THE FISHERIES OF JAPAN. 421 



SNAPPING-TURTLE CULTURE. 



The snapping turtle (Tryonix japonious), known in Japan as the suppon, is found 

 in all parts of Japan in rivers and marshes, and is highly esteemed for the flavor of 

 its flesh. Recently special attention has come to be given to its cultivation. The 

 specimens exhibited were from the hatching-grounds of Mr. Kurajiro Hattori, of 

 Tokyo. They comprised examples representing the stages of growth in the first, 

 second, third, and fourth years after hatching. The breeding season is from the 

 latter part of .May to the first part of July, and the same individual is said to deposit 

 eggs more than once in the course of a single season. The food consists of fish, shell- 

 fish, and worms. From about the middle of October to April of the next year the 

 snapping turtle hibernates in the mud. Specimens two years old weigh from 10 to 13 

 ounces. Those weighing about 80 ounces are more than ten years old. 



A map of the snapping- turtle farm of Mr. Kurajiro Hattori, of Tokyo, was exhib- 

 ited. The pond has a muddy bottom, and its depth is about 1 foot near the banks 

 and about 3 feet in the central part. The eggs are deposited in the sunny part of the 

 bank. In the sandy area around the pond, which easily becomes dry, fences are 

 erected to prevent the escape of the turtles. When the season for depositing the eggs 

 is over, wooden boards of about 1 foot in height are erected on the lower margin of the 

 bank and, between these, sheets made of reed or bamboo splints are placed to protect 

 the broods from the attacks of their parents and other foes. Within the barrier are 

 buried numerous x>ots to afford shelter to the newly hatched turtles. 



The canned meat of the snapping turtle has a large demand, owing to its fine 

 flavor and nutritious properties. The sample exhibited was made in the province of 

 Chikugo. The price per dozen cans is 3.60 yen. 



THE TAI FISHERY. 



The tai,* as the Japanese call the scup, is the most highly esteemed of all the food- 

 fishes of the country, and no feast can be complete without it. Of the four species of 

 tai in Japanese waters, Pagrus twmifrom (called hanaore-dai), P. cardinalis (kasuko- 

 dai), P. major, and P. ruber, the second named is the most abundant. The tai of the 

 market is generally from 1 to 2 feet long. The price of a fresh tai a foot in length is 

 often more than a yen. The tai is a bottom fish preferring sandy or muddy places. 

 It feeds on other fishes, shellfish, and annelids. In the early part of summer it migrates 

 from the deeper to the shallower seas, where it spawns, and in the autumn it again 

 seeks its deep-water haunts. Iu the southwestern provinces the chief supply of the 

 market-fish comes from the Inland Sea, the middle portion of which is a favorite 

 spawning- ground. The tai enter the sea through its eastern and western channels, and 

 returning seek the ocean by the same route. In the northeastern part of the country 

 the spawning season is July and August. The tai is found in all parts of the country. 



In fishing for the tai long lines or set lines, hand lines, and several forms of nets 

 are used. The box of long line exhibited represents such an apparatus as is used at 

 Misaki in the province of Sagami. It is a long line bearing a certain number of snoods 

 about 20 feet long. A section of about 1,900 feet of the line bearing 85 snoods is put 

 into a shallow round wooden box. A single boat manned by six or seven men often 

 works a line of as many as twelve of these sections. A stone and a barrel buoy are 



* Changed into dai for the sake, of euphony when compounded with a prefix. 



