144 New York State Museum 



One may treat the beach under the divisions of the 

 inner and outer beach or one recognizes such zones as 

 the drift at high tide mark, the gently sloping beach 

 below partly covered by high tide, the flat ripple- 

 marked beach near the ocean, the compact arched 

 beach below, the rapid slope beach and the gently 

 sloping expanse of sand extending into the deeper 

 waters. Again, animals may be treated according to 

 the depth at which they live in the sand, as species 

 dwelling on the surface, stratum one to two inches 

 below the surface, stratum two to three inches below 

 the surface etc. Such detail is beyond the scope of 

 this chapter, and the survey below will touch only 

 upon the commoner forms of the various groups of 

 animals to be looked for on sandy bottoms. Descrip- 

 tions are given only when the form has not been dis- 

 cussed before. 



There are three species of sponges which may be 

 found, two of these growing on shells that may be 

 cast up on the beach: the sulphur colored Boring 

 Sponge and the Red Sponge (Microciona prolifera). 

 The latter occurs in shallow water from South Carolina 

 to Cape Cod and is very abundant upon oyster and scal- 

 lop shells in Long Island sound. In color it is brilliant 

 crimson. In its younger stages it forms thin incrusta- 

 tions, but it branches as it grows older, sometimes having 

 branches four inches long. The Sulphur Sponge 

 {Suberites compacta) grows on sandy bottoms off the 

 Long Island coast. It is a compact, heavy sponge, bright 

 yellow in color with a smooth surface, rounded and 

 nodular. After death it darkens to an ugly brown color. 



Hydroids are found cast up on the beaches. Horny 

 skeletons of large varieties are frequently washed ashore 



