CLIMATE .•\ND THE DISTRIBUTION OF MARINE ANIMALS 



309 



against the warming to be expected during a 3- 

 week period at tliat season. But tlie temperature 

 off Gloueester was some 2° warmer from surface to 

 bottom on March 31, 1953, than on April 3, 1913 — 

 a spring that was more fairly representative of 

 temjx'rature conditions prevailing 30 to 40 years 

 ago than was 1921 — and 3° to 5° higher than on 

 either March 1 or April 9 of 1920, a relationship 

 the reverse of what was to be expected on seasonal 

 grounds, other things being equal. 



T.\BLE 8. — Water temperatures at various depths at the 

 mouth (ff Massachusetts Bay 



Contrasts of the same order between 1953 and 

 1920 are demonstrated in table 9 for the stations 

 shown in figure 13. In some instances, the dif- 

 ference in the dates would point to a relationship of 

 the opposite order, other things being equal. In 

 summary, observations taken at comparable dates 

 and localities in March and April of 1920 and of 

 1953 show that the water in the open basin of 

 the Gulf, outside the 100-meter line north of 

 Georges Bank and in the channel between Georges 

 and Browns Banks averaged some 2.7° to 4.4° 

 warmer, in general, in March 1953 than in April 

 1920, at all depths from the surface down to 150 

 meters. 



The comparison between early spring tempera- 

 tures for 1953 with those for 1920 cannot be ex- 

 tended to Browns Bank (area L, fig. 12), for the 

 Bank was not visited duiing the March cruise of 

 1953. Mean temperatures, it is true, were be- 

 tween 2° and 4° higher there, from surface to bot- 



Table 9. — Comparison of temperatures in the Gulf of Maine in 1920 and l,9t)3, by areas 

 |See flg. 12 (or location of areas. Temperature in °F.J 



I Scaled from vertical graph for this station. 

 ' 2 str.tions only. 

 ' 1 station only. 



