252 Our Food Mollusks 



long way to go from the present state of affairs to suc- 

 cessful oyster culture. 



Florida is the most backward of all states having an 

 oyster territory. In prehistoric times great quantities 

 of oysters were taken from its bays and lagoons, as is 

 shown by extensive shell heaps along both of its coasts. 

 On the Atlantic side natural oyster reefs still are found 

 near Fernandina, and in certain parts of the Indian 

 River, which is a long, narrow bay of salt water cut off 

 from the ocean by a low ridge. The coast-line on the 

 Gulf side is broken by several extensive bays and wide 

 river mouths, in which oysters grow luxuriantly. 



Oysters from parts of the southernmost coast are said 

 to be very " coppery " in taste. This peculiar flavor is 

 to be found in oysters from many localities north and 

 south in this country, as well as in Europe. It is not 

 caused by the presence of copper in solution in the water, 

 as it has been supposed, but its nature is not known. 



Many of the oysters of the lower part of the peninsula 

 are of the " coon " type, and lie above the low water 

 mark, as in the Carolinas. Much has been written of 

 oysters attached to the roots of the mangroves in Florida, 

 that are exposed at low tide, as if they were as anomalous 

 as the fruit of Eugene Field's " Sugar-plum Tree." 

 These " oysters that grow on trees " are, of course, ex- 

 actly the same in habit and in position, with reference to 

 the tide, as many of the oysters that grow on mud. In 

 the middle and upper parts of the Gulf shore are many 

 beds bearing oysters of good shape. This is because 

 they are tonged frequently enough to insure the breaking 

 apart of clusters. 



Here, also, most of the beds are below tide lines. As 

 in the Carolinas, they have the form of long, narrow 



