THE MARINE FAUNA 



OF 



ST. ANDREWS. 



INTRODUCTION. 



The beach at St. Andrews combines smooth sandy flats 

 with tide-worn ridges of rocks which freely communicate 

 with the German Ocean ; and the proximity to rich coralline 

 ground renders the products of its storms peculiarly varied. 

 An unbroken surface of pure sand extends from the estuary 

 of the Tay past that of the Eden to the north-western border 

 of the city. From this point the rocks run eastward in 

 parallel rows — narrow sandy flats intervening between some of 

 the ridges, which, with one exception, are all covered at high 

 water. Lines of rocks having a similar arrangement fringe 

 the Castle and Pier to the East Sands ; then a coarse sandy 

 and gravelly beach extends in a southerly direction about half 

 a mile, after which the jagged rocky border passes round the 

 eastern coast to the Frith of Forth. 



The greater part of the sandy bay has a depth of less than 10 

 fathoms ; for at this point the 20-fathom line bends outwards 

 to the Bell rock. The whole region is thus comparatively 

 shallow, and in contrast with that to the north of Arbroath 

 Road, or with the Frith of Forth and the neighbouring coast 

 on the south. 



If the fine stretch of sand from the river Eden to the city 

 (usually termed the West Sands in contradistinction to the East 

 Sands which extend from the harbour southward) is only en- 

 livened in summer by thousands of bleached heart urchins, 

 broken shells, skeletons of plaice, frogfish, and haddock, or 



B 



