HABITS AND STATIONS. KXX1X 



proach the ocean at and west of Kawaihapai, there is now 

 no forest on top, but Amastra, Leptachatina etc. may be found 

 on the wooded slopes. The chief forests of the range stand 

 on the inland slopes and butresses from the top down to per- 

 haps 1000 or 1500 feet. They are often prolific in Acha- 

 tinellas of the Mustelina group. Several species of Acha- 

 tinellastrum have also been found, but they are extremely 

 local, and among the rarest Oahuan snails. Amastra and 

 small shells are abundant. 



The western half of Molokai is grass land, or barren where 

 the country is broken, and there are no living land shells. 

 The eastern half has the general structure of the main range 

 of Oahu. Western Maui is similar, but here the gulches radi- 

 ate from a central point. The Kohala region of Hawaii, 

 like West Maui, is deeply cut by magnificent gorges, as seen 

 from the sea. I regard it as one of the most important re- 

 gions to be explored. 



Lanai, which I did not visit, has a very limited amount of 

 forest remaining, and this has been thoroughly worked by 

 Mr. Thaanum. Important work is still to be done in the 

 deposits of fossil shells. 



While considerable climbing is involved in any serious col- 

 lecting in the Hawaiian group, the altitudes are not great. 

 In the Rocky Mountains our basal camps are usually above 

 the tops of the Oahuan mountains, and the shell country 

 goes up to over double the elevation. Yet the open, rocky 

 slopes of our western mountains render them vastly more 

 accessible than the Hawaiian mountains, where one does not 

 think of making any considerable ascent unless there is a trail. 

 I have gone through scrub oak thickets in Arizona as strenuous 

 as any fern or ieie patches in Oahu, but they are exceptional, 

 and can usually be avoided. In general, the slopes are more 

 precipitous in the Islands, many more of them are practically 

 inaccessible, and owing to the humid atmosphere and dense 

 jungle, far less ground can be covered. Cross country tramps 

 or short cuts are hardly thought of unless in a thoroughly 

 known district. 



To the collector who has worked in the West Indies, the 



