Feb, 1907.] Collecting Mollusca in Ohio. 87 



dition is coming on in the Great Miami river, where I was collect- 

 ing a few years ago at and above e. g., Hamilton, also at Dayton. 

 The very wide river bed is in striking contrast to the little shallow 

 stream at low water. The few species of Unionidae still there, 

 and few in numbers, are of large forms and show that the river 

 must have offered very favorable conditions for their develop- 

 ment. But very few young and half grown specimens were 

 found; before very long, most or all of them will be gone; and 

 the shell and pearl hunters are hastening their extermination. 



A few words may be added with respect to Lake Erie. Un- 

 fortunately, I have had no chacne yet to do systematic and thor- 

 ough collecting in the lake itself with the dredge. Btit repeated 

 coUecting along the shore, at Sandusky and Vermilion showed 

 that there is stiU a fair number of Unionidae. Pleuroceridae, etc. 

 A strange contrast to this is seen, e. g., at Fairport, Lake County. 

 All I was able to find there was a dead shell of Lampsilis luteolus, 

 not a trace of anything else, in spite of all search east and west 

 of the Grand River, along the lake. And that was a few days 

 after one of the severest stoi'ms of the season A man coming 

 along the beach held a water-worn Pleurocera in his hand, as a 

 rare find ; and a fisherman who has lived there for the last thirty 

 years told me that he knew of no place where I might find a mus- 

 sel. Probably the same condition as that of mollusa is found with 

 respect to other groups of animals. What is the cause of such 

 utter barrenness? And how is it with other parts of the lake, 

 further eastward? 



It may be repeated that it is high time to take an inventor}^ 

 of our mollusca fanna, that some more systematic collecting be 

 done in various parts of the state which are still as much as un- 

 explored. vStudents of nature are urgently invited to pay their 

 attention to these interesting animals. A pamphlet giving di- 

 rections for collecting and preparing specimens will be published 

 b_v the Carnegie Museum. Correspondence with anybody in- 

 terested — or to be interested — in this line, is solicited. 



New Philadelphia, Ohio. 



