THE FAUNAL AREAS OF MASSACHUSETTS. 
MASSACHUSETTS, Occupying south-central New England from lat. 
41° N. to lat. 43° N., affords a great diversity of physical condi- 
tions for the support of a large and varied fauna. Although the 
direct distance between its northeast and southeast corners is 
but 95 miles, its entire length of coast line following the main 
capes and bays, amounts to nearly 300 miles. ‘The northeast coast 
is rugged and rocky, especially in the vicinity of Cape Ann.  Be- 
tween this region and the southern part of Cape Cod, the shores 
are sandy with numerous protected coves and bays. ‘The barrier 
beaches at the south of Cape Cod, together with Martha’s Vine- 
yard and Nantucket, form a protection for the fiord-like coast line 
of the southernmost part of the State. These fiords, of which 
Buzzard’s Bay — 30 miles long and 10 miles wide — is the largest, 
represent a submerged valley system. 
The large, low islands of Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, 
with their numerous lagoons on the seaward side, are sandy but 
well wooded in certain parts. Together they cover over 100 
square miles. The smaller islands in. this region, Muskeget, 
Tuckernuck, and the Elizabeth Islands, are also of interest, be- 
cause of the peculiar environmental conditions which they offer. 
The broad expanse of shallow water extending eastward from 
Cape Cod, covers a land area which includes George’s Bank, 120 
miles from land, and is by some considered as a part of Massa- 
chusetts. 
From sea level on the east, the mainland rises gradually to the 
westward, and reaches its greatest height in the north-western part 
of Berkshire County. This is due to the wearing away of the 
land to nearly base level, and its subsequent uplift, so that the 
former plain is now highest in the northwest. Barnstable County 
(Cape Cod) and the greater part of Plymouth and Bristol Coun- 
ties are comparatively level and free from outcrops, for the rock 
foundation is covered with glacial detritus to a considerable depth. 
The north-eastern regions of the State are more hilly with frequent 
rocky outcrops, and are marked by numerous drumlins and eskers. 
The highest points in this eastern district are found in the Blue 
Hills of Norfolk County, which attain an elevation of 635 feet 
