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NATURALIST'S GUIDE TO THE AMERICAS 



C. Sandy Beach. Animals. Mammals. 

 Florida skunk {Mephitis elongata), coast 

 region, logs and driftwood on shore; 

 white-fronted beach mouse {Peromyscus 

 polionotus albifrons), abundant among 

 drifting sand dunes, coast of Baldwin 

 County. 



Birds (A. H. H.). Least tern, black 

 skimmer, willet, Cuban snowy plover, 

 Wilson plover. 



Reptiles. Alabama terrapin; dia- 

 mond-back terrapin; Clark's water snake 

 {Natrix clarkii). 



D. Rocks. Animals. Mammals. Flor- 

 ida wood rat, rocky bluffs or cliffs, 

 south of Tennessee River; Allegheny 

 cliff rat {Neotoma pennsylvanica), cliffs, 

 rock bluffs, caves, north of Tennessee 

 River; deer mouse, rock piles and crevi- 

 ces in cliffs; weasel, crevices in cliffs 

 or rock piles; cotton mouse {Peromyscus 

 gossypinus megacephalus) , rocky ledges 

 or bluffs; caves, crevices, rock houses; 

 woodchuck, burrows under boulders or 

 ledges; gray bat {Myotis grisescens), 

 caves along Tennessee River; pipistrelle 

 bat, caves in winter; large brown bat, 

 sometimes caves in winter. 



Birds (A. H. H.). Phoebe, raven, 

 cliff swallow, rough-winged swallow. 



Reptiles. Worm snake, under rocks; 

 copperhead snake; timber rattlesnake, 

 hibernates in recesses of rocky ledges. 



ALABAMA MOLLUSCA (fKANK C. BAKEr) 



No state in the Union has a more 

 varied or abundant fauna of moUusks 

 than Alabama. The fresh water fauna 

 may be divided into three divisions, 

 the Tennessee drainage region on the 

 north, the Gulf drainage area on the 

 southeast, and the drainage of the 

 Alabama River which occupies nearly 

 the whole of the state. Of the 533 

 species of naiades found in America, 

 411 are to be found in the three drainage 

 areas mentioned, and over 300 are found 

 in Alabama, 91 of which are restricted 

 to the waters of that state. The family 

 Pleuroceridae or river snails number 

 some 500 species, 80% of which are 

 found in the drainage areas mentioned 

 and a large majority are found in Ala- 



bama. This state may be said to be 

 the center of distribution for these 

 families. The Amnicolidae are equally 

 well developed, several species, partic- 

 ularly of Somatogyrus, being peculiar 

 to the state. Viviparidae is abundant 

 in both species and individuals. 

 Sphaeriidae, Lymnaea, Planorbis and 

 Ancylidae are less abundant in species 

 than in the north; but Physa, of the 

 fresh water pulmonates, is more largely 

 developed than northward. It is prob- 

 able that more than a thousand species 

 of fresh water moUusks may be found 

 in the confines of Alabama, this being 

 the largest number from any other 

 state. It is classic ground, giving 

 material for the labors of Say, Lea, 

 Conrad, Tryon, Lewis, Ortmann, 

 Walker, and other students. Many 

 species have doubtless been extermi- 

 nated by the building of large dams on 

 the Coosa and Tennessee Rivers in re- 

 cent years. 



The state also contains a diversified 

 land snail fauna, though this is not as 

 well developed as is the fresh water 

 fauna. Polygyra, Gastrodonta, Vitrea, 

 Omphalina, Zonitoides, Pyramidula, and 

 Philomycus are well represented; several 

 other genera are represented by one or 

 more species. The development of the 

 snail fauna is greatest in the moun- 

 tainous districts where there is con- 

 siderable diversification as regards en- 

 vironmental factors. 



II. Present Biota and Areas 



Available for Study 



(R. M. H.) 



In the following pages the regions 

 numbered 1 to 7 belong to the rocky 

 uplands or hill country, and the remain- 

 der to the coastal plain. In regions 1 

 to 9, and 11 to 14 the forests are compar- 

 atively dense, and the native herbs are 

 relatively inconspicuous and constitute 

 only a small fraction of the total bulk 

 of vegetation. Most of the other regions 

 have open pine forests and an abundant 

 and varied shrubby and herbaceous 

 vegetation, the most abundant species 

 of which will be listed. 



