SHELLFISH RESOURCES OF NORTHWEST COAST. 3 



the west side by way of Nahcotta and the east side by way of South 

 Bend. Olympia, Wash., was visited for information relative to the 

 shellfish resources of the southern Puget Sound regrion. 



Since the coastal territorj^ covered in these investig-ations is so ex- 

 tensive and so varied in character of its geograph}^ it naturally re- 

 solves itself into a number of more or less distinct shellfish centers, 

 each with some characteristics peculiar to itself. 



For purposes of system and convenience in this report, six more 

 important shellfish centers or regions will be discussed under sepa- 

 rate headings. Following these, consideration is given to localities 

 of minor importance. The species of shellfish found in each region 

 and their distribution, relative abundance, and importance are indi- 

 cated, together with such other investigations and observations as 

 were made during the course of the survey. The photographs in- 

 cluded in the report are illustrative of some of the regions dis- 

 cussed and of the typical shellfish of the Northwest. A summary 

 and conclusions are to be found at the end of the report. 



SHELLFISH RESOURCES OF MAJOR IMPORTANCE. 

 THE coos BAY REGION. 



Coos Bay, in Coos County, Oreg., is one of the larger bays of that 

 State. It is shaped like an inverted V with the apex directed north- 

 ward and the outlet of the bay toward the lower end of the left arm. 

 Near the head of the bay, Coos River and other smaller streams feed 

 it with fresh water and much silt from the surrounding territory. 

 In parts of the bay on either side of the navigation channel are 

 broad mud flats, exposed or nearly so during reasonably low tides. 



On these broad mud flats a number of species of edible clams have 

 become well adapted to their surroundings. Extensive beds of Mya 

 are nana Linnaeus, the eastern mud clam, are to be found on the 

 north side of the channel opposite the town of North Bend. During 

 favorable conditions of weather the channel can be crossed by a row- 

 boat and the clams transported to North Bend or Marshfield, an 

 adjoining town. Here Mya arenmia grows to a fair size and is 

 present in considerable abundance. 



During 191 T and for several years previous to that date Frank 

 LaRue supplied the local demands for this shellfish. No attempt 

 was made by j\Ir. LaRue to develop outside markets for the clam, 

 as he believed that Mya could not be obtained in sufficient quantities 

 in Coos Bay for both local and export trade. In 1917 the local price 

 received for Mya was $0.75 per 5-gallon can of fresh clams, includ- 

 ing shells. 



Early in 1918 Samuel Terrill came to North Bend from Florence, 

 Oreg., and established a market for shellfish and other sea products. 

 This permanent place of business, with a supply of clams, crabs, 

 etc., on display where the public might see them, was an apparent 

 stimulus to their use as articles of food. Mr. Terrill was carrying 

 on a good business locally during the fall of 1918. He made little 

 or no attempt to place clams on the markets of Willamette Valley 

 towns, although there is direct communication by rail with Portland 

 and intermediate points, the time required for transportation by 

 express from North Bend to Portland being about 12 hours. The 



