No. 21 ] FIFTH BIENNIAL REPORT 23 



the state in relation to geological structure. A subject whose 

 treatment in a bulletin or in a series of bulletins would be of 

 great educational value, would be the physical geography of 

 various parts of the state, particularly in relation to human life 

 and history. In such publications, the influence of geographic 

 conditions in the location of towns, in the determination of 

 routes of travel, and in the control of the industries of the state, 

 should be discussed. Such bulletin or bulletins on the physical 

 geography of the state would be of great interest to all intelligent 

 citizens, and particularly to the teachers in our schools. 



77. Botany 



i The labors of the Connecticut Botanical Society have given 

 to us a list of the flowering plants of the state, and of the ferns 

 and their allies. This paper affords much information in re- 

 gard to the geographical and topographical distribution of par- 

 ticular species of plants. An appropriate line of investigation, 

 and one in regard to which it may be hoped that the Survey may 

 be able to publish important papers in the future, would be the 

 more extended study of the distribution of plants with refererice 

 to altitude, geological formation, distance from the sea, tempera- 

 ture, and rainfall, and the grouping of plants into plant societies 

 in different areas — in short, the study of what is now called the 

 ecology of plants. 



The systematic botany of the flowering plants has been com- 

 paratively well worked out for this region of country. Much 

 less has been done in regard to the flowerless plants, and par- 

 ticularly in regard to the lower classes of flowerless plants. The 

 paper of Professor Evans and Mr. Nichols on the mosses and 

 liverworts, those of Professor White on the larger fungi, those 

 of Dr. Clinton on the microscopic fungi, that of Professor Conn 

 and Mrs. Webster on the fresh-water algae, and that of Professor 

 Conn on the bacteria, make a good beginning in this direction. 

 But there are a number of groups of the lower flowerless plants 

 for whose study very little material is accessible to students or 

 even to teachers in Connecticut. Interesting groups which should 

 be treated in future bulletins of the Survey are the lichens and the 

 marine algae. 



III. Zoology 



Professor Conn's paper on the protozoa makes a good be- 

 ginning of the study of the life of our fresh waters. In future 

 years attention should be given to other groups of fresh-water 

 organisms; for instance, the mollusks, worms, Crustacea, and 

 fishes. 



