172 NORFOLK-COAST FOREST-BED. 



the seeds of the bog -bean, the short-fruited hazel (Corylus avel- 

 lana ovata, W.), the oak, and the white and yellow water-lilies. 

 With these plants are found the teeth of Elephas antiquus, 

 Falc., and of two other elephants (E. meridionalis and E. primi- 

 genius, Blum., var.), and also remains of a rhinoceros (R. etrus- 

 cus, Pale.), a hippopotamus (H. major], the ox, horse, stag, pig, 

 musk-shrew (Sorex moschatus, Pall.), and the beaver. The bi- 

 valve and univalve shells found are identical with existing spe- 

 cies ; among them is Pisidium obliquum, Lam., as at Diirnten. 

 TheDonacite also are not wanting ; and these, with the bog-bean 

 and the water-lilies, indicate a swampy soil. This buried forest 

 (the " forest-bed ") of the Norfolk coast therefore probably re- 

 presents the Swiss lignite formation. The fir and the mountain- 

 pine have now disappeared from the English flora ; but, like all 

 other plants found in this locality, they are members of the ex- 

 isting flora of Europe, and with them, just as at Diirnten, a 

 few extinct animals are associated, giving the fauna a foreign 

 aspect. 



On the Norfolk coast, immediately beneath the forest-bed, 

 there is a marine deposit which, in some parts, contains nume- 

 rous marine animals. It has been called the " Norwich Crag." 

 Of the marine animals contained in it, 85 per cent. (69 out of 81) 

 are still living ; and among these there are no species of southern 

 latitudes, but 12 of them are now only met with in northern 

 regions. The Norwich Crag is followed, in descending, by 

 another marine deposit, the "Red Crag;" and below this is 

 another formation of the same origin, which has been called the 

 " Coralline Crag." Of the Mollusca of the Red Crag the living spe- 

 cies constitute 57 per cent. ; and among these there are 8 northern 

 and 16 southern forms. Of the Mollusca of the Coralline Crag 

 the living species are 5 1 per cent. ; and 27 of them are to be re- 

 garded as southern (26 Mediterranean and 1 West-Indian) and 

 only 2 as northern forms. We see therefore that the tempera- 

 ture of the sea must have gradually diminished : the southern 

 forms disappeared by degrees ; and their places were taken by 

 those of more northern latitudes. 



England possesses no formation that can be compared with 

 the Swiss Upper Miocene ; so that Prof. Heer cannot ascertain 



