THE EUROPEAN SEAS. 



181 



the Eastern Mediterranean, as it is presented to 

 the eye of the casual observer. Storms wash up 

 the shells which belong to the lower portion of the 

 marginal belt, and the whole goes to form the 

 assemblage which is to be commonly met with along 

 its shores. If, however, the sea-side naturalist from 

 this country should neglect these dead spoils, and 

 confine himself to such living forms as may be 

 collected over the narrow belt between land and 

 water, he will meet with little to remind him of 

 his southern latitude. Of the eleven species of 

 Mollusks peculiar to this upper belt, eight have a 

 wide Atlantic distribution ; he will collect Litto- 

 rina ccerulescens, L.petroea, Kellia rubra, Truncatella 

 truncata, as he might on our own coasts ; also our 

 common Barnacle ; and in addition to Padina, such 

 plants as Dictyota dichotoma and Corallina offici- 

 nalis, in wonderful profusion. 



The general assemblage of forms, which imparts 

 a sub-tropical aspect to the coasts of the Mediterra- 

 nean, is derived wholly from depths of a few feet 

 below the permanent sea-level. 



The Second Region extends from two to ten 

 fathoms. With a sea-bed of sand or mud, the 

 former is usually covered with the beautiful green 

 Caulerpa prolifera, the latter with " grass- wrack 

 other sea-plants abound. The characteristic Tes- 

 tacea of this zone are — Pecten polymorphus, P. hya- 

 linus, Tellina donacina, T. distorta, Modiola, Nucula 

 margaritacea, Lucina lactea, Cardium exiguum, 0. 



