No.1.) ZHE DEVELOPMENT OF BALANOGLOSSUS. 3 
of the islands themselves proved most useful for surface work. 
North Bimini is in the shape of a horse-shoe, while South 
Bimini is oval or somewhat triangular in outline and nearly 
fills up the opening of the horse-shoe, leaving two channels 
into the lagoon of North Bimini. The eastern channel is 
wide, but the water is shallow, while the western channel is 
deep and narrow, and it is this that is on the Gulf Stream 
side. Twice each day the lagoon fills with water through 
the channels between the two islands, and twice is partly 
emptied through the same channels. The village Alicetown 
is situated on the south-west corner of the horse-shoe formed 
by North Bimini, and therefore on the Stream side. As the 
tide enters the lagoon through its western channel at the * 
maximum rate of probably more than 4 knots an hour, the 
surface water of the edge of the stream is drawn into the 
lagoon. In order to examine this water it is only necessary 
to push off a small boat a few yards from the shore and 
anchor in the midst of the current. The nets, kept stretched 
by the current, are drawn in at short intervals, the contents 
examined in glass dishes, the particular forms desired are 
picked out and placed in fresh water at once. 
Moreover, when the tide turns, the water flowing out is 
found to have a different fauna from that of the incoming 
tide, many of the pelagic larvae having no doubt reached their 
destination, or served as food for the inhabitants of the lagoon; 
while, on the other hand, new eggs and larvae have been 
received from the animals of the lagoon, and these are swept 
by in the current bound for the Gulf Stream. 
The object of my visit to the Bahamas was to study the 
large Tornaria that is found there, recorded by Weldon in 
1887, and by myself in 1891. I found it to be at Bimini 
one of the most conspicuous features of the ‘tow stuff,” and 
I was fortunate enough to get great numbers of the larvae in 
all stages of development, — from the quite small, free, swim- 
ming stages to the giant Tornaria, —and also the older and 
again small larva ready to transform immediately into young 
Balanoglossus as soon as supplied with sand in which to bury 
itself. 
