35 



eunviils canst' a constant intcn-lianye of water ijc'twccn tlic lakj 

 and the shallow hays in the niarsli to the north. In this upper 

 part of the lake the salinity and food conditions are very similar 

 to those fonnd in tin- neiuhhorino- bays and l)ayous. 



Baij Chalaiid lies at the head of Cat Island i.ake. jnst east of 

 Welsh Bay. It is connected with the foi'iner l)y a narrow deep 

 pass, and with the latter by two cnts, one natural and the other 

 artificial. Except at the south eiul. near the i)ass to Cat Island 

 Lake, the hay is very shallow, about three feet, and all over ^he 

 southern portion the bottom is very soft outside of the areas 

 lardened by the old leefs. There are some small natural reefs 

 m the pass to Cat Island Lake, and in the deeper parts of the 

 pass the bottom is firm outside of the reefs. In the northern 

 portion of the bay the bottom is composed of firmer nnul -. but 

 there are very few hard areas and no natural i-eefs of any size 

 or importance. 



The salinity of the water in this bay was 1.0144. The food 

 organisms were always abundant in all parts of the bay. 



A little way to the eastward from the pass to Hay Chaland. 

 there is another pass leading into a small bay known as Lust 

 Beef Bay, or Bay Perdue. The water in the pass is from six 

 to twelve feet deep, w^hile in the bay it is from three to five feet 

 deep. The bottom is soft in the shallow portions of the bay and 

 pass, but quite firm in the deeper parts. The greater part of this 

 hard bottom has been utilized for bedding grounds. 



The salinity of the water w^as 1.0124, and the amount of 

 oyster food large. 



East of the entrance to Lost Reef Bay, the Hi-st entrance 

 to the inland bodies of water is tlirough Pass La (rraissi . This 

 pass furnishes the outlet f()r a large number of bays and bayous 

 occupying the greater part of the area between Bay Chaland 

 on the west and Terrebonne Bayou on the east. The depth of 

 water in this pass is about twenty feet. At its inner end this 

 pass opens into Hoif La Graiss< , which is about one mile long 

 and three-<[uarters of a mile wide at the widest point. The depth 

 of the water in this bay varies from two and one-half to seven 

 feet. The bottom is composed of soft mud over the whole bay 

 except whei'c thei-e is an old reef along the east side near the 



