4 SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. I49 



had a range of 7.6-6.8. The Eh values were all negative, and H 2 S 

 was detected in all the silt samples reported. The total organic hydro- 

 carbon content of selected samples was about 0.1 percent. X-ray 

 diffraction analyses indicated the most common minerals are : Quartz, 

 muscovite, biotite, albite, microcline, kyanite, augite, hornblende, 

 chlorite, calcite, and dolomite. Some observations on Foraminifera, 

 corals, mollusks, spores and pollen, and diatoms were reported. 



STUDIES OF FORAMINIFERA 



Shupack (1934) reported eight species of Foraminifera from six 

 sediment samples taken in New York Harbor. The most abundant 

 constituents were members of the genus Elphidium. 



Parker (1952b) studied the distribution of the Foraminifera in 

 the Long Island Sound-Buzzards Bay area. She defined the follow- 

 ing three foraminiferal facies in the area: Facies 1 — confined to the 

 Housatonic and Connecticut Rivers ; facies 2 — found in L.I.S., Buz- 

 zards Bay, and Gardiners Bay ; facies 3 — found in Block Island Sound 

 and southwest of Cuttyhunk. Facies 1 is composed for the most 

 part of arenaceous species typical of estuarine and marsh environ- 

 ments. Facies 2 and 3 are composed mainly of calcareous forms. 

 A few species are restricted to either facies 2 or 3, and the relative 

 abundance of species differs in the two facies. Elphidium incertum 

 was the most abundant form in facies 2. Parker listed 36 species 

 from L.I.S., of which 7 were indicated as persistent in their occur- 

 rence. 



Charmatz and McCrone (1961) listed 22 species of Foraminifera 

 from L.I.S. They indicated that species of Elphidium are most 

 abundant. 



Methods of Study 



FIELD WORK 



A total of 220 samples were obtained from 130 stations occupied 

 during 14 cruises. Most of the stations are located in north-south 

 traverses which are numbered 1 through 5 from west to east (fig. 1). 

 The traverses are spaced about 10-14 nautical miles apart. The 

 first and last stations in each traverse were located alongside buoys 

 or within sight of known shore positions. The stations between were 

 located about 1 nautical mile apart along a north-south bearing. 

 Traverse 3, which is located at about the geographic center of L.I.S., 

 was sampled seasonally. Since only the first and last stations could 



