CO[.LKCTIO>f OF SEED OYSTERS 



59 



the collection of set through the whole vertical range or zone in 

 which settin*^ takes place. 



The intensity of setting that will occur each year in certain local- 

 ities can be determined a month or more in advance by the method 

 outlined by the author in Bureau of Fisheries Document No. 1054. 

 When the outlook is unfavorable the collectors can either be planted 

 sparingly or be saved imtil the following year. When conditions 



FiGUEE 9. — Enlarged photograph of %-inch square of oyster shell, showing 28 spat 

 1 week old, and only 1 of which can survive at the end of the year 



are favorable, planting operations can be increased so as to prepare 

 as great an amount of surface as possible for collection of spat. By 

 obtaining the maximum yield during the best setting- years the in- 

 dustry will be benefited not only by having more and better seed to 

 grow for market but by having in the coming summers a good supply 

 of oysters for the production of spawn and future sets. 



o 



