434 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



belong to the Crustacea, this memoir covers the greater part of the 

 marine collection. 



The Copepoda are predominant, especially those belonging to the 

 Calanoid group, having been taken at nearly every haul along the whole 

 route of the Fram. The zoological equipment of the Fram was based 

 unfortunately on the supposition that the Siberian basin was shallow, so 

 that the enormous oceanic depths which were found were only inade- 

 quately explored by an extemporized sounding apparatus. 



While the results of the dredging operations indicate that there was 

 very little animal life at the bottom of the ocean, on the other hand, it 

 appears that the entire surface of the sea, which consisted usually of 

 small temporary openings in the ice-pack, was covered with abundant 

 life throughout the entire year even to the most northern latitudes. 



Including surface and deep-sea specimens, there were taken on Oc- 

 tober 12, 1895, no less than eleven species in latitude 85° 13' 

 N., longitude 79° E. On June 28, 1895, in 84° 32' N., 76° E., 

 there were taken from the surface by tow net in a large water-channel 

 fourteen species. This indicates abundant marine life in the sea im- 

 mediately near the North Pole. 



The pelagic animals, therefore, were not found at the sea surface 

 alone, but were also drawn from considerable depths. Many specimens 

 were obtained from strata at least 250 metres below the surface, and in 

 a number of instances from depths ranging between 500 and 1,000 

 metres. It is to be added that the imperfect development of the visual 

 organs of the peculiar amphipod, Cyclocaris Guilelmi, Chevreux, points 

 to abyssal habits, as similar conditions do in the cases of other pelagic 

 animals. 



In general pelagic fauna in the Polar Sea resembles that of the 

 northern Atlantic basin, the greater number of species being common to 

 both. While several heretofore unknown forms collected by this expe- 

 dition may be peculiar to the polar basin, yet it is not improbable that 

 these forms also occur in the North Atlantic. This appears probable, 

 since the western part of the Fram's route lies on the border of the two 

 basins, where the fauna does not differ essentially from that in the east- 

 ern part. 



While the pelagic fauna of the Polar Sea, even in the lowest depths, 

 resembles that of the Atlantic basin, the great salinity of its water 

 clearly indicates that it comes from the North Atlantic, and it is there- 

 fore more than probable that the migration of pelagic animals to the 

 North Polar Sea is also from the west. 



Indeed, Doctor Sars is of the opinion that the greater part of the 

 pelagic life of the north-polar basin comes by the underlying easterly 

 current from the North Atlantic. On the other hand, it is evident that 

 the westerly-flowing surface current of the Siberian Sea is of vital im- 



