15 



with great shoals of small silvery fishes. At one place two porpoises were seen 

 in pursuit of fish. 



61. More noticeable however than all these larger creatures was the vast 

 abundance of spherical free-floating algae. In all the creeks we pased through 

 this day even some little distance seawards of Khudi mouth (as also in Karachi 

 harbour) the water was turbid and choked with an extraordinary profusion of 

 hollow brown spheres. The interior was filled with water, the cellular tissue 

 being limited to the walls of the thin containing capsule. In size these brown 

 dotted spheres ranged from a pin's head to 1 inch in diameter. These algae 

 must be of immense food value and their abundance is probably to be correlated 

 with the large quantities of prawns now in the creeks. 



62. At 4-30 p.m. we returned to the " May Queen " which we found 

 grounded in the narrow canal forming a passage from Khudi to Khai. When 

 the tide began to flow shortly after, which it did with great strength, two 

 currents were seen in opposition at the place we grounded, one coming from 

 Kbai, the other from Khudi. As soon as the tide had risen sufficiently we passed 

 through the canal into Khar creek. Two beds of oysters were said to exist in 

 Khai creek but time was pressing and as they were reported to be similarly condi- 

 tioned to others to be seen further on we proceeded the next morning along the 

 connecting creeks into Pitiani, anchoring at 10 a. m. off the village ot Sappatari, 

 two small collections of huts close to the seaward entrance. Fishermen and 

 camelmen form the scanty population, the former busily engaged in prawning, 

 the latter in grazing their herds among the mangroves higher up the creek. The 

 low sand hills which adjoin the village are said to have been formerly the haunt 

 of numerous snakes, whence the village is said to derive its name. 



63. When the tide had receded sufficiently we took our small boat and 

 rowed up Mall creek which connects with Pitiani near the seaward end. The 

 side creeks of Mall and Dumbri were reported to contain the best beds of 

 oysters remaining in this neighbourhood. The first we came to was just within 

 the entrance to a narrow side-creek off the Mall main channel. The mud 

 banks were steep and it was in fact only a drainage gully ; at low tide a mere 

 dribble of water was passing through it. The land on each side is a dreary 

 mud flat covered with a few inches of water at high- water during spring tides ; 

 here aud there at long intervals the bareness was accentuated by the presence 

 of a scrubby mangrove bush. The patch of oysters seen at this place was 

 located to one side and at a slightly higher level than the central runnel of 

 water left at low tide, as is shown in the diagram below (Fig. 2). At the level 

 of the patch the surrounding mud is exceedingly soft, little better than an ooze. 



FIG. 2 



Section of Ma// side - creek at low- tide showing 



<jon of ojsfer patch. 



a, Central runnel ; o. ., Oyster patch. 



