200 GEOGRAPHICAL DISTRIBUTION OF ANIMALS. 



of the temperate region that part of the country south of 

 the la itude where the Palmetto'or Cabbage-tree (Chanuzrops) 

 commences, namely, all the States to the south of North 

 Carolina ; while the States to the north of this limit belong 

 to the northern portion of the temperate region. 



427. This division into two zones is supported by obser- 

 vations made on the maritime faunas of the Atlantic coast 

 The line of separation between them, however, being influ 

 enced- by the Gulf Stream, is considerably farther to the 

 north, namely, at Cape Cod ; although there is also another 

 decided limitation of the marine animals at a point nearly 

 coinciding with the line of demarkation above mentioned, 

 namely, at Cape Hatteras. It has been observed that of 

 one hundred and ninety-seven Mollusks inhabiting the coast 

 of New England, fifty do not pass to the north of Cape Cod, 

 and eighty-three do not pass to the south of it ; only sixty- 

 four being common to both sides of the Cape. A similar 

 limitation of the range of Fishes has been noticed by Dr. 

 Storer ; and Dr. Holbrook has found the Fishes of South 

 Carolina to be different from those of Florida and the West 

 Indies. In Europe, the northern part of the temperate re- 

 gion extends to the Pyrenees and the Alps ; and its south- 

 ern portion consists of the basin of the Mediterranean, to- 

 gether with the northern part of Africa, as far as the desert 

 of Sahara. 



428. A peculiar characteristic of the faunas of the tem- 

 perate regions in the northern hemisphere, when contrasted 

 with those of the southern, is the great similarity of the pre- 

 vailing types on both continents. Notwithstanding the 5m- 

 liiense extent of country embraced, the same stamp is every 

 where exhibited. Generally, the same families, frequently 

 chs same genera, represented by different species, are 

 found. There are even a few species of terrestrial animals 

 regarded as identical on the continents of Europe and 



