30 



ing the beds, one can derive the greatest amount of profit at the 

 least expenditure of time and labor. 



Overstocking.— If one plants his corn too thick, the ears 

 will become stunted ; if too many head of cattle are turned into 

 a pasture, they will be poor and thin ; so likewise, if oysters 

 are overcrowded, they will not do so well.. It has been the ex- 

 perience of the writer to examine the stomach contents of oysters 

 from such beds, where the owner complained of not being able 

 to grow his oyster to size in the same length of time that his 

 neighbor did. The average number of diatoms in the stomach of 

 a healthy oyster rims from ten to twenty thousand; the average 

 of ten oysters taken from such a bed in Terrebonne Parish showed 

 but little over three thousand diatoms, the greatest number be- 

 ing eight thousand nine hundred, and the lowest six hundred 

 and fifty. Here it was evident oysters were literally starved, 

 especially since the number of diatoms in the water was normal, 

 namely, eighteen thousand six hundred per liter (or about a 

 quart). Such conditions are apt to occur only in land-locked bays 

 where oysters are numerous and the barren areas not large. 

 Where the currents are constant, however, there is little danger 

 of overstocking, and many beds contiguous with each other will 

 all do equally well. 



Summary. — To summarize then : from the egg the oyster de- 

 velops into a free-swinuning individual which may be carried to 

 all waters by the wind, tides, and currents. After two weeks of 

 this life, it settles down and becomes permanently fixed for the 

 rest of its life. Growth to size is attained at the end of two 

 years under normally favorable circumstances. 



The brackish waters of low density of our inland bays and 

 bayous is more favorable to oyster culture than those of the 

 higher salinities which prove more satisfactory to the Maryland 

 oysterman. This is due to two reasons, 1st, food is more abund- 

 ant, 2nd, the denser water, having the greater surface tension, 

 becomes overheated during the summer months, which generally 

 proves fatal to the young oysters. 



The finest flavor and texture is gotten by transplanting oysters 

 for a month or two, previous to marketing, from the brackish 

 waters to those of higher salinities. This transfer is necessary 



