Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1894-09-20
LIVING IN THE DARK.
\ Few Facts About Nocturnal Crca'
lures

Light and life! These constitute No|
inScparahlc conceptions In the hauan
mind 80 thoroughly intcrtwncl that
we speak OF the eternal night of 'ienth,
Life however, In nature, honual"Hs
and unScnrchabc, Is far more powerful
than our ancestors, hemmed In ~ ta,y
were hN the narrow horizon of unde.
velopcd science. ever ventured TO be
licve. 1t thrivcS often totally indie
pendent of the light or warming rays
of the sun. Millions upon millions of
living creatures breathe and rejoice IN
their existence in everlasting darkness.
Thousands OF feet below the surface
of the ocean. In depths into which the
dmmcSt reflection of daylight IL unable
to penetrate, innumcrnblc creatures
hold high carnival and live Iu war ana
peace, while on the surface of the earth
swarms Of photophobia animals who
Shun the lighn are encountered,
When the sun has set and the night
spreads It's black wings over the earth,
and all good and well.behavcd animals
have found rest IN sleep, n new life
awakcns in forests and meadows. Noe
tnrnal birds hutter In the tree tops.
sneaking, crouchlng creatures crawl
from the dark hooks OF deep holes and
crcviccs, and myrads Of moths ana In
Sccts ar" astlr in the grass. From
brooks and rivers also strange beings
ch,orge, which have avoided the light
If MI ~ al 10
rcv"l In the delights Of darkness,
How marvellous X I'll" creation Of
these children Of the night! How won.
dcrfully are their faculties adapted 10
their habits and wants. How niyst, ri.
Gus are their movements and what IN.
canny sensations are inspired by their
actions Their skin Is usually black
or gray. soft and hcxuous Their noise.
less wanderlngs do not disturb the Ill
urnal slunberers. Does not the owl
hunt It's prey In silent flight? The feet
Of many nocturnal quadrupeds are
ehod with soft pads 50 they may move
along with inaudlhlc step \ marked
characteristic Of all OF them IL a sharp
sense of hearing and strong tcntaculnr
power. yet the terrestrial nocturnaIs
cannot get along without some light
4 glance At the portrait gallery OF
some Of thcs. oddities from the brush
OF the lat animal painter, q. MnctZel.
here reproduced from tniversum, Is OF
interest 10 laymen as well ms to no
ologists. These are rare heads, of
which the most conspicuous popularity
IL found in the abnormally developed
eyes In this group the TarsIus spec
tt1Im. or the specter has the largest
optics, This little animal, greatly re-
sembling the tree frog. especially In
being provided with cushions or suck
ers on the elongated toes halls from
the Indian Archipelago and only meas
ures six inches In length while the
diameter Of the eye Is half an inch. !
IT the diameter Of n human beings
eye would he one twelfth Of the entire /,
length OF his body. there would be
little room left for the other features |
OF his countenance.
II ii right then 10 name this genius
llghtshunnersf They indeed avoid the .
glaring sunshine but II must be con
coded that they still hunger after light
and possess these enormous eyes IN or
der 10 catch whatever light remnants
surprise the darkness.
NatGralists have sought for centuries
for a rational explanation Of this phe-
nomenon In the nocturnal fauna. At
first the problem seemed not 30 diff
cult OF solution II was assumed that
certain Of the more defenseless animals
III order 70 escape from the rapaclty