April, 1908.] The Murman Biological Station. 
34i 
Sea, which soon became an important center for research work in 
Russia, and gained a world-wide reputation. 
We cannot, however, say the same thing about the Murman 
Biological Station, established only in 1899, as yet very little 
known, and which, by the way, is often confounded with its 
unsuccessful predecessor, “ The Biological Station of the Solovet¬ 
sky Monastery.” 
The history of this Murman Station presents a few interesting 
features, so characteristic of every Russian “history.” In 1882 
Prof. Wagner, of the St. Petersburg University, was allowed to 
carry on investigations on the northern fauna in a fisherman’s 
hut, belonging to the Solovetsky Monastery. This permission 
he obtained through the courtesy of the Father-superior of the 
Monastery, which is situated on the Solovetsky Islands, in the 
middle of the White Sea, a relatively short distance from the 
Arctic Ocean. Year after year, during the summer months, this 
fisherman’s hut was visited by investigators who studied the 
rich animal and plant world of this region. In the meantime, 
the fisherman’s hut has undergone considerable change. A few 
new buildings were added to it at the expense of the Society of 
Naturalists, and it was made more suitable for scientific work. 
After a seventeen years’ fruitful existence the laboratory had 
to be abolished on these islands. The death-blow to the young 
and growing institution was dealt by the new father-superior of 
the monastery who denounced the scientific visitors of these 
islands in his secret report to the office of the Holy Synod, by 
lodging a complaint that the presence of “impious” scientists 
acts demoralizingly upon the monks and pilgrims. The father- 
superior’s argument produced its effect, and the nature-students 
soon packed up their luggage and started out in search for a new 
settlement in that cold region. Such has been found on the 
Murman Peninsula where the present Murman Biological Sta¬ 
tion was established in 1899, and has operated successfully since. 
They have fairly well equipped laboratories there, aquarium 
rooms, museum, a reference library containing a few hundred 
volumes, etc. The station is situated in an attractive rocky 
locality right on the shore of the Kolsky Bay. 
The climate of this region is rather cold, the average yearly 
temperature not being above 0 degrees Centigrade, but July and 
Auguts are very comfortably warm months. The flora and 
fauna is very rich there, and as Prof. Derjugin tells me, there 
is hardly a case when the dredge does not bring up a multitude of 
various organisms. There have been listed over 500 representa¬ 
tives of all the classes of invertebrates and fishes, and Hvdrozoa, 
Actinozoa, sea-urchins, star fishes, worms, planarians, nemertines, 
molluscs, crustaceans, are all very abundant, and their eggs can 
