1 12 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



is found most of the cultivated land, and here alone stunted trees, both native 

 and introduced, can grow. Plate I of Part 7 illustrates the general appear- 

 ance of the island viewed from the north-eastern shore. The western end is 

 exceedingly bare and storm-swept. A good idea of its appearance is given 

 by Plate VIII, which is a view looking south-west, showing the neighbouring 

 island of Inishturk in the background. Almost everywhere the coast is 

 cliff-bound, the cliffs varying in height from 50-100 feet in the east and 

 south (see Plate II of Part 7) to 1000 feet in the north-west (see Plate II of 

 Part 20). The dominating feature of the island is the high ridge of Croagh- 

 more (1520 feet) on the north-western shore. On the inland (southern) side 

 Croaghmore presents a steep, heathery slope, and on the seaward face plunges 

 down in a magnificent precipice into the Atlantic (see Plate I of the present 

 part; also Part 10, Plate I, and Part 23, Plate I). This scarp is the home of a 

 very interesting alpine Mora, and proved a productive collecting-ground in 

 several other groups, such as Land Mollusca. The islands of western Ireland 

 are all so closely grazed that it is often only on such ground as this that the 

 less aggressive members of the fauna and flora can find a sanctuary. 



The adjoining islands of Inishturk and Inishbofin, which are included in 

 the present Survey so far as certain groups are concerned, have no such lofty 

 elevations as Clare Island, but in the general character of their surface they 

 are similar. 



It is not necessary to enlarge here on the nature of the marine area, as this 

 is dealt with fully in Part 67. It may be stated that mud, sand, gravel, 

 stones, and rock are all well represented in the district, and that in the 

 deeper waters gravel and rock form the bottom over the greater part of the 

 region. For the purposes of the Survey a depth of 50 fathoms was taken as the 

 seaward limit of the area. 



