60 TI 1 1 : lt< ) VAL SOCIETY OF CANADA 



rivers which drain the adjacent land, such as the Miramichi and 

 Nepisiquit, are not only of considerable size and volume, but expand 

 near their mouths into broad bays. Owing to the easy disintegration 

 of the comparatively soft rocks which border much of the Gulf of 

 St. Lawrence, the bottom is usually sandy, and the waters more or 

 less muddy and opaque. This latter condition is somewhat un- 

 favourable for collecting, but the Diatoms of the North Shore are both 

 more numerous and more varied than those of the Bay of Fundy, 

 and this fact, in connection with the comparative warmth of the 

 waters, has doubtless had something to do with the profuse growth 

 and high quality of the oysters for which portions of this coast are 

 famous. These are wholly absent from the Bay of Fundy. 



In Prince Edward Island the conditions are more nearly 

 like those of the north shore of New Brunswick than those of the Bay 

 of Fundy. Low bluffs form many portions of the coast, but the waters 

 near the latter are generally shallow, while there are numerous long 

 arms of the sea, generally known locally as rivers, which extend far 

 into the interior of the island and in one instance almost bisects it. 

 In these there is generally an abundant growth of zostera and other 

 aquatic plants, and in association with these the growth of Diatoms 

 is abundant. The waters are comparatively warm, there is but moder- 

 ate tidal change or movement, and marine mollusca, such as clams 

 and oysters, are common and of the best quality. 



In the several regions examined the collection consisted of 

 harbor muds, obtained by the use of a special sounding apparatus, 

 scrapings from wharves and the piers of bridges and buoys, while in 

 deeper waters plankton gatherings were made by the use of silken 

 tow-nets. To these were added a variety of forms obtained from 

 tidal pools, as also others derived from the stomachs of fishes, mollusca 

 and Echinoderms. The collections are by no means exhaustive, es- 

 pecially as regards the Bay of Fundy, but having been obtained from 

 a large number of points, may be regarded as fairly representative of 

 the Diatom-flora of this part of America. The gatherings were in 

 most instances cleaned by the use of nitric and sulphuric acids and 

 chlorate of potash, and were studied both in the dry state and as 

 mounted in styrax or balsam. For details of distribution reference 

 may be made to the Bulletins of the New Brunswick Natural History 

 Society (Vol. VI— 1910-1911). 



"Infusorial Earths" or "Tripolites" occur at a number of points 

 in New Brunswick, and the species found in them are included in the 

 systematic list which follows. No such deposits have as yet been 

 reported from Prince Edward Island. 



