390 J. STANLEY GARDINER. 



The presence of pools of more or less fresh water in many of the east rim islands is 

 remarkable. All such must have been at one time connected with the sea, as they all 

 have fish and prawns identical with, or closely allied to marine species. In addition their 

 shores are fringed with mangroves, which could only have been introduced when their waters 

 were in open communication with the sea. Some of these pools were perhaps cut off by 

 sand being piled up on their lagoon sides, in particular those with shallow water in Ekasdu, 

 Kendikolu, and Landu seeming to have been formed in this way. The size of the islands 

 and the fact that the sand, instead of being piled up directly against the rock, was deposited 

 at some considerable distance out on the reefs, thus cutting off pools of water, allow us to 

 infer that the original reefs before elevation were flats of considerable breadth. Further, the 

 deeper pools of Ereadu and the two Mandu, so greatly enclosed by land as they are, are not 

 likely to be of recent fonnation, so that some of the reefs before elevation were probably 

 themselves definite faro. A still more remarkable reef is that of Dureadu with its vein of 

 18 fathoms, but the weather — and want of drinking water — prevented a thorough investigation 

 of this faro. 



The condition of the Miladumadulu-Tiladumati bank is quite unparalleled elsewhere in 

 coral reef regions, and its topography would be almost inexplicable if it had been examined 

 alone. The bank compared with North Mahlos and others shows that it is only an early 

 stage of atoll formation. Nevertheless, many points in Miladumadulu are not clear, but it is 

 probable that Prof Agassiz with a more complete examination extending into Tiladumati and 

 to deeper depths outside the bank will be able satisfactorily to elucidate these. 



G-uradu has on all sides stony beaches with coral rock. To the N.E. there is practically no 

 reef, the same condition being found as to the N.E. of Minikoi, where the waves break about 20 yards 

 from the shore. This condition merges on either side of the island into a definite fringing flat, 

 to the S.W. 50 yards across. The shore, S. and E., has many large dead tree trunks, and on all 

 sides masses or pinnacles of the coral rock were seen. The island on Kuda-Faro is all sand, and 

 situated well behind its reef, which is a faro with well-marked velu. 



Dureadu is a crescentic-shaped island, covering almost half the circumference of a round faro, 

 Ij miles in diameter. The beach against the velu is all sand, the top about 2 feet above the high 

 tide level. It .shows much movement, its sand apparently shifting to the W. in the S.W. monsoon 

 and to the N. — and probably N.E, — in the N.E. monsoon. On the whole there would appear to be 

 a little loss as there are a few fallen trees, etc. A sand flat, narrower to the N., fringes tlie 

 shore against the velu, but the term sand flat is here a misnomer, the shelf having a mere covering 

 of sand on a solid rock, which round the ends of the island — to the S.W. being 60 yards broad — 

 forms a continuation of the reef flat. Within the crescent on the flat there are no corals, but a few 

 shoals built up of their colonies are found in the velu. Twelve soundings on the submerged reef 

 to the S. gave depths varying from 3 to 5J fathoms, so that probably there has been little or no 

 change. I could not see the character of the bottom on account of the heavy weather having made 

 the water quite milky. 



To the N.W. of Dureadu I. on the outside is a shallow, incipient bay with sand shores and a reef 

 120 yards broad, consisting of a flat, boulder zone and boat channel — that is, of the same parts as 

 on any rim reef freely exposed to the full force of the ocean. In the boat channel and on the 

 boulder zone are a few masses apparently of upheaved rock. These are rather more numerous to 

 the S.W. and to the N., where the island runs right to the boulder zone of the reef, and has a rocky 

 belt along its shore. To the N.N.E there is simply a reef flat of 25 — 30 yards in breadth, quite 

 similar to any seaward one, save that it is without the regular fissured and buttressed edge, but 



