66 



U, S. BUREAU OF FISHEEIES 



" coon " oyster is not a o-eooraphieal race or a mutation but is merely 

 the result of the arowtli ot" the or<iauism under peculiar environ- 



FiGPRK 5. — Oysters growing on fallen branches on the shore of the Blackbeard 



River, Ga. Low tide 



mental conditions. It is worth mentioning that in the old times 

 " coon " oysters, which at present may be regarded as the prevailing 

 type of oyster in the waters of South Carolina and Georgia, existed 



FiGinE (J. — Well-developed oyster bed on flats near nrunswick, (Ja. Low tide 



in Long Island Sound. Shells dredged from the l)ottom of the old 

 natural bed at the moutli of Housatonic liiver, Conn., have all the 

 characteristics of modern " coon " oysters now growing on the reefs 



