MAEINE BIOLOGICAL STATION AT PORT ERIN. 65 



intervals during the rise and fall of the tide from the 

 Morecambe Bay Light Vessel, and from the Liverpool 

 North-west Light Vessel. Altogether, over 30 per cent., 

 or nearly one in three of the bottles distributed have been 

 subsequently picked up on the shore and returned to me. 

 They come from various parts of the coast of the Irish 

 Sea — Scotland, England, .Wales, Isle of Man, and Ireland. 

 Some of the bottles have gone quite a short distance, 

 having evidently been taken straight ashore by the rising 

 tide. Others have been carried an unexpected length, 

 e.g., one (No. 35), set free near the Crosby Light Vessel, 

 off Liverpool, at 12-30 p.m., on October 1st, was picked 

 up at Saltcoats in Ayrshire, on November 7th, having 

 travelled a distance of at least 180 miles* in 37 days ; 

 another (H. 20) was set free near the Skerries, Anglesey, on 

 October 6th, and was picked up one mile N. of Ardrossan, 

 on November 7th, having travelled 150 miles in 31 days ; 

 and bottle No. 1, set free at the Liverpool Bar, on Sep- 

 tember 30th, was picked up at Shiskin, Arran, about 165 

 miles off, on November 12th. On the other hand, a bottle 

 (J. E. 34), set free on November 7th, at the Eibble 

 Estuary, was picked up on November 12th at St. Anne's, 

 having gone only 4 miles. 



It would be premature as yet — until many more dozens or 

 hundreds have been distributed and returned — to draw any 

 conclusions. It is only by the evidence of large numbers 

 that the vitiating effect of exceptional circumstances, such 

 as an unusual gale, can be eliminated. Prevailing winds, 

 on the other hand, such as would usually affect the drift 

 of surface organisms are amongst the normally acting 

 causes which we are trying to ascertain. I may stale, 

 however, that so far nearly 50 per cent, of the bottles 



* More probably, very much further, as during that time it would 

 certainly be carried backwards and forwards by the tide, 



