TORREYA 



Vol. 40 November-December, 1940 No. 6 



Marine Algae from Long Island 



Wm. Randolph Taylor 



Following a long-established custom, the writer suggests to 

 his students in courses dealing with algae that when they go off 

 into their various fields of research, every opportunity be taken to 

 secure specimens of algae, particularly marine algae, for study. 

 Most like the idea; few actually arrange to prepare specimens. 

 Those few who do make collections usually get something dis- 

 tinctly worth while, and their success keeps up hope for other occa- 

 sions. One of the most extensive lots of algae thus brought to the 

 writer's attention was one assembled by Dr. Alfred Perlmutter 

 while in the course of fisheries investigations in Long Island waters. 

 Prepared at considerable inconvenience to himself, this material 

 represents a real contribution to the knowledge of the current 

 Long Island flora, and the writer is very much indebted to Dr. 

 Perlmutter for the opportunity to go over and report upon it here. 

 The chief sets of material will remain in the possession of the col- 

 lector and the University of Michigan. 



Long Island and Long Island Sound seem to support an algal 

 flora intermediate in character between that of more northerly 

 affinities found north of Cape Cod, and the southern flora. The 

 distinction is largely one based on negative evidence : northerly 

 forms are largely lacking, but there are no really tropical t}-pes 

 which are known to reach their northern limits in this area. This 

 statement seems to hold true down to the Virginia Capes. One of 

 the interesting features of the recorded flora from our area is 

 the records of sporadic occurrence of distinctly northern forms at 

 scattered stations, presumably representing local cold-water areas. 

 Some of these are of course unrepresented by specimens, and may 

 never be authenticated ; others may be based on misidentifications, 

 or errors in labelling. All such forms should be searched for 

 repeatedly to establish their present status in the flora. This paper 



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