30 



etems probable, that ^these currents are of far greater importance 

 tba^n the independent motion of the larva. The question, there- 

 fore,, how far from its parents an oyster .larva travels before 

 settling' down finds its answer in the strength and direction of the 

 ■Guri^nts which may carry it. Stations A*, and B. were, the one a 

 mile and a half, the other, two miles, from a great source of young 

 .free, swimming oysters; however, no currents were present to 

 .transport the larvae and neither of the stations showed any signs 

 of spat.* .Thus it is probable that of its own exertions an oyster 

 Jarva; cannot travel the distance between the mouth of the jetties 

 and the experimental stations in the Gulf. In planting, therefore, 

 the question whether the prevailing currents are likely to bring 

 free swimming fry to the planted area must be carefully consid- 

 ered. • If there is no such source of free swimming young oysters 

 artificial seeding must be resorted to although the introduction of 

 spawners may be quite as effective if the currents are regular, 

 and sweep alternately with equal force in opposite directions. 



SUGGESTIONS. 



The suggestions which my study of the conditions for oyster 

 culture at Calcasieu Pass enable me to make may be divided into 

 two* classes — those offering immediate results, and those offering 

 results which need not only a larger experimental basis but also 

 capital and improved market facilities. 



I. 



The Condition and Yield of the Beds in the Pass May Be Im- 

 proved by Dredging. 

 In an earlier part of this report I have emphasized the great 

 dift'erences between the ordinary elongated oysters in the pass 

 and the well rounded oysters on the jetty. Part of the inferiority 

 of the former is due to over-crowding which if relieved would give 

 these oysters as good an opportunity for normal development as 

 their more fortunate relatives have on the west jetty. It is a well 

 known fact among dredgers, that natural reefs which are system- 

 atically dredged not only increase in size but also in the quality of 

 their yield. The increase in the size of the beds is due to the fact 

 that whenever the dredge runs over the margain of a reef a number 



*This was not due to opposed currents making impossible the headway of the 

 larvae, for had this been the case one or the other of the .stations would have been 

 reach id by the fry. 



