tackle an
oyster. The advancement from
'jingles'' to healthy bivalves is al
ways characterized by a fight, old
farmers say. Many are the battles !
that they have witnessed in shallow !
water when the sea was smooth and /!
the water clear. The young star-fsh |
lacks experience and the oysters make |
it rather uncomfortable for them by !
catching their rays between the shells |
and pinching them off.
One old fisherman tells of a fight be- !
tween a big oyster and a little fish
which he saw last season. 1t was a
fight ''to fnish," and one the like of |
which he never saw before. The
young starfish approached the open
oyster and slowly settled down upon
it. The shell sprang together with a
snap and the fish. which had settled
upon it with five rays, bobbed
up with only four. The oys-
ter again dropped his blinds and
awaited a second attack. He didn't
have to wait long. Slowly the fish
began to drop until he was again
of the oyster, when repeti-
ton of the former round occurred and
he now had three rays instead of five.
Three times more this scene was en-
acted and then the fish keeled over,
dead. Norwich Comm Cor. N. Y.
Tribune.