Condon globe. (Condon, Gilliam Co., Or.) 189?-1919, 1896-01-24
= FIGHTING OYSTER.
In n battle with n starfish the Watchfai
Blvaive Killed It's Foe.


In q Battle with starfish the Watchfai
Blvaive Killed It's Foo
ITO look at an oyster You would never
imagine that there was any light In IL,
would yous" asked an obsorvant fisherman
as he pricd open the shell OF one OF tne
blyalves he was talking about. mo one
would think an oyster could and would
fight unless he had been witness some
time or other OF the oysters fighting quail
ties.
zone Of the most exciting contests
ever saw was betwcon an oyster and one
NJ tho most deadly enemies OF the oyster
family, and am glad to say that the oys'
fer won the fight The enemy was star
flsh, and II all of Its kind were es frcsh
and indiscreot as this one was they
wouldn't be source of 30 much dread 70
tho oyster farmer.
EVERY person who has anything to do
with raising oysters has seen many bat
tle between them and starflsh. These do
structive enemies Of the oyster grow fast
hut seldom attempt to attack the biyalves
bofore they are 6 months old, and then
their inexperience and overconfidenoe are
ant 10 ret them in a heap OF trouble. A
starflsh that has out Its eyetecth, so 70
speak, will get the best of an oyster every
| timo, for 1t will mount the shell, drill
| hole through IT. inject Its stupefying hquiu
| into the oyster and envelope the whole
thing with its capacious and elastic mouth
stomach before tho poor shellfsh knows
| what has happened to 1t,
"a school of starflsh can go through an
oyster farm almost as quickly as a tornado
| can wipe out wheat farm In Dakota
Starfsh are virtually walking stomachs,
and have found them stretched over
CLAIMS. she'll and all, that were great deal
! bigger than the natural dimensions OF the
starfish. When one Of these rapacious
marauders envelops n clam or an oyster, y
simply turns itself wrong side out ano
pulls itself over its victim, as you would
pull ON pair of new socks.
This fight was speaking about 90
! CURED in shallow water, and had gooe
sight of il. saw the starflsh work warill
, along over the oyster, and then settle upor
IL. The biyalve was on the lookout
though, and when the starfish was nea
enough the oysters shell closed like stee
trap on one Of the starfish's five rays ant
cut 1t off as slick as II 10 had been don
! with knife. A starfish doesn't mind Tn
! loss of ray or two--in fact, IL can stan'
the loss Of four OF Its rays and then max
. its way off, In short time spreading an
Z growing the lost members again But
: the starfish loses all five Of its rays II
doom is sealed 1t will die almost immt
diately.
s "The oyster had no sooner clipped o.
IS one of its foes legs than 1t set It's ira
z again and waited for a renewal OF the a
q tack. This was not long In coming. IN
: starfsh dropped itself slowly, with
! much confidence that could almost see !
and was soon astride The oyster agaii
8 Again the trap few shut, and the starts
4 rose with but three Of its five rays lef
2 But it was plucky, and with confden'
[. unimpaired returned for tho third rour
-s with the prompt and watchful oyster. II
20 round was repetition Of tho other tw
= and the starfish was bereft OF another LEI
The persistent enemy Of the oyster had a
parently set its mind on having that pa
u ticular one, and without moments no:
n tation turned its crippled body TO u
I'd fourth assault.
III 1.-THE oyster was now mad all the WI
n through and shifted its position, turnil
:. its open shell upward as the starfish dro
!. ped toward it. This was the last round
= the fight, for the oyster caught both
~ naming rays of the starllsh In the tr
ae and shipped them off at ono bite. L
p rayless starfish turned over and sank
ne the bottom dead New York sun