Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1897-09-02
SOME QUEER FLoRipANs.
Animals Which Have a Curious In
fereaf for Man.

terest for Man.
On the borders of the Everglades you
often see a large yellow spider. He
swings a strong web from two plant
twigs on each side of a path or clear
space of ground and waits for his prey.
The web is in the shape of a ham,
mock, and tapers at each end to fine
point, though quite broad in the mid
die. The bright color of the owner
seems to mark him out for destruction
he is clearly defined against the white
sand or dead leaves, and you wonder
what he would do for defense in case
of attack. Approach quietly and he
watches you intently. Now raise your
hand suddenly, and he will disappear.
While you are wondering what became
of him, you see faint blur where he
had been, then several spiders, then you
catch sight again of the yellow ball
you noticed at first. Repeat the per
Torrance, and the stage effect is re-
newed. The disappearance is absolute
there can be no doubt about it, and
the little magician trusts to it entirely
for his protection. How is it done?
As soon as he is threatened he starts
the vibrations of his airy hammock;
these become too rapid for the eye to
follow, and he vanishes. AS these be.
come slower you see a blur, and then
several spiders as the eye catches him
ut different points of his swing, until
finally he rests before you.
Haunting the rookeries of the birds
in the southern part of the peninsula
is large crab. He makes a hole in
the ground, usually under log, and
.hav, 10
and protrudes his eyes with startling
effect. He is able to take care of him
self, for his pincers are powerful, and
his shell is hard-he is often as large
as a saucer. There is perpetual war
between him and the birds. He wan
ders among the nests at night and ap-
propriates the bits of fish left by the
| nestlings, and the young themselves
if he can find a mother off her guard.
But he has to be sly or he is killed by
the stroke of a bayonet bill, and eaten
in his turn. When the plume hunters
have driven off or destroyed the par
ents of a rookery, these crabs swarm
| out and devour the orphan young in
short order. But while the mothers are
allowed to do their duty the crabs are
| ideal scavengers, and devour the refuse
as well as the insects that infest the
| bird cities. Their bright colors, like
those of the tiger, make them less dan
gerous than their appetites would other
| wise be.
There is little purple crab along the
coasts of southern Florida which seems
to feed almost entirely upon the fruit
of the cactus. This it so much resem-
bles that you are suddenly surprised
| to see one of the succulent little balls
move away from your fingers before
you are aware that it is alive SteE
back, and the crab will resume its place,
| and seem to be as curious about you as
| you are about him.
One of the most beautiful shells
| found along our coast is that of large
| snail which climbs certain trees anC
grows delicately fat on the young birds
The shell is as thin as tissue paper, odd.
is the finest glass. 1t belongs to the
family of edible snails so priced as a
| lelicacy on the coast of France, and if
properly prepared makes a delicious
2ish. 1t is most abundant about New
river inlet, where the slight shake OF
tree about sunset will bring a shower
IF them to the ground. The breakage
IF a shell seems to be of little trouble
to the snail-he repairs the damage and
| moves on.-JacksOnvil1e Citizen.