Dear Bob, Andrew and others,

Another thing that Bob seems to have overlooked is the fact that for any
one species living in both warm and cool waters, the specimens from warmer
waters are usually SMALLER, sometimes very much so, than their conspecifics
from cool waters. One such example that springs to mind is the Littorinid
Nodilittorina pyramidalis, which occurs here in Sydney, and all the way up
the eastern Australian coast to north Queensland, as well as along the
south coast to Western Australia. I have collected specimens at both
extremities of this range. The north Queensland specimens are miniscule,
measuring 8mm in height at the most. The specimens around here are rather
average, being about 12-15mm, but in Western Australia, where the water is
freezing cold, they reach a whopping 25mm.

I am not buying into the debate as to whether or not there is a greenhouse
effect (whoever said smoking did not cause cancer?), but if anything, to me
Bob's evidence seems to show the waters in Hawaii have been getting cooler.

I think it is an interesting piece of work, though, so please keep it up, Bob

Patty
Dr. Patty Jansen

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