﻿OYSTER 
  INDUSTRY 
  OF 
  NORTH 
  CAROLINA. 
  275 
  

  

  ing 
  with 
  remarkable 
  rapidit}^, 
  and 
  the 
  oysters 
  "vyere 
  utilizing 
  the 
  over- 
  

   flow 
  for 
  food, 
  for 
  those 
  on 
  the 
  affected 
  beds 
  immediatel^y 
  became 
  fat 
  

   and 
  their 
  stomachs 
  were 
  full 
  of 
  the 
  plant 
  that 
  was 
  living 
  in 
  their 
  gills. 
  

   In 
  no 
  case 
  were 
  the 
  plants 
  found 
  in 
  the 
  tissues 
  of 
  the 
  o^^sters, 
  but 
  

   always 
  external. 
  

  

  Only 
  twice 
  before 
  do 
  the 
  oyster 
  men 
  remember 
  that 
  the 
  "green 
  

   gill" 
  has 
  affected 
  North 
  River 
  oysters, 
  and 
  they 
  state 
  that 
  at 
  those 
  

   times 
  the 
  whole 
  river 
  bottom 
  was 
  coated 
  with 
  green 
  slime. 
  Others 
  

   said 
  they 
  had 
  noticed 
  that 
  the 
  "green 
  gill" 
  occurred 
  when 
  the 
  leaves 
  

   fell 
  from 
  the 
  trees 
  while 
  yet 
  green. 
  In 
  the 
  present 
  instance 
  I 
  examined 
  

   the 
  bottom 
  of 
  the 
  river 
  carefully 
  and 
  not 
  onl}^ 
  failed 
  to 
  find 
  a 
  coating 
  

   of 
  green 
  slime, 
  but 
  failed 
  to 
  find 
  the 
  plant, 
  even 
  in 
  small 
  numbers, 
  and 
  

   the 
  color 
  in 
  this 
  case 
  could 
  not 
  have 
  come 
  from 
  chlorophyl 
  bodies 
  

   freed 
  from 
  decaying 
  leaves, 
  for 
  they 
  are 
  different 
  in 
  both 
  color 
  and 
  

   structure; 
  but 
  notwithstanding 
  the 
  fact 
  that 
  I 
  failed 
  to 
  find 
  a 
  green 
  

   scum 
  on 
  the 
  river 
  bottom, 
  I 
  was 
  told 
  the 
  following 
  summer 
  that 
  it 
  was 
  

   there 
  and 
  had 
  been 
  the 
  cause 
  of 
  the 
  "green 
  gill." 
  The 
  plant 
  is, 
  I 
  

   believe, 
  a 
  single-celled 
  blue-green 
  alga, 
  which 
  finds 
  very 
  favorable 
  

   conditions 
  for 
  its 
  growth 
  in 
  the 
  gills 
  of 
  the 
  oyster. 
  The 
  species 
  I 
  

   have 
  not 
  been 
  able 
  to 
  determine. 
  The 
  affected 
  oj^sters 
  were 
  used 
  fre- 
  

   quently 
  on 
  the 
  Fish 
  JlawJc 
  and, 
  aside 
  from 
  their 
  color, 
  could 
  not 
  be 
  

   distinguished 
  from 
  oysters 
  not 
  so 
  affected. 
  

  

  THE 
  SPAWNING 
  SEASON 
  OF 
  BEAUB^OKT 
  OYSTERS. 
  

  

  During 
  the 
  whole 
  of 
  the 
  time 
  occupied 
  in 
  the 
  survey 
  of 
  Newport 
  

   River 
  in 
  1899 
  the 
  oysters 
  from 
  the 
  natural 
  beds 
  contained 
  mature 
  eggs 
  

   and 
  sperms 
  in 
  their 
  gonads, 
  although 
  the 
  number 
  of 
  eggs 
  that 
  could 
  

   be 
  taken 
  from 
  an 
  individual 
  female 
  was 
  not 
  large. 
  In 
  North 
  River 
  

   females 
  with 
  mature 
  eggs 
  were 
  taken 
  until 
  early 
  winter, 
  December 
  18 
  

   being 
  the 
  latest 
  date 
  on 
  which 
  artificial 
  fertilization 
  was 
  successfully 
  

   accomplished, 
  but 
  the 
  gonads 
  were 
  very 
  small, 
  absorption 
  having 
  

   begun 
  in 
  October. 
  The 
  fact 
  that 
  mature 
  eggs 
  and 
  sperms 
  w^ere 
  pres- 
  

   ent 
  in 
  the 
  reproductive 
  organs 
  of 
  some 
  of 
  the 
  oysters 
  at 
  this 
  late 
  date 
  

   does 
  not 
  mean 
  that 
  spawning 
  continued 
  to 
  take 
  place; 
  and 
  had 
  they 
  

   been 
  discharged 
  into 
  the 
  water 
  their 
  development 
  would 
  doubtless 
  have 
  

   been 
  prevented 
  by 
  the 
  cold. 
  

  

  The 
  earliest 
  date 
  during 
  the 
  season 
  (1900) 
  at 
  which 
  eggs 
  were 
  suc- 
  

   cessfully 
  fertilized 
  was 
  the 
  16th 
  of 
  April. 
  The 
  oj^sters 
  found 
  at 
  this 
  

   time 
  with 
  mature 
  sexual 
  product 
  were 
  few, 
  but 
  their 
  reproductive 
  

   organs 
  were 
  being 
  rapidly 
  developed, 
  and 
  on 
  May 
  2 
  nearly 
  every 
  

   oyster 
  taken 
  from 
  the 
  natural 
  beds 
  was 
  ready 
  to 
  spawn. 
  While 
  it 
  was 
  

   possible 
  to 
  get 
  mature 
  eggs 
  from 
  the 
  middle 
  of 
  April 
  to 
  the 
  middle 
  

   of 
  December, 
  the 
  actual 
  spawning 
  season 
  probabl}^ 
  does 
  not 
  begin 
  

   before 
  the 
  1st 
  of 
  May, 
  and 
  it 
  probably 
  ends 
  in 
  November, 
  although 
  

   young 
  oj^sters 
  have 
  been 
  known 
  to 
  attach 
  to 
  shells 
  in 
  May, 
  June, 
  

  

  