14 BY THE DEEP SEA. 



Naturalists have marked off the sea-bed into a series of zones, 

 an arrangement which may seem somewhat arbitrary, but 

 which is found very useful in practice. The first or highest of 

 these zones is known as the Littoral zone (Latin, lit or alls, the 

 shore), and includes all the shore, be it rocks, sand, shingle, or 

 mud, that lies between the highest and the lowest of spring-tide 

 marks. Next to this comes the Laminarian zone, so-called 

 because between very low tide and a depth of about fifteen 

 fathoms of water, the Laminaria digitata, or Oar-weed, grows 

 profusely over the rocky ground, and forms a splendid cover 

 for the luxuriant animal life that haunts it. Our district is the 

 Littoral zone, and the Laminarian zone forms our seaward 

 boundary, which we cannot cross, for its exploration needs the 

 use of boat and dredge. It is a very tempting province to 

 enter, for it contains the oyster-banks, and many interesting 

 forms of life. 



He who would see the most that the shore has to exhibit 

 to him, must consult the local tide-table, and the table 

 of the moon's changes. If his stay at the sea-side is to 

 be brief, he must endeavour to let the date of his start be 

 governed by lunar considerations. Many business men can- 

 not get away for more than a fortnight, and if any such 

 should wish to make the best use of his time in connection 

 with natural history, we should advise him to begin his holiday 

 at the period of the moon's first or third quarter. He will thus 

 arrive at the time of ^<?/-tides ; that is, when high-water is 

 low, and low -water not much lower when, in a word, there 

 is the least difference between high and low water. The local 

 weekly newspaper will in all probability contain the times of 

 high-water for every day in the coming week. If not, he must 

 find out on his first day at what hour low-water is reached, 

 and for at least an hour before that time he must be on the 

 shore with basket of wide-mouthed bottles glass jam-jars are 

 the best, for they are easily obtained everywhere, and should 

 an accident happen to one through collision with a rock, no 



