).--Fig. 7 is the most active and, for its
size, the most voracious of our shellfish. Found in all harbours in the
Province of Auckland, even up to high water mark, this greedy little
animal, seldom more than an inch long, is well worth watching. In some
localities, when a cart has been driven along a beach, the track, as
soon as the tide reaches it, will swarm with the Cominella lurida. They
are looking for cockles or other shellfish smashed by the wheel, and
will even burrow in the sand to get at them. If you lift up a broken or
injured cockle, some will cling to it with their rasp-like tongues till
they are lifted out of the water. In calm, sunny weather, what looks
like little bits of fat or candle-grease will be seen floating with the
rising tide in very shallow water. These are Cominella lurida, which
have perhaps eaten up everything in their vicinity, and have therefore
decided to emigrate. A Cominella lurida, when shifting camp, will turn
upside down, spread out its large white foot into a cup-shape, and let
the rising tide sweep it along. They vary very much, from grey to purple
or black, and sometimes even a mixture of two or more of these colours.

~COMINELLA HUTTONI~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 8 is a small pale brown shell,
spotted with reddish-brown. The ridges on the exterior of the shell make
it easy to identify.

~COMINELLA MACULATA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 11 is a yellowish shell, with
reddish-purple spots on the outside, the interior being also yellow. Its
length is sometimes over two inches, and it is found in large numbers on
sandy or shelly beaches, near low-water mark, in the North Island.
Although a heavy, solid shell, it is of coarse texture, and therefore
open to attacks by animal and vegetable parasites. A large specimen in
good order is by no means common, the spire, or upper end of the shell,
as shown in the plate, being usually worm-eaten.

~COMINELLA TESTUDINEA~ (Plate IV.).--Fig. 12 is a handsome purple shell,
the interior being darker than the exterior. It is about the same length
as the Cominella maculata, but narrower, and the shell is thinner and
harder. The exterior is covered with brown and white spots and splashes.
It is common in the North Island and as far south as Banks' Peninsula.
It is found on cockle banks and amongst rocks, especially those where
sand is mixed with mud. The name Testudinea, from Latin testudo, a
tortoise, is an appropriate one, as when held up to the light this
Cominell