FISHERIES OF CALIFORNTA FISHERMEN" IN MEXICAN WATERS. 5 



March 1 to October 15, which does not appear to be strictly enforced, 

 as these crustaceans are still (1920) coming in at all seasons. 



It is a theory with some fishermen that spmy lobsters grow an 

 inch a year. Thus, a 9-inch spiny lobster is 9 years old. It is 

 said that they begin to spawn when 3 years old. They spawn in 

 May, June, July, and August, and it is the custom of the fishermen 

 at this time to pull the spawn off the females when caught, as the 

 dealers will not accept them with the eggs attached. The stomachs 

 of mackerel are sometimes found gorged with spiny lobster spawn, 

 showing that they are great enemies of this crustacean. As a 

 general rule, the large specimens of spiny lobsters are males and the 

 smaller ones females. Three kinds are distinguished — the very 

 dark colored, the red, and the very light. This distinction seems 

 accidental, due possibly to the environment. 



The number of turtles (Chelonia agassizii) brought into southern Cal- 

 ifornia is increasing. They are captured almost altogether along the 

 Lower California coast and are usually sliipped alive. The favorite 

 locality for their capture at present (1920) is San Bartolome, or Turtle 

 Bay, although Magdalena Bay is also much resorted to. The Gulf of 

 California, however, will eventually be the chief source of supply, as 

 turtles occur there in great numbers and are often of large size. 

 A conservative estimate of the number brought in may be placed 

 at 5,000, of an average weight of 50 pounds, although a weight of 

 300 pounds or more is not uncommon.^ They are mostly taken 

 at the spiny-lobster and abalone camps. Of late considerable 

 attention is being given to the canning of turtle soups and steaks, 

 which are received with favor by the trade. A turtle cannery on 

 San Diego Bay has two vessels bringing in turtles. A considerable 

 trade has also sprung up in the importation of turtle oil, which is 

 used in the manufacture of high-grade soaps and cosmetics. 



The take of abalone is now (1920) confined almost altogether to the 

 Lower California coast. A Japanese firm of San Diego has con- 

 trolled the abalone business in the south for many years and has 

 40 or 50 men engaged in the fishery. They form camps of 5 or 10 

 men, who move from place to place. They aim to return each 

 year but sometimes miss one or even two years. The product 

 amounts to 80 or 100 tons of dried meats per year, valued at 35 

 cents per pound, or S700 per ton. 



The fishermen generally use a water glass for locating the abalone 

 and then scrape them off the rocks with hoelike instruments. The 

 abalone, however, are frequently in water too deep for this method 

 or are wedged in crevices or located under ledges. To obtain these, 

 the men resort to diving, usually in diving suits, but sometimes 

 naked. Some of the camps are quite large. One on Northeast 

 Bay, Cedros Island, visited m 1916, had nine persons. After cleaning 

 the abalone and removing all refuse the meats are boiled for a short 

 time in salt water, usually with a little lye added to produce the 

 dark color that the oriental trade demands — to which trade most of 

 the product goes — and are then dried in the sun. The drying trays 

 or racks in this camp were arranged in four rows, each over 150 feet 

 long by 3 feet wide, and were elevated about 3 feet from the ground. 



* According to Van Denburgh (1922, Vol. II, p. 996): "Large specimens may weigh 500 or 600 pounds, 

 but the average is much less." 



