GENERAL DIRECTIONS. 85 



from the whale to the minute Medusae and Crustacea, and 

 at a proper time of the tide afford most profitable collect- 

 ing places." The distance from the shore and the diffi- 

 culty of access are the only drawbacks, but if possible they 

 should be visited by every collector who is interested in 

 the collecting of marine life in its natural habitat. A world 

 for investigation here awaits the attention of the naturalist. 



An advantage in working at Grand Ma nan is the ease 

 with which delicate marine animals can be kept alive in 

 small aquaria for a considerable time. The water is very 

 cold and the change in temperature not as sudden as in 

 more southern parts of New England. My experience 

 has been that the difficulty in keeping the water in small 

 glass vessels used for aquaria at an even temperature with 

 that of the bay is not as great in northern New England 

 stations as in southern and the consequent danger of mor- 

 tality is lessened. The constant fogs, however, are draw- 

 backs which limit the number of days when collecting can 

 be prosecuted. The small island of Nantucket 1 of the 

 Grand Manan group is most favorably situated for a lab- 

 oratory or for a point from which to reach the different 

 collecting grounds. 



The reader is reminded that there is no one locality on 

 our coast where all the genera here recorded can be col- 

 lected. Marine animals have their homes which are 

 limited by as sharply drawn lines as those of any forms 

 of organic life. Continued research on the facies of the 

 New England marine fauna indicates the existence of con- 

 ditions on the coast which separate the northern from 



1 Grand Manan had on my visits a tri-weekly communication with Eastport by 

 a small steamer. Eastport can be reached from Boston by the steamers of the In- 

 ternational line, also called the St. John's steamers. There is a daily stage from 

 North Head, the landing place of the steamer from Eastport to Grand Manan, to 

 Woodward's Cove, which is near Nantucket island. Comfortable accommodations 

 can be had at Mr. Cheney's home on the island. 



