OYSTER CULTURE IN FRANCE. 6ll 



perfecting of that industry. It is to this, unquestionably, 

 that ostriculture owes its present prosperity, and the con- 

 stant progress it has achieved, a progress which has been 

 so brilliantly represented at the Exhibition of Bordeaux. 



Faithful to precedent, you have been so good, M. le 

 Ministre, as to authorise us, under your auspices, and with 

 your encouragement, to make the researches of which we 

 are now about to render an account. 



These researches were commenced in 1880, at the 

 College of France, in the Laboratory of Comparative 

 Embryogeny, which is under the direction of M. Balbiani 

 (the eminent successor of M. Coste), who has aided us with 

 his advice, and have been continued in the same laboratory, 

 and on different points of our sea coast, and have had 

 .reference to :- 



1. The sex of the French oyster fostrea edulisj 

 and of the Portuguese oyster fostrea angulata). 



2. The fecundation, incubation, and development 

 of the eggs and embryos of the two sorts of oysters. 



3. The possibility of a cross between them. 



4. The artificial fecundation of the Portuguese 

 oyster. 



The limits of this report will not permit us to give full 

 development to the questions which we have considered, or 

 even to approach them all. We shall shortly have the 

 honour to present you with a complete work on the subject. 

 At present we shall specially occupy ourselves with our 

 experiences in the artificial fecundation of the Portuguese 

 oyster, as this oyster appears to us to offer the most imme- 

 diate interest. 



u 2 



