4 6 



are cleaned away, while starfishes and other vermin 

 of the parks are destroyed. The oysters are raked 

 over as frequently as possible to keep them well on the 

 surface and whenever they are drifted into heaps or against 

 the palisade, they are rescattered carefully. 



A Government regulation forbids the export from 

 Arcachon basin of oysters below 5 centimetres (2 inches) 

 in greatest length, a size locally known as " deux ans" 

 or 2 year-olds, this being the approximate age when 

 this dimension is reached although on favourably 

 situated parks where growth be exceptionally rapid it 

 may be attained at 18 months of age. The rule was 

 made to prevent the basin being depleted of breeding 

 oysters, there being no natural reserve available to 

 supply spat. As a consequence the Arcachon parkers 

 specialize very largely in the production of these two 

 year-olds for which there is a large demand from the 

 oyster fattening farms of Marennes, La Tremblade and 

 He d'Oleron ; Spain is also a large buyer. The bulk of 

 the despatches from the basin of oysters from two to 

 three years old a few years ago was enormous, averaging 

 from 1898 to 1903 almost 300 millions per annum. For 

 some three or four years past this home trade has dimi- 

 nished greatly, barely reaching a total of 100 millions 

 for the years 1906 and 1907, whereas in the same years 

 the export abroad chiefly of larger and older oysters 

 soared suddenly from 20 millions in 1905 to 155 

 millions in 1906 and 157 millions in 1907. In this 

 connection it may be noted that table consumption in 

 France of Arcachon oysters (see table at the end of 

 this section) has increased enormously since 1903 and 

 accounted for 147 millions in 1907 as against a paltry 

 annual average of \\ million for the series of years 

 1 900-1903. Oysters required for consumption run from 

 4 to 5 years old at Arcachon. From this we infer that 

 coincident with simplification of methods an increasing 

 quantity of oysters of edible size are being produced, the 

 culture and sale of 2 year-olds concurrently diminishing. 

 The change is accounted for in part by the decrease in 



