138 BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 



63.— ACCrilMATIZATIOIV OF SAI^iHO QUIIVIVAT IN FRANCE. 

 By Prof. VALERY-MAYOT. 



^From a letter to Raverot-Wattel, secretary of the National Acclimatization Society. J 



I deem it proper to bring to your knowledge some details regarding 

 the results of the acclimatization of the California salmon which you 

 had intrusted to my care during the three years, 1879, 1880, and 1881. 



As you will remember, I planted the first and third hatch of salmon 

 in our little river Lez, near its source, whilst the second hatch was 

 plant-ed in the river H^rault, near the city of Ganges, in the heart of 

 the Cevennes Mountains. 



The catch of which I have already informed you comj^rised fish one 

 and two years old, of normal size, some of which were caught in the 

 neighborhood of Ganges, some kilometers above the city and above all 

 the weirs, and others near Montpellier, below the last great weir of the 

 river Lez. As far as I know, no fish were caught in 1883, neither in 

 the Lez nor in the H6rault; but I must state the interesting fact, that 

 at three different times there were caught in the river Aude, whose 

 mouth is near Narbonne, salmon measuring 25 to 30 centimeters in 

 length. 



It is, therefore, probable that the Sainton from the Lez and the H6- 

 rault, finding it very difiQcult to clear the numerous weirs which cross 

 these rivers, to a certain number ascended the river Aude, half of whose 

 course lies in the mountainous region of Corbi^res, and which has not 

 so many weirs. 



Do you not think it would be useful to make new attempts to accli- 

 matize salmon higher up the river Aude — at Quillan, for instance ? I 

 am entirely at your service, if j'ou desire that some such experiment 

 should be made. 



National School of Agriculture, 



Montpellier, November 11, 1883. 



63 — JDEPREDAXIOIVS TO OYSXFR BE:DS BV STAR-FISBE. 



[From the Evening Register.] 



It was reported yesterday that between jS'ovember 1, 1883, and the 

 close of navigation in December, there were caught on oyster beds ad- 

 joining the Bridgeport public beds about 15,000 bushels of star-fish. 

 Since October 1 they have destroyed over liOO acres. From six to ten 

 steamers have been catching starfish during the past six months, at an 

 expense of $5,000. 



New Haven, Conn., April 5, 1834. 



