EXPLORATIONS FOR ^lOLLUSKS IN CUBA UNDER THE 



WALTER RATHBONE BACON TRAVELLING 



SCHOLARSHIP 



r.v PAUL BARTSCH, 



Citralor. P'n'isioii of Molhisks, U. S. National Mitscmn 



The granting of the Walter Rathbone Bacon TravelHng Scholarship 

 for 1928-29 to me by the Smithsonian Institution made possible much- 

 needed field investigations prior to the publication of reports upon the 

 land and fresh water mollusk fauna of the West Indies. It was the 

 desire of the late Mr. John B. Henderson, a Regent of the Smithsonian 

 Institution, to prepare a report upon this fauna, to the study of which 

 he devoted more than a quarter of a century of available time as well 

 as considerable money for the financing of various expeditions, in 

 manv of which I had a i)art. Mr. Henderson's untimely death inter- 

 rupted the ]M-oject. and it has become my aim to see it carried out. 



LInder the Walter Rathbone Bacon Travelling Scholarship the 

 least known parts of the West Indies will be subjected to a hasty 

 reconnaissance. The island of Cuba was known to harbor a large 

 num])er of molluscan treasures not contained in the collection of the 

 U. S. National Museum, and it was therefore chosen for a first 

 attack. On the War Department's huge topogra])hic map of Cuba 

 were marked the known collecting grounds and the blank hills from 

 whicli no collections were at hand. Localities to be given attention 

 were selected after a consideration of the geologic features; for the 

 sul)strate, whether composed of limestone or serpentine, determines 

 whether a visit will result in a rich harvest in the case of the former, 

 or disappointment in the case of the latter. 



The next step was to get in touch with Dr. Carlos de la Torre, 

 President Emeritus of the University of Havana, and the foremost 

 student of Cuban mollusks, who has agreed to join the author in 

 making known the molluscan treasures of the " Pearl of the Antilles." 

 We set out early in June for the western end of the island, subjecting 

 first those parts of Pinar del Rio Province to such scrutiny as seemed 

 desirable. 



A word a1)OUt the problems connected with our work may not be 

 out of place here. The first consideration was the collecting of ma- 

 terial to form the basis for a monograph. This included the securing 



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