PKELIMINARY STUDY OF THE SALINITY OF SEA-WATKR 



IN THE BERMUDAS.! 



By Kenneth L. Mark. 

 Presented by E. L. Mark, January S, 1913. Received February 3, 191.3. 



The objects of this investigation of the sahnity ami of the tempera- 

 ture of the waters in and about the Bermudas were the collection of 

 data which would supplement those recorded for other parts of the 

 Atlantic Ocean, especially by the " Conseil Permanent International 

 pour l/Exploration dc la Mer," and the study of the relation of the 

 salinity to the depth below tiie surface, to the depth of the sea, and 

 to the locality. A knowledge of these relations was desired as a part 

 of the basis for studies on the distribution of oceanic organisms at the 

 Bermudas. 



For these purposes, therefore, samples of water were collected at 

 various places and depths and the temperature of the water was noted 

 in each case. The salinity of these samples was determined by the 

 method used by the " Conseil International." This consists of the 

 complete precipitation of the halides of the sea-water by the requisite 

 amount of a standard solution of silver nitrate. The salinity and 

 density of the samples are then calculated from the analytical results 

 by the aid of the Hydrographical Tables of Knudsen. 



Procedure. 



The water was collected in a Buchanan^-Nansen^ stop-cock water- 

 bottle, as modified by Dr. H. B. Bigelow,"* which allows the free 

 passage of water through it during its descent, but can be made to 

 enclose a sample of water at any desired depth. The water was 

 immediately transferred through a brass cock to glass bottles. Care 

 was taken to allow as little evaporation as possible during this trans- 

 fer. The glass bottles were provided with porcelain stoppers with 

 rubber rings, held on by wire, like the old-fashioned beer-bottle stop- 



1 Contributions from the Bermuda Biological Station for Research. No. 25. 



2 Challenger llcport, Narrative, Vol. I, Part 1, p. 112-117. 



3 The >,'orvvegian Sea, its Physical Oceanography based upon the Noiwcgian 

 Researches 1900-1904, by B. Helland-Hansen antl F. Nanseii. Chrisliania 

 1V)09, in Report on Norwegian P'ishery and Marine-Investigations, \'ol. II, 

 1909, No. 2, p. .5.5. 



4 Dr. Bigelow's modification consists chiefly in the .suhstitntion of a messen- 

 ger for the propeller used by Nansen, and will be described in a ff)rthcomin.::; 

 report to be jjiihlished in the Bull. Mus. Comp. Zool., Cambridge Mass. 



