92 REPORT OF COMMISSIONERS OF INLAND FISHERIES. 



The success of the experiment emphasized the importance of 

 especial care in the treatment of the egg lobsters. Considerable 

 difficulty was experienced during the past year in this respect, and 

 many of the eggs were dead before they were taken from the lobster. 

 This was attributed in part to the unusually cold and rainy weather, 

 which delayed development and freshened the water, and in part 

 to inadequate provision for collecting and shipping the egg lobsters. 

 The first difficulty can be in part corrected by the construction of 

 deeper cars, so that the lobsters will not be kept near the surface of 

 the water during the time when the eggs are maturing. The crates 

 which, are placed in the rearing bags to hold the ripe egg lobsters 

 while the eggs are hatching have been remodelled for this same 

 reason. The new crates are ten inches deep and as large as the size 

 of the bags will allow. They are made of heavy galvanized wire 

 about eight meshes to the inch, and provided with a solid cover to 

 shade the lobsters from the sun. 



The difficulty in getting the lobsters fresh from the pots can best 

 be solved probably only by visiting the cars, or even the pots, with a 

 boat containing a well. It is hoped that such a boat may be provided. 



SUMMARY OF RESULTS. 



This year 190,000 were reared to the fourth stage and 25,000 to 

 the fifth stage. The previous year 103,000 were reared to the fourth 

 stage. All lobsters reared were liberated in the waters of the bay, 

 except a few which were used for experimental purposes. The egg 

 lobsters were tagged and liberated when stripped. From 210 which 

 were tagged, 36 tags were retm-ned with the desired information. 



