Now let us pass to quite different though equally common sea shore animals, the star fish. There are very many kinds but the common star fish will serve our purpose well. We may make a beginning by examining his back under a low magnification and observing that it is protected by a number of hard plates which form a very efficient armour. At the point where two of the rays (the finger like structures) arise we shall notice a small flat plate, this too is worth a moment’s inspection, for it is the water pore through which the star fish takes in water. The under surface of the star fish shows us of course its mouth in the centre of its body, the soft fleshy suckers which cover the rays, with the exception of a narrow line down the centre of each one. At the tip of each ray there is an eye; it may easily be distinguished by its bright red colour and microscopic examination will show us that it is quite unlike any of the other eyes we have examined. Over each eye there is a little tentacle; these little tentacles may be called the noses of the star fish, for, by means of them it is able to smell. They are as unlike our idea of a nose as are the little pits on the feeler of the cockchafer which we examined, yet these noses and ours all perform the same duties. Our time will be well spent if we devote some of it to a search for others less common star fish. Some of them are really beautiful and whatever specimens we come across can be compared with the common variety which is everywhere. Closely related to the star fish are the sea-urchins. The relationship may not be apparent at first sight but a careful study of an urchin and a star will reveal many points of similarity. Our object in these pages, however, is to find material for our microscope and not to unfold the relationships of various members of the Animal Kingdom. When we have learned to cut sections, we may try our hand at the spine of a sea-urchin, it is an object well worthy of study. The hard shell of the urchin may be examined under a low magnification, we shall see then that his armour is far more highly developed than that of the star fish.