5 KJELLMAN, THE ALGA OF THE ARCTIC SEA. 
destroying the vegetation that has begun to spring up. This may happen in spring 
at those parts of the coasts of the Arctic Sea, for instance the west coast of Spitz- 
bergen, where the winter ice breaks up early, and again in autumn, before new ice has 
been formed along the shore, and even in the middle of winter, if the masses of ice draw 
off suddenly from the shores, as happens probably not unfrequently from time to time. 
The account of the Swedish wintering expedition at Spitzbergen 1872—73 shows tlhe 
sea at the north coast of Spitzbergen to have been open even to the shore several 
times in the course of the winter’). During our wintering in the Vega, there were. 
formed once or twice wide openings in the sea, which may possibly have reached to 
the shore in the neighbourhood of our wintering station. -It appeared from the state- 
ments of the natives living there, that the sea opens now and then in winter, though it 
freezes soon again. It may be objected that, the sea being open at the coast, the tem- 
perature of the air cannot be so low as to be injurious to algw. This may be true, 
indeed, in general, but it is to be remarked that there occur nowhere else so sudden 
and strong variations of temperature as in the arctic regions. Amongst many instances 
of this I select one from the voyage of the Vega. In February 1879 the temperature 
of the air at noon on the 6:th was — 40°,; C., at the same hour two days later + 0°,1, 
on the 12:th — 2°,0, but on the 13:th — 24°,.9 and on the 15:th —29°,0 C. At Mus- 
selbay the sea once in the winter froze at a temperature of the air of — 27°,6”), to 
which low degree it had descended in the course of a few hours. It need not be sup- 
posed that a low temperature must continue long, in order to be hurtful. Just as one 
nigbt of sharp frost suffices to damage the land-vegetation, the extreme degrees of 
temperature in the arctic regions may act destructively, if their action lasts during one 
or two tidal periods. . 
The temperature of the air at different parts of the coasts of the Arctic Sea is set forth 
in the following table. From this, several conclusions may be drawn with regard to the 
biological conditions of the alge of the Arctic Sea, which I shall bring forward below. 
Table *) showing the average temperature of the air in different parts of the Polar region. 
| | Jakobs- | Sabine, 
Tromso, Vard6, Miaeselbave Novaya Pitleka Point Northum- havn, Island, 
Norway. | Norway. ) Zemlya. Y- | Barrow. | berland. West- East- 
Greenland.| Greenland. 
Manuaryee-e eet Ad APU SEEN — 4,20 — 6,00 | — 9,89 | —- 13,72 | — 25,06 | — 28,20 | —39,22 | —17,40 | — 24,15 
We PIU Yass pes eee eS. — Ao — 6,40 | — 22,69 | —18,49 | —- 25,09 | —30,42 | — 33,44 | —17,80 | — 23,81 
Mare GH ate cee as see oo — 3,80] —5,10 | —17,63 | —15,43 | —21,65 | — 26,02 | —27,50 | —16,70 | — 23,382 
J: I Pat el oer ae — 0,10 —1,70 | —18,12 LoS OM — 18,93 | —15,72 | —22,89 | —10,40 | — 16,51 
Miny yeas See) os 2 Sees 2 + 3,20) —1,8s0 | — 826 | — 3,79 | — 6,79 | — 6,61 | — 9,44 | — O10 | — 5,42 
DUNC ee ee ee | + 8,70 +590 | + 111 | + 2,41 | — O60 | + 0,13 | — 0,06 | + 4,40 | + 2,26 
LL) fe mene ae ae es Reet + 11,50 +880 | + 4,55 | + 489] = Ses |) en - 261 | = (eOmecommomne 
Atfoust..505). 28 Sie + 10,40 4=9.80"|| -- 2787 | 466 — + 730 | + 1,22 [ear 6,20 | + 0,67 
September: 2 25 2-285 2 Ey AO + 6,40 | — 3,86 | — 0,28 ——= |\— 8.99) | 47,50 | nt e100) |e aaoe 
Oktober: e204 eee 1 + 2,00 + 1,30 | —12,69 | — 1,88 | — 5,20 | —16,89 | —1850 | — 4,80 | —13,82 
| ‘Wovemberee Se eee — 1,70 —210 | — 813 | —15,67 | —16,58 | —22,47 | — 20,33 | — 7,50 | —18,32 
Decémberai Ate 22 See — 3,201! —4,00 | —14,44 | — 26,61 | — 22,80 | — 25,16 | —3450 | —11,80 | —17,14 
d See NorDENnsKIOLD, Spetsb.-Exp. p. 55—58. 
2) NORDENSKIOLD, |. c. p. 58 and WiskanpER, Obs. météor. p. 20—21. 
3) Cp. Hrtpepranpsson, Obs. Météor. p. 578—579 and Koipewey, Zweite deutsche Polarf. p. 536. 
é 
