Evening star., 1954-11-01
Meat Lily Plunts
Once Hid Ocean Bed
Some Species Of Animal
Still Extunt Under Sea
By Thomos R. Henry


800 million years ago.
They were composed Of long-stemmed.
bulbed yellow. red and purple lilies with
petals and stalks Of stone. THESE aEies
were voracious, meat-eating animals
which had adopted the plants way OF
life with detailed perfection. They COW
cred thousands of square miles OF mud
carpeted sea bottom during the Missis-
sippian geological age when there were
vast club moss and tree fern forests on
land.
The stone lilies were worldwide in
their distribution. They seem to have
been especially abundant In the tepid.
shallow sea which covered most OF what
is now the Great Plains region OF the
United States. Beds of limestone sew
eral hundred feet thick composed OF
their bodies now stretch through Iowa
and Missouri.
Most Abundant Form.
These lily animals were the crinoids.
probably the most abundant form OF
marine life during the age particularly
associated with them. They first ap-
peared during the Cambrian era.
shortly after the first animals which
have left fossil traces in the rocks; and
they increased in numbers, variety and
Importance for about 100000 milleni-
ums. Then began a slow decline to
their relatively obscure status today.
Relict brambleS of the ancient meat
eating jungles still persist, together
with individuals which lead more or less
solitary lives There are about TOO ex-
tant. compared to more than 1000
extinct, species. A Smithsonian expedi-
tion few years ago dredged 13 vari-
etieS, including two hitherto unknown
to science, from the bottom Of the great
Porto Rico Deep.
The crinoids are highly developed
animals, despite their plant-like ap-
pearance and habits. BY no means
can they be considered a form Of life
on the dividing line between the
animal and vegetable kingdoms. Ac-
tually they are mighty advanced
animals which have taken on the
superficial appearance and adopted the
behavior of plants. They are highly
specialized animals-so much so that
there are few places in the world to-
day where they can survive in great
numbers. Originally, it is probable.
they were free crawling sea worms
which became obSessed with the de-
fusion of the preferable security Of
vegetables to the freedom of protozoa
or men. They liked the prospect Of
being cabbages better than that Of be.
ing whales or mathematicianS, Of be-
ing Communists rather than ThoreauS
or Napoleons.
Like Bulbous Plants.
Once the choice was made. some
time close to the dawn Of life on earth,
they went all the way and OUT lilied
the lilies. They are echinoderms. rela-
tives of the more animal-like star fish
and sea urchins and probably rep
resented equally in the ancestry Of
snakes and men. The earliest known
fossil forms are difficult to distinguish
from bulbous plants, and at first we're
mistaken for them by paleontologists
The general form is that of bulb, like
tulip bulb, buried in the ancient mud;
long flexible stem: vividly colored
blossom consisting of three circlets cor
responding to flowers bracts, sepals
and petals. The blossom generally con-
siStS Of five petals arranged in the
general form of lily, or goblet.
Each petal has from one to 40. but
usually two. flexible tentacles which
probe the water for minute organisms
to sweep into the stomach.
The petals are encrusted in stone
magnesium limestone in extremely
minute plates. The number of these
in one species has been estimated at
close to 2.5 million Of all animals,
the crinoids have the greatest powers
of regeneration. Any part which is
broken off quickly can be replaced,
apparently without any disadvantage
to the organism. Loss of crinoid
petal means less than loss of rose
petal They have initiated the frag-
rance of flowers. Some have the odor
of plum blossoms. One Japanese
variety is known as "Komashi," after
court beauty, celebrated in Japanese
history.
Most extant species are small. There
were giants in the old days. One,
found in carboniferouS limestone strata
near Cape Girardeau, Mo. (Scyphocri-
nus elegans), had stem three feet
long. It's stone bulbs, broken from the
stem. long were considered remains Of
quite different organisms.
Turn to Animal Life.
After the climax of their prosperity
as pseudo flowers, the crinoids met mil
leniums Of apparent adversely and
started becoming animals again. This
was difficult transition and still is in
progress. Many of the forms dredged
from the deep sea today are stalkless
and are free to move. They can crawl
on the ocean bottom by combined push
ing and pulling movements, like star
fish. They can swim by means of their
petals and flexible tentacles which, it
has been observed, beat the water about
100 times minute. Their progress has
been likened to that of the fitting of a
small bird in garden shrubbery. They
soon tire, however, and the greatest
distance they have been observed to
cover is about three yards. All start life
as minute, free-moving organisms for
a period from a few hours to week.
In life they usually are brilliantly
colored. Judging from those that are
found on the sea bottoms today, one
of the carboniferouS meat-eating jun
giles must have presented very color
full spectacle Of red, green, yellow,
orange, purple and orchid blossoms.
The color of extant species declines in
brilliance with depth.
Until recent years, few of the extant
species were recovered in good condi-
ton because Of their tendency to break
to pieces when agitated. When brought
up from the sea floor to the deck Of q
ship. the crinoid would shatter into
many pieces.