22 U. S. BUREAU OF FISHERIES 
of seed lobsters taken along the Maine coast indicate that they do not 
mature before they reach a length of 334 inches; in many regions 
we have reason to believe that sexual matur ity must be first reached 
at a length greater than 3°4 inches. It appears that only about 8 per- 
cent of “the. “population has an opportunity to spawn. Further re- 
search must be carried on concerning this problem. 
As a result of a request from the North Atlantic Lobster Com- 
mittee to “assemble information concerning size limits and begin the 
research work required to obtain additional biological information 
necessary for sound recommendations concerning size limits,” certain 
data were gathered during the summer and fall fishing season. 
These observations consisted of a determination of the size composi- 
tion and sex ratio of the commercial catch, length-weight relation- 
ships, the relationship between the length measurements from eye 
socket to end of the carapace and total length measured from the tip 
of the rostrum to the end of the tail, and size measurements of seed 
lobsters. As seed lobsters proved to be difficult to find in any num- 
bers during the summer and fall, an indirect method of determining 
the sexual maturity was employed which was based on the fact that 
the width of the female’s abdomen increases at a higher rate than 
body length with the approach of sexual maturity. 
The present size regulation of 34 inches, carapace measurement, 
allows the capture of small, immature lobsters which results in an 
economic as well as a biological waste. A 314-inch lobster weighs 
1 pound, on the average. The important summer and fall fishery 
depends upon lobsters under 1 pound for 34 percent of its numbers. 
These small “chicken” lobsters are not in demand on the markets and 
a general lowering of the prices occurs with the overabundance of 
undesired sizes, 
Tagging experiments were carried on to determine the interde- 
pendence ‘of local populations and to measure the intensity of the 
fishery. A total of 413 lobsters were liberated in three groups in 
Boothbay Harbor; one lot in July, another in August, and a third 
in November. The recoveries were 27, 55, and 31 percent, respec- 
tively. The first percentage recovery is ‘not comparable to the second 
and third, as the lobsters of that group were near the shedding 
stage, at which time they would lose the tags. One hundred lobsters 
were released in the Sheepscot River, a long tidal estuary, during 
October and a 7-percent recovery resulted by the end of December. 
On the offshore fishing grounds of Sheepscot Bay, 186 lobsters were 
liberated in July and 100 in December. Recoveries of 12 and 3 
percent, respectively, were made by the end of the year. 
iiiris at early for the final results of the tagging to be known, 
as more tagged lobsters are expected to be caught during the summer 
and spring of 1940. At the present time, the longest migration has 
been 314 miles, and two facts are evident from the tag returns: 
First, there is very little migration during the summer and fall 
months; and, second, the intensity of the fishery may vary in dif- 
ferent regions, depending upon the season and the number of traps 
fished in an area. 
Although records of daily catches and the Panes of lobster traps 
fished by “the entire industry are not available for the year, certain 
lobster dealers have kept daily records of the catches of their fish- 
