OYSTER INVESTIGATIONS IN GEORGIA 75 



The following localities visited during the survey are regarded 

 as particularly suitable for oyster culture: Oyster Creek, Tybee 

 Island; Black River, Burnside Island; Newell Creek, Ossabaw 

 Island; Sunbury Creek, Medway River; Ashville Creek and sur- 

 rounding marshes, Timmons River; Blackbeard River, Sapelo 

 Island ; Dead River, Folly River, and surrounding marshes ; Duplin 

 River; and Doboy Island and vicinity. 



OBSEBVATIONS AND EXPERIMENTS IN OYSTER CULTURE AT 



DOBOY ISLAND 



In order to outline more specifically the best method of oyster 

 culture suitable to local conditions, a number of observations and 

 experiments were carried out in the summer of 1927 by J. H. 

 Weatherby at Doboy Island. It must be borne in mind that eco- 

 logical conditions of inshore waters along the Georgia coast are quite 

 different from those of New England and Long Island Sound, where 

 oyster farming has been in operation for more than 60 years, and 

 that consequently the methods and experience gained in the cultiva- 

 tion of oysters in the northern latitudes are not directly applicable 

 to the waters of the South Atlantic States. The very complex 

 topography of the coastal region of Georgia presents difficulty in 

 selecting a representative location. Probably no location along the 

 coastal line could be called typical for the whole section. 



The decision to carry out experimental work in the vicinity of 

 Doboy Island was influenced by several considerations: The State 

 authorities promised to provide on the island quarters suitable for 

 a field laboratory; the island is easily accessible froi» either Darien 

 or Brunswick; several productive oyster beds are found in its 

 vicinit3\ and the bottoms near by present a great variety of condi- 

 tions, from very soft mud to hard-shelled grounds; and, finally, it 

 has been known that setting of oysters in the vicinity of Doboy 

 Island is usually good. In June, 1928, a primitive dwelling was 

 provided by the State in which a temporary laboratory w^as estab- 

 lished. The work was, however, greatly handicapped by the ad- 

 verse conditions under which the bureau's investigator worked and 

 lived. Sultry heat; swarms of sand flies, mosquitoes, ants, and other 

 insects infesting the laboratory ; the dilapidated state of the building ; 

 and the difficulty of obtaining help on the small, isolated island, sur- 

 rounded by marshes, constituted considerable obstacles in carrying 

 out the program of observations. The latter consisted in taking 

 daily temperature and salinity readings, in a study of tidal currents, 

 in collecting quantitative plankton samples, and in experiments with 

 brush and wire-bag spat collectors. The work continued from June 

 22 until September 1. 



BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE LOCALITY 



Doboy Island is located at the confluence of the North and Black 



Rivers and Doboy Sound. (Fig. 1.) A narrow canal separates it 



from Commodore Island on the east. The greatest part of the island 



is salt marsh, and only a small portion of it in the southwestern 



10321S— 30 3 



