MARINE ZOOLOGY IN THE TROPICAL ATLANTIC. 43 



of highest respect when we consider that among them are such inves- 

 tigators as Barton, H. L. Clark, Conklin, Duerden and Morgan. The 

 advantages claimed for Jamaica are a healthful climate, the hest of 

 social conditions, a rich land and fresh-ivater as well as marine fauna 

 and flora, and the accessibility of the island. The land flora and 

 fauna of Jamaica are stated on good authority to be the richest of 

 the Antilles, while the coral reefs and marine fauna, although possibly 



The Parade Ground of Fort Jefferson, Dry Tortugas, seen through one of the 



Casemates. 



not so rich as those of the Tortugas, are said to be remarkably varied. 

 Unfortunately none of the gentlemen who advocate Jamaica have been 

 at the Tortugas, and it is therefore impossible for them to make any 

 direct comparison between the marine faunge of the two places. 



The advocates of the Tortugas, Florida, claim that here we find 

 by far the richest pelagic fauna of the tropical Atlantic which is driven 

 upon the shores by the prevailing winds from the Gulf Stream. 



The Tortugas reefs, while not so rich in corals, are richer in fishes 

 and invertebrates than are those of the Bahamas and probably of other 

 West Indian Islands. The nearness of the Pourtales plateau would 

 give the station an enviable opportunity for deep-sea dredging, while 

 the remarkable purity of the ocean water surrounding the Tortugas 

 would provide the laboratory with an almost unique advantage in the 

 rearing of larvse, and prosecution of physiological work. The Tortu- 



