A Student’s Guide to the Seashore

489 Pages·1989·15.943 MB·English

by  J. D. Fish, S. Fish (auth.)

A Student's Guide
to the Seashore
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A Student's Guide
to the Seashore
J. D. FISH & S. FISH
Department of Biological Sciences
The University College of Wales
Aberystwyth
London
UNWIN HYMAN
Boston Sydney Wellington
© J.D. Fish & S. Fish, 1989
This book is copyright under the Berne Convention. No
reproduction without permission. All rights reserved.
Published by the Academic Division of
Unwin Hyman Ltd
15/17 Broadwick Street, London W1V 1FP, UK
Unwin Hyman Inc.,
8 Winchester Place, Winchester, Mass. 01890; USA
Allen & Unwin (Australia) Ltd,
8 Napier Street, North Sydney, NSW 2060, Australia
Allen & Unwin (New Zealand) Ltd in association with the
Port Nicholson Press Ltd,
Compusales Building, 75 Ghuznee Street, Wellington 1,
New Zealand
First published in 1989
British Library Cataloguing in Publication Data
Fish, J.D.
A student's guide to the seashore.
1. Great Britain. Seashore. Organisms. I. Title. II. Fish, S. (Susan)
574.941
ISBN-13: 978-0-M-574044-4 e-ISBN-13: 978-94-D11-5888-6
DOl: 10.1007/978-94-011-5888-6
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Fish, J.D.
A student's guide to the seashore 1 J.D. Fish & 5. Fish
p. em.
Bibliography: p.
Includes index.
1. Seashore biology-Great Britain. 2. Seashore biology-Europe;
Northern. I. Fish, S. (Susan) II. Title.
QH137.F521989 88-27657
574.94--dc 19 OP
ISBN-13: 978-0-04-574044-4
Data converted to 10 on 12 pt. Palatino
by Columns of Reading
For Replacement
v
Contents
Preface xi
Acknowledgements for illustrations xv
Introduction
The seashore 1
Collection of specimens 6
Nomenclature and classification 8
Design and layout of the book 9
Illustrated guide to the plants and animals of the shore 10
AJgae 30
Lichenes 66
Angiospermae 71
Po~era 76
Cnidaria 83
Ctenophora 122
Platyhelminthes 125
Nemertea 129
Priapula 134
Annelida 136
Mollusca 183
Arthropoda 282
Sipuncula 351
Echiura '354
Bryozoa 356
Phoronida 367
Echinodermata 369
Hemichordata 391
Chordata 393
Glossary 432
Bibliography 438
Index. 463
vii
'What branch of Natural History shall I begin to
II
investigate, if it be but for a few weeks, this summer?"
To which I answer, Try lithe Wonders of the Shore."
There are along every sea-beach more strange things to be
se~n, and those to be seen easily, than in any other field
of observation which you will find in these islands. And
on the shore only will you have the enjoyment of finding
new species, of adding your mite to the treasures of
science.'
Charles Kingsley,
Glaucus or The Wonders of the Shore.
Macmillan and Co., 1890.
(By kind permission of Macmillan Publishers Ltd.)
Preface
At one time or another, we have all been drawn by the fascination of
the seashore. For the holiday maker, the relaxing day by the sea
often turns out to be a most rewarding foray among rock pools and
dense canopies of seaweed; for naturalists and students, the shore is
one of the most challenging habitats. Whatever our interests and
expertise, one of our first objectives when faced with the diversity of
plant and animal life on the shore is to name the individual
specimens and we quickly learn that this can be a difficult, though
rewarding, occupation. Once an organism has been identified, a
number of questions naturally follow. What is its life-cycle? How
does it feed and reproduce? How long does it live? The answers to
such questions give an insight into the lives of the plants and
animals of the shore and are one of the first steps in an understand
ing of the complexity of the shore environment. However, the
information required to answer such questions is not always easily
accessible and even when it is known it is often scattered in various
books and research journals making it difficult and time consuming
to find. Although a variety of identification keys and guides is
available, some designed for the specialist, others for the amateur,
such texts generally give little, if any, information on the biology of
the organisms. This book has been designed as both a field guide
and a biological text covering the common plants and animals of the
shore. It is intended for undergraduates, sixth form students and
teachers but we hope that it will also appeal to the amateur
naturalist and the occasional visitor to the shore.
The opening chapter deals with the shore environment. It is no
more than an introduction to a complex subject. References to more
advanced reading are given at the end of the section. Some basic
tips as to methods of collecting intertidal organisms are given,· but
space does not permit a consideration of quantitative sampling
methods. Reference is given to texts dealing with this subject. An
outline of the general principles of scientific nomenclature and
classification, and a glossary of scientific terms used in the text, have
been included for the benefit of readers with little or no scientific
training.
The bulk of the book is given over to a systematic coverage of the
common plants and animals of the shore with emphasis on the
xi
A STUDENT'S GUIDE TO THE SEASHORE
biology of the species. Each group of organisms is prefaced by a
statement of characteristics and an outline classification is included.
For each species, a statement of diagnostic features is given together
with a line drawing (or photograph) and notes on the biology of the
organism. An elementary, illustrated guide to the identification of
the different groups of plants and animals is included, but the book
has not been designed as an identification key.
Drawing up a list of common species presented us with a number
of problems. Clearly, there is no satisfactory definition of a 'com
mon' species and one author's list will almost certainly differ from
that of another. We have included species which, depending on
locality, we think the student has a reasonably good chance of
finding during the first few visits to the shore. A few species of
restricted distribution but locally common or even abundant in some
areas have been included, as have plants and animals not normally
found living between tidemarks but common on the strandline. The
book covers the shores of north-west Europe (excluding the Baltic)
but will be of particular use to those working. in the British
Isles.
The inspiration for writing this book came from undergraduate
and postgraduate students at The University College of Wales,
Aberystwyth, and members of extra-mural classes organized by the
University. We are grateful to them all for their assistance. We are
particularly indebted to the following for reading the first draft of
selected chapters; Professor J.A. Allen, Dr J. Baxter, Professor A.D.
Boney, Dr P.F.S. Cornelius, Dr J.H.Crothers, Dr P.R. Garwood, Dr
Ruth Griffiths, Mr A.K. Jones, Dr A.M. Jones, Mr M.A. Kendall, Dr
C. Mettam, Professor D. Nichols, Dr R. Seed, Dr T.E. Thompson, Dr
R.B. Williams and Dr R.J. Wootton. The text has been greatly
improved by their constructive criticism. We are also indebted to
friends and colleagues who provided specimens for drawing, in
particular Mr Michael Bell, Mr John Dingley, Mr Gareth Owen, Mr
Stephen Sankey and Mrs D. Slay of the Department of Biological
Sciences, Aberystwyth. The availability of this material has enabled
us to make original drawings for the majority of species but in some
cases drawings have been made from a number of existing sources
which are acknowledged below.
In the preparation of the text we have of necessity drawn heavily
on information given in a large number of books and, especially,
research journals. Texts useful in identification are listed at the end
of each section but in a book of this kind, it is not possible to cite
individually in the text all the many references used in writing the
biological notes on the different species. A selection of such refer
ences is given in the general bibliography. We wish to acknowledge
xii
PREFACE
our indebtedness to the authors whose research has made this work
possible.
Our thanks go to the publishers for their continued support and
encouragement: Mr Miles Jackson guided us through the initial
stages of preparation and Dr Clem Earle and Mr Andy
Oppenheimer saw the project to fruition. Innumerable drafts of the
manuscipt were meticulously typed by Mrs Iris Thomas and Mrs
Susan Davies. Their tolerance and understanding is greatly
appreciated.
If this book in any way adds to the interest and pleasure of those
visiting the shore, our objectives will have been met.
Aberystwyth, 1989 J. D. Fish
Susan Fish
xiii