BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 103 



dustry in Arcacbon Bay, a condition certainly remarkable and wortby 

 of careful attention. 



MORBIHAN. 



Another important center for tlie production of tlie oj^ster exists on 

 our Breton coast. It is known under the name of the oyster-cultural 

 basin of Auray. The cultivation of the oyster iii this region is of recent 

 date. Collectors were first placed in the rivers of the Morbihau about 

 fifteen or sixteen years ago. The center of the business is in the rivers 

 and inlets which open into Quib^ron Bay. The oyster-cultural estab- 

 lisiiments occu^jy successively, in going from east to west, the creek 

 of P6, the river of La Trinity, St. Philibert Creek, and Auray Eiver. 

 In most of these rivers natural beds exist. The most important are 

 those of Auray Eiver, which are about 22 kilometers long, and those of 

 La Trinit6 Eiver and of St. Philibert, which have a length of about 1-5 

 kilometers. Unhappily these beds are in bad condition. They have 

 this present year been carefully explored, with the aid of scaphanders, 

 and the results obtained are far from being satisfactory. Here is, more- 

 over, a table showing the result of the oyster fisherj^ in the Auray region 

 from 1876 to 1881 : 



Statistics of the oyster fisliery in the Auray region, 1876 to 1681. 



If we bring these figures to a single unit of measure, the number of 

 oysters fished per hour by each i^erson [dragiieur,] the following results 

 are obtained: 



AURAY RIYER. 



[187G. 

 1877.- 



1878.- 

 1879.- 

 1880.- 

 1881.- 



— Each person took i)er hour 546 oysters.] 

 -Each person took ])er hour 411 oysters. 

 -Each person took per hour 747 oysters. 

 -Each person took per hour 485 oysters. 

 -Each person took per hour 315 oysters. 

 -Each person took per hour 262 oysters. 



