PROGRESS IN BIOLOGICAL INQUIRIES, 1936 61 
mature females which will develop into sponge crabs during the 
following spring. This knowledge should be of practical use in 
future regulation of the crab industry, particularly during a period 
of scarcity when protection of potential spawners may be advisable. 
APPROPRIATIONS 
Funds for the work, carried on by the Division of Scientific In- 
quiry in the calendar year 1936 were derived mainly from the appro- 
priation, Inquiry Respecting Food Fishes, and approximately one- 
half of the appropriations for each of the fiscal years 1936 and 
1937 was available for this work. The appropriation for the fiscal 
year 1936 was $164,700, an increase of 7144 percent over the preceding 
year. The appropriation for the fiscal year 1937 was $172,000 or a 
further increase of 4.4 percent over 1936. By means of these in- 
creases in appropriations it has been possible to reestablish several 
positions in the scientific field staff to take up investigations which 
had been discontinued previously because of repeated reductions in 
annual appropriations. A summary of the amounts available for 
the various major projects in each of the two fiscal years follows: 





Project 1936 1937 
Regular appropriations: 
Ccmmercial fishery investigations__-.-.----------- $109, 580 $113, 5380 
Oyster culturalinvesticationss= 225 == se==ee= == === 15, 840 19, 200 
ACuiCultural Imvestigations= === == sae = see a ae 34, 900 33, 845 
Conserving fish by screens and ladders-_ -_---------- 2, 000 1, 550 
Washington laboratory and administration_____~-__- 2, 380 3, 875 
Motaleet si 2 we wee Sh ee er 164, 700 172, 000 
Allotment for maintenance and operation of vessels_ 11, 400 26, 300 
Special funds: 
York River pollution investigations_-___---------- 16, 740 17, 456 
Bonnevallemishweary, Gesicm. 2 es. = eee GHbG4t |S) sete as 
Shellfish pest control studies. 222 5-3" =22-22-252= 100, 000 25, 000 


In the fiscal year 1936 a special appropriation of $100,000 for 
shellfish investigations, available for use in the fiscal years 1935 and 
1936 together with the subsequent appropriation of $25,000 for the 
same purpose for use in the fiscal year 1937, made possible the con- 
tinuance of a large-scale survey of the distribution of shellfish pests 
and an investigation of the means of controlling them. An addi- 
tional allotment of $10,000 was provided by the Public Works 
Administration for the continued investigation of the effects of 
pulp-mill wastes on oysters of the York River, Va. An increase in 
funds allotted for the operation of Atlantic coast vessels made pos- 
sible extensive alterations and the recommissioning of the motor 
vessel Pelican for use in the shrimp investigations in the South 
Atlantic and Gulf coast regions. 
O 
