I899-] 235 



MARINE SHELLS FROM SOUTH-WEST DONEGAL. 



BY EMII,Y M. TATI.OW. 

 [Collected for the R I. A. Flora and Fauna Committee.] 



During my nine weeks' visit to South-west Donegal last 

 summer no day passed on which I did not spend a few hours 

 on the shore of some one of the bays so numerous there. 



My headquarters were at Narin, about eight miles from 

 Glenties, and a more charming place for a restful holiday it 

 would be hard to imagine. There is a fine stretch of strand, 

 known as Narin Beach, and here the majority of the bivalves 

 were found ; they were by no means numerous, and it was 

 only by constant search — generally twice a day — that I 

 discovered a considerable number of species. 



At the Black Rocks, where Narin strand ends, there were 

 always streaks of finer stuff at high tide ; Rissoas and Lacunas 

 were to be -found, but the shells were interesting chiefly on 

 account of their lovely colours, specially Nassa i?icrassata, 

 which was in every shade of purple, pink, and crimson. 



My friends at Narin, interested in my occupation, kindly 

 gave me all the shells they found, so the collection may be 

 said to be a fairly representative one of the neighbourhood, 

 though, no doubt, dredging would have produced much more 

 varied results. 



It was, however, on the island of Iniskeen, accessible from 

 the mainland at low water, and in the smaller island of 

 Inisbarnog that some fascinating stuff was abundant, rich in 

 the smaller univalves. In variety it did not equal Round- 

 stone, but considering the poverty of the main beach and of 

 the many bays around in the smaller shells, it was remarkable 

 to find so close at hand, concentrated on a tiny strip of shore, 

 this material, which almost entirely consisted of small mollusca, 

 in which Pleurotoma Icevigata and Lacunas were abundant, 

 and Pleurotoma striolata, P. septa?igularis, and Ma?gi?iella lesvis, 

 were found. The character of the shells in the , islet of 

 Inisbarnog was quite different. Here the colouring of the 

 common Limpet, with its wonderful streaking of black and 

 white, red and orange, was so exquisite as to give the beach 

 the effect of being painted by the brush of some inspired 

 artist, while Littorina obtusata was abnormally large and 



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