THE ANNALS MAGAZINE OF NATURAL HISTORY. [THIRD SERIES.] No. 48. DECEMBER 1861. XLII. — On the Division of the Eur&pcnn Seas into Provinces , with reference to iJic Distribution of MoUusca. By Rodert M'Andrew, F.R.S. Of the many services rendered to natural-history students by the late Edward Forbes, I have been used to regard as among the most important his observations upon the distribution of marine Mollusca and other Invertebrata, both geographically and vertically, and the consequent division of those seas which formed the field of his researches into zones of depth and into geographical areas marked out by the particular forms or species of Mollusca which had their principal development in each. I believe that the existence of such natural di\isions has been generally admitted by naturalists ; but finding, in the abstract of a pajicr read by my friend Mr. Jeffreys at the last meeting of the British Association, and published in the * Annals of Natural History ' for October last, a statement that, in his opinion, such division into provinces is erroneous, I feel called upon to give my testimony in its support, on account of the importance of the question, both in a natural-history point of view and in its bearing on geology. And as I have made rather extensive re-searches within the area referred to (the seas of Europe and North Africa), with the main object of being enabled to throw light upon the distribution of Mollusca, I hope that I may not be considered over-presumptuous in thinking it probable that no one has had better opportunity of appreciating the correctness of Mr. Forbes's views. In the first place, it should be clearly understood that the question is one of fact, and not to be affected by speculations, however ingenious. It may be true that naturalists, or, as Mr. Jeffreys terms them, " systcmatists," are not agreed as to the limits and extent of the Ann. is May. N. Hist. Scr. 3. Vol. viii. 28
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