THE PHYSICAL CONDITIONS OF THE ABYSS 23 



speaks of the 'utter darkness of the deep-sea 

 bottom.' 



Within the last few years a few authors have 

 maintained that it is quite possible that a few rays 

 of sunlight do penetrate even to the greatest depths 

 of the ocean — a view mainly based on the fact that so 

 many deep-sea animals possess extremely perfect and 

 complicated eyes and very brilliant colours. Verrill 

 says : ' It seems to me probable that more or less 

 sunlight does actually penetrate to the greatest depths 

 of the ocean, in the form of a soft sea-green light, 

 perhaps at 2,000 or 3,000 fathoms equal in intensity 

 to our partially moonlight nights and possibly at the 

 greatest depths equal only to starlight. It must be 

 remembered that in the deep sea far away from land 

 the water is far more transparent than near the coast.' 

 Packard is of a similar opinion. 



There seem to me to be very slight grounds for 

 this view. The fact that, comparatively speaking, 

 shallow-water fish avoid nets that are rendered 

 phosphorescent by entangled jelly-fish does not 

 justify us in assuming that deep-sea fish avoid 

 regions where there are phosphorescent Gorgonians 

 or Pennatulids. It is not by any means certain 

 that fish avoid sunken nets on account of their 



