148 VICTORIA MEMORIAL MUSEUM. BULLETIN NO. I 
on the open coast, but in many cases no less suitable for many 
forms of marine life. The islands are so numerous that there is 
a great extent of shore line with all varieties of exposed and 
sheltered, bluff headlands and sloping beaches. Best of all are 
the areas in the larger straits and bays at the termini of the 
narrow channels where the tide-rip brings such an abundance 
of food supply for all sorts of marine forms. To give one 
illustration: in Northumberland strait at a point about 5 
miles southeast of Nanaimo, Dodds narrows enters it from the 
west, while Gabriola island forms a boundary to the east. At 
low slack tide Dodds narrows seems a rather insignificant 
passage, but when the tide turns and rushes through it must be 
a powerful boat that can make headway against it. In a small 
area in the strait at or near the mouth of the narrows, over 20 
species of hydroids were obtained in a couple of hours’ dredging. 
Such situations abound in the Gulf of Georgia. 
The work has only been started but it promises well. If at 
some time in the near future the Department of Fisheries could 
see its way clear to equip and man a boat to do such work as 
the “Albatross” and the “Fishhawk” have been doing and are 
doing for the U.S. Bureau of Fisheries, there need be no lack of 
opportunity for doing good work. If such were carried out, it 
would not be long before the number of species of hydroids 
reported would be many times the present number. 
The collections that have been reported on are as follows: (1) 
Some shore forms collected by the writer at the Minnesota 
Seaside Station, in the summer of 1903. (2) Material collected 
by Rev. G. W. Taylor, on a trip to Queen Charlotte islands and 
other points to the north of Vancouver island, previous to 1908. 
(3) Collections made at Departure bay in 1908 and 1909. These 
consisted of shore forms near the laboratory on the mainland, 
and on the various islands near by, of forms dredged right in 
the bay between the station and the outer islands and some 
dredged farther out, outside of Newcastle island and over 
towards Gabriola island. (4) Collections made chiefly by 
dredging in Northumberland strait, at the entrance to Dodds 
narrows and reported in the West Coast paper as from Dodds 
narrows. (5) Some shore material collected by Mr. John 
Macoun at Victoria in 1908. (6) Collections made by Dr. A. 
