44 PELAGIC LIFE, FALMOUTH. 



many of the sheltered corners, with which Falmouth harbour 

 abounds, the common sea-weed, Chorda filum, flourishes during 

 the summer months, the long filaments of which extend to the 

 surface of the sea at high-water, but form large tangle-beds 

 when the tide is out. Whenever these medusae happened to 

 drift within the reach of these filaments they became hopelessly 

 entangled and after a time slowly decayed. During that time 

 one had no difficulty in observing a dozen or more specimens in 

 all stages of decay in places where these weeds abounded. The 

 last specimen of Rhizostoma pulmo noticed in this district was 

 on the 25th of October, 



I will now pass on and make extracts from my note-books 

 recording the various forms of interest collected in tow-net 

 gatherings, and also gathered during low-water in various 

 places in the district. 



April. When I recommenced my observations on the 2nd, 

 I found that the Gelatinous alga had already re-appeared, and 

 by the 9th it was so very abundant that tow-netting was almost 

 impossible. During this time the surface temperature of the 

 sea remained very uniform, being the same as on previous years, 

 namely 52'^ P. 



Frequently during this month specimens of Oampontia 

 cruciformis were caught in the tow-net, but all my efforts to 

 trace the further developmental stages of these larvae were as 

 unsuccessful as in former years. On the 26th, Evadne nordmanii 

 and Centropages typicus were noticed in the surface-net 

 gathering for the first time. 



May. During this month the weather was very unsettled, 

 and as the prevailing winds were from the north, the surface 

 gatherings were neither very rich nor very varied. Again the 

 surface temperature of the sea remained almost unchanged, 

 being 52^ on the 2nd and .52°9 on the 29th. 



On the 15th after a brief calm, large numbers of Hormiphora 

 plumosa were detected in the sea along the outer edge of the 

 Eastern breakwater, and in the gathering of some of these a 

 very interesting medusa was secured. At the first glance I was 

 inclined to imagine that this specimen was mature, but closer 

 examination shewed that the gonads were not visible, and so the 



