MARINE PROVINCES OF THE INDO-WEST PACIFIC 



By A. W. B. Powell 



Auckland Institute and Museum, New Zealand 



The precise definition of shallow-water provinces in the tropical 

 Indian and Pacific Oceans is difficult since accurate faunal lists are few, 

 not many bibliographies have been published, and the systematics of 

 only a few groups are adequately known. 



The purpose of this paper is not to present a scheme based upon the 

 systematics and biogeographic data of one phylum (mollusca) but to 

 invite discussion of the topic by workers representative of as many phyla 

 as possible. 



If a working plan satisfactory to the majority of interests emerges 

 from this discussion it is hoped that agreement may be reached regard- 

 ing both the nomenclature and the respective boundaries of any ap- 

 proved provinces. 



It is realized that provinces apparent in the littoral do not neces- 

 sarily extend to the deep waters, not even to the continental shelf in all 

 instances. The abyssal faunas probably bear no relation to the shallow- 

 water faunas and will require separate consideration. Pelagic faunas 

 also will probably require special treatment. 



The recent appearance of Ekman's "Zoogeography of the Sea" 

 (1953) will undoubtedly cause a renewed interest in biographic studies. 

 Ekman's classification of the tropical faunas is as follows: 



1. Indo-West Pacific. Indian ocean to 30-35 °S and the western 

 part of the Pacific between 35-40° N and 30-35 °S; extending from 

 the east coast of Africa to the Hawaiian, Marquesas and Tua- 

 motu Islands. 



2. Atlanto-East Pacific. 



A. Tropical and Subtropical America 



a. Pacific American warm water region. 



b. Atlantic American warm water region. 



B. Tropical and Subtropical West Africa. 



We are concerned only with the Indo-West Pacific which Ekman 

 subdivided into— 



1. Indo-Malayan, 2. Islands of the Central Pacific (excluding Ha- 

 waii) , 3. Hawaii, 4. Subtropical Japan, 5. Tropical and Subtropical 

 Australia, and 6. Indian Ocean. 



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