APPENDIX III 



ILLUSTRATION OF A METHOD OF SURVEYING A TYPICAL 

 PIECE OF SEA-SHORE 



The accompanying plan, sections, and photographs of a 

 small inter-tidal area have been prepared mainly with the 

 object of illustrating a method of survey which might be 

 used in order to bring out, in a manner that is clear and 

 easily grasped, some of the main ecological features of 

 any given shore, or portion of shore. In a lesser measure 

 it may serve as a sort of commentary on some of the facts 

 connected with the distribution of tidal plants and animals 

 which are discussed in Chapter III. 



The method is one that has been employed by the 

 writers for teaching purposes and found to answer well. 

 Each student is given a specially prepared plan of the 

 area under consideration (similar to Fig. 22, but on about 

 twice the scale) and told to mark down the distribution 

 of certain species while indicating their precise mode of 

 occurrence, e.g. on stones, under stones, in sand, in mud, 

 etc., by appropriate symbols. The advantage of such a 

 method is that it serves to give focus to the work of the 

 student and to counteract the tendency, on his part, to 

 adopt somewhat aimless methods of collecting. 



Our present illustration of the method, as applied to 

 a fair-sized portion of the shore of Balloch Bay, is nothing 

 more than an outline. It could, however, be elaborated 

 without difficulty. In particular, any fraction of the same 

 shore might be selected for closer treatment and the survey 

 be so made to comprise almost any desired amount of detail. 



Balloch Bay is situated on the east side of Gt. Cumbrae 

 Island, Firth of Clyde, and thus faces towards the mainland, 



312 



