582 



THE VOYAGE OF THE VEGA. 



[CHAr. 



mainly Harpalids and Staphylinids, and of land and fresli-water 

 molhisca only seven (jr eight species, besides wliicli nearly all 

 occurred very sparingly, Ammg remarkable fishes may be 

 ]nentioned the same black marsh-fish which we caught at 

 Yinretlen. The avi-fauna was scanty for a high northern land, 

 and of wild mammalia we saw only musk-rats. Even the 

 dredgings in the harbour yielded, on account of the unfavourable 

 nature of the bottom, only an inconsiderable number of animals 

 and algse. 



On the 26th July, at three o'clock in the afternoon, we 

 weighed anchor and steamed back in splendid weather and 

 with for the most part a favourable wind to the shore of the 

 Old World. In order to determine the salinity and temperature 



SHELL TEOM BElIRINO'S STRAITS 



Fusvs dcforinis, Reeve. 



at different depths, soundings were made and samj)les of water 

 taken every four hours during the passage across the straits. 

 Trawling Avas besides carried on three times in the twenty-four 

 hours, commonly with ail extraordinarily abundant yield, among 

 other things of large shells, as, for instance, the beautiful Fusus 

 deformis, Reeve, with its twist to the left, and some large 

 species of crabs. One of the latter (Ghionoccetcs ojnlio, Kroyer) 

 the dredge sometimes brought up in hundreds. We cooked 

 and ate them and found them excellent, though not very rich 

 in flesh. The taste was somewhat sooty. 



Lieutenant Bove constructed the diagram reproduced at 

 l)age 583, which is based on the soundings and other obser- 



