MAEINE BIOLOGICAL STATIONS OF CANADA. 



With the construction of the Pacific Biological Station near 

 Nanaimo, at Departure Bay, Vancouver Island, there are now three 

 of these important scientific institutions for the investigation of fish 

 and fisheries, and the pursuit of biological researches, such as are car- 

 ried on in most countries which possess sea coasts and inland lakes 

 and rivers. During the past summer (1907) a staff of workers has 

 continued the researches on the Atlantic coast at Seven Islands, in the 

 estuar}' of the St. Lawrence. The floating station which for two years 

 had been located at Gaspé, was towed in June round from Gaspé Basin 

 into the entrance of the Eiver St. Lawrence, but owing to serious leak- 

 age discovered in the scow it was found impossible to tow it to the North 

 Shore and it was beached at Grand Valley. JSecessary repairs were 

 done, under the direction of Mr. J. U. Gregory, I.S.O., of Quebec; but 

 the curator had all the instruments, books, etc., taken to the original 

 point decided upon (Seven Islands), and there the summer's work pro- 

 ceeded. Workers from Toronto and McGill Universities, and one from 

 Cambridge University, England, carried on investigations under the 

 direction of Dr. Joseph Stafford, McGill University. Messrs. Bayne 

 and Scrimgeour, of the University of Toronto; Mr. Smith, of the Uni- 

 versity of Cambridge, Eng;land, resident in Ottawa, and Dr. Stafford, 

 of McGill University, Montreal, curator of the station, carried on the 

 season's work. Mr. Bayne took up the investigation of marine anthro- 

 poda, of which the food of so many valuable food fishes consists; Mr. 

 Scrimgeour devoted his attention to the hydroid zoophytes; Mr. Smith 

 gave general assistance in dredging, etc., while Dr. Stafford continued 

 his somewhat varied and inclusive stiidies on the fishes and marine life 

 generally of that portion of the north shore accessible from Seven 

 Islands. 



The staff were much hampered owing to the breakdown of the 

 gasoline launch and the whaling station a few miles away could not be 

 visited, though it was anticipated that valuable material for study and 

 new infoi-mation as to the habits of whales, etc., could have been secured. 

 Dr. Stafford reports that, in his opinion, Seven Islands appears to be so 

 lepresentative of the north shore generally that it would not be very 

 advantageous to carry on work there, unless a place near Belle Isle, 

 really the Labrador coast could be selected, or even St. John's, New- 

 foundland, where a large amount of valuable fishery work could be 

 done at a centre so important and famous as a great fisheries metropolis. 

 A vessel suitable for visiting the " Banks " and making deep-sea investi- 

 gations would enable the staff to do most valuable work, were a location 



