(XXXYI)] 5 1 



Crustacea caspia. Contributions to the l<nowledge of the carcinological 

 Fauna of the Caspian Sea, by G. 0. Sars, Prof, of Zoology at the 

 University of Christiania, Norway. (Lu le 14 avril 1893). 



Part I. 

 With 8 autographic plates. 



GENERAL INTRODUCTION. 



The Crustacea of the Caspian Sea are as yet but very imperfectly known, 

 and, with the exception of the Mysidce, the Caspian species of which have 

 partly been studied by Mr. Czerniavsky, only a few scattered notes have 

 hitlierto been published about that part of tlie fauna. As, howewer, the Cru- 

 stacea everywhere are found to represent a very essential bulk of the fauna, 

 it cannot fail that a closer investigation of the several forms of that class 

 occurring in the Caspian Sea, would give us important information about 

 the general character of the fauna of that isolated marine basin, and 

 thereby throw much light on the difficult questions about the supposed 

 early connexion of the Caspian Sea with other parts of the Ocean. 



Through the kind intervention of Mr. S. Herzenstein , a very interesting 

 collection of Crustacea made by Mr. Warpachowsky during the past year 

 in different places of the northern part of the Caspian Sea, has been placed 

 in my bands for examination. Tiie collection comprises numerous species 

 belonging to 3 different orders, viz., Schizopoda, Cumacea and Amphipoda. 

 Especially tlie occurrence in the Caspian Sea of Cumacea seems to me to be 

 of very considerable interest, on account of the exclusive marine character 

 of that order, and of the other 2 groups there are also several very 

 interesting and apparently new forms. Subsequently I have also received 

 some otiier specimens of Caspian Crustacea preserved from an earlier time 

 in the Zoological Museum of St. Petersburgh, and quite recently the rich 

 collections of Caspian Crustacea in the possession of Dr. Grimm have been 

 entrusted to me for investigation. 



Mi-Ungos biologi<iuc3. T. XIH, p. 309. 4* 



