Land and Marine Shells from the East Indies and the Pacific Islands, by Dr. Eckel.

Mr. Stearns presented the following paper:

List of Shells collected at Baulines Bay, California, June, 1866.

BY ROBT. E. C. STEARNS, CURATOR OF CONCHOLOGY, CAB. ACAD. NAT. SCIENCES.

The comparative scantiness of molluscan life in the immediate vicinity of San Francisco, and of the coast for many miles in a southerly direction, led me to believe that an exploration of the small bays to the north of the Golden Gate would reveal a very considerable increase both of species and individuals; accordingly, upon the 14th, 23d, and 24th of last June, I visited the small inlet known as Baulines Bay, and made an examination of the sandspit which makes out from its southerly shore, also the beach inside of and as far north as Duxbury reef, which latter connects with the coast at a point about a mile above the entrance to the bay. The unfavorable condition of the tides prevented an exploration of the reef; as most of the specimens were obtained from the drift, without doubt the following list can be largely increased by a more thorough examination of the locality, especially the reef, at extreme low water and at different seasons of the year.

All of the specimens were in a condition sufficiently perfect to make identification easy; a few forms, of which I had some doubt, were submitted to Dr. J. G. Cooper.

Species marked with a * one specimen; thus † two specimens; of the remainder from three specimens upwards were collected.

Of No. 8, two odd valves, and of No. 9, a single perfect specimen on sandspit; 15, an odd valve, one perfect specimen found by Col. Jewett, who accompanied me; 49, one specimen; (I am informed by the residents of the town that this species is abundant at a point about ten miles up the coast); 50 and 51, very common (young specimens frequently and mature shells sometimes umbilicated); 68, frequent; a well-marked species; (often confounded with the young shells of 67; the young shells of 67 are sometimes adorned with zigzag brown markings upon a light ground, otherwise, no resemblance between them; 68 is in shape between 67 and O. bœtica, of Carpenter); 71 is but an extreme form of 70, as I am convinced by an examination of not less than one thousand specimens, received by me from Monterey; 72—if “gausapata” and “Californiana” belong to “Amycla,” this certainly should be placed with them; 76, particularly abundant (some 2000 living specimens collected; June 23d, this species had just commenced depositing their pink-tinted eggs, a few of which were obtained); 83, the immature shells of this species closely resemble some specimens of 78.