﻿68 
  

  

  ON 
  MAEINE 
  MOLLUSCA 
  FROM 
  THE 
  KERMADEC 
  ISLANDS, 
  AND 
  

   ON 
  THE 
  ' 
  SINUSIGERA 
  APEX 
  '. 
  

  

  By 
  Tom 
  Iredale. 
  

  

  Mead 
  lith 
  January, 
  1910. 
  

  

  DuEiNG 
  the 
  major 
  portion 
  of 
  the 
  year 
  1908 
  I 
  was 
  on 
  Sunday 
  

   Island, 
  the 
  only 
  habitable 
  island 
  of 
  the 
  Kermadec 
  Group. 
  I 
  was 
  

   endeavouring 
  to 
  make 
  a 
  representative 
  collection 
  of 
  the 
  molluscan 
  

   fauna. 
  Unfortunately 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  seas 
  around 
  the 
  island 
  

   counteracted 
  my 
  efforts 
  to 
  such 
  an 
  extent 
  that 
  I 
  can 
  only 
  claim 
  to 
  

   give 
  a 
  glimpse 
  of 
  this 
  very 
  interesting 
  fauna. 
  I 
  say 
  very 
  interesting, 
  

   as, 
  though 
  the 
  geographical 
  position 
  of 
  the 
  island 
  promised 
  that 
  the 
  

   forms 
  would 
  repay 
  study, 
  I 
  did 
  not 
  even 
  anticipate 
  such 
  results 
  

   as 
  I 
  have 
  obtained, 
  sanguine 
  as 
  I 
  was. 
  From 
  the 
  nature 
  of 
  the 
  flora 
  

   of 
  Sunday 
  Island, 
  and 
  because 
  it 
  was 
  politically 
  a 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  Dominion, 
  

   the 
  group 
  has 
  been 
  zoologically 
  attached 
  to 
  jSfew 
  Zealand. 
  

  

  The 
  land 
  molluscs 
  on 
  record 
  showed, 
  however, 
  little 
  affinitj^, 
  whilst 
  

   the 
  very 
  few 
  marine 
  forms 
  previously 
  obtained 
  were 
  almost 
  all 
  

   additions 
  to 
  the 
  New 
  Zealand 
  list. 
  

  

  I 
  propose 
  to 
  give 
  some 
  idea 
  of 
  the 
  island, 
  collecting-grounds, 
  and 
  

   reasons 
  for 
  the 
  poverty 
  of 
  the 
  collection 
  made. 
  Sunday 
  Island 
  is, 
  

   roughly 
  speaking, 
  600 
  miles 
  north-east 
  of 
  New 
  Zealand, 
  the 
  same 
  

   distance 
  east 
  of 
  Norfolk 
  Island, 
  and 
  south 
  of 
  Tonga, 
  which 
  are 
  the 
  

   nearest 
  land 
  points. 
  It 
  is 
  a 
  volcanic 
  crater 
  apparently 
  rising 
  out 
  of 
  

   a 
  great 
  depth. 
  It 
  is 
  irregularly 
  triangular 
  in 
  shape, 
  a 
  deep 
  bay 
  

   making 
  the 
  west 
  coast, 
  the 
  north 
  coast 
  being 
  mostly 
  sand 
  and 
  

   boulders, 
  whilst 
  the 
  east 
  and 
  south, 
  forming 
  the 
  third 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  

   triangle, 
  were 
  boulder 
  beaches. 
  Towards 
  the 
  north 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  east 
  

   coast 
  was 
  a 
  shallow 
  bay, 
  which 
  was 
  the 
  only 
  littoral 
  workable 
  

   portion 
  of 
  the 
  coastline. 
  The 
  prevailing 
  winds 
  were 
  east 
  and 
  west, 
  

   the 
  former 
  from 
  October 
  to 
  April, 
  the 
  latter 
  the 
  remainder 
  of 
  the 
  

   year. 
  Both 
  these 
  made 
  the 
  north 
  coast 
  unworkable, 
  but 
  all 
  the 
  

   molluscan 
  life 
  had 
  years 
  before 
  been 
  driven 
  into 
  deeper 
  water, 
  

   so 
  that 
  not 
  much 
  regret 
  was 
  felt 
  about 
  this. 
  The 
  west 
  bay 
  was 
  

   gravel, 
  the 
  two 
  ends 
  being 
  boulders. 
  The 
  terrific 
  force 
  of 
  the 
  

   westerlies 
  prevented 
  molluscs 
  from 
  existing 
  within 
  their 
  reach, 
  

   so 
  that 
  nothing 
  practically 
  lived 
  within 
  5 
  fathoms 
  save 
  among 
  

   the 
  boulders, 
  where 
  they 
  were 
  not 
  obtainable 
  by 
  any 
  ordinary 
  

   means. 
  

  

  The 
  south 
  coast 
  was 
  as 
  barren 
  as 
  the 
  north, 
  whilst 
  the 
  southern 
  end 
  

   of 
  the 
  east 
  coast 
  was 
  similar. 
  This 
  left 
  the 
  northern 
  end 
  of 
  the 
  east 
  

   coast 
  as 
  the 
  only 
  place 
  where 
  shore-collecting 
  could 
  be 
  carried 
  out. 
  

   This 
  was 
  also 
  a 
  boulder 
  formation, 
  but, 
  protected 
  to 
  a 
  certain 
  extent 
  

   by 
  the 
  islets, 
  a 
  few 
  molluscs 
  could 
  be 
  obtained 
  by 
  hard 
  work. 
  This 
  

   consisted 
  of 
  wading 
  and 
  lifting 
  the 
  stones 
  by 
  means 
  of 
  crowbars. 
  

   Under 
  stones 
  easily 
  lifted 
  nothing 
  was 
  the 
  general 
  result. 
  

  

  That 
  littoral 
  collecting 
  would 
  be 
  poor 
  had 
  been 
  anticipated, 
  but 
  

  

  