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  REPORT 
  OF 
  COMMISSIONER 
  OF 
  FISH 
  AND 
  FISHERIES. 
  

   FISHERIES 
  OF 
  ALABAMA. 
  

  

  The 
  coast 
  fisheries 
  of 
  Alabama 
  are 
  prosecuted 
  chie% 
  in 
  Mobile 
  Bay, 
  

   Mississippi 
  Sound, 
  and 
  the 
  Gulf 
  of 
  Mexico. 
  The 
  only 
  counties 
  of 
  the 
  

   state 
  located 
  on 
  the 
  coast 
  are 
  Mobile 
  County 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  and 
  Baldwin 
  

   County 
  on 
  the 
  east 
  of 
  Mobile 
  Bay. 
  

  

  The 
  principal 
  fishinu- 
  center 
  and 
  distriliuting 
  point 
  for 
  lisheiy 
  prod- 
  

   ucts 
  is 
  the 
  city 
  of 
  Mobile, 
  on 
  the 
  west 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  bay. 
  There 
  are 
  a 
  

   number 
  of 
  smaller 
  fishino- 
  localities 
  along- 
  the 
  coast, 
  the 
  more 
  im})()r- 
  

   tant 
  of 
  these 
  bein^ 
  Ba3'ou 
  Labatre, 
  Coden, 
  and 
  Dauphin 
  Island 
  in 
  

   Mobile 
  County, 
  and 
  Bon 
  Secour 
  and 
  Daphne 
  in 
  Baldwin 
  County. 
  

  

  The 
  species 
  taken 
  in 
  largest 
  quantities 
  in 
  the 
  fisheries 
  of 
  this 
  state 
  

   are 
  oysters, 
  red 
  snappers, 
  groupers, 
  mullet, 
  trout 
  or 
  squeteague, 
  

   sturgeon, 
  butfalo-fish, 
  cat-fish, 
  hard 
  crabs, 
  sheepshead, 
  channel 
  1-ass 
  or 
  

   red-fish, 
  spots, 
  croakers, 
  black 
  bass, 
  flounders, 
  and 
  Spanish 
  mackerel. 
  

  

  Oysters. 
  — 
  The 
  natural 
  oyster 
  reefs 
  of 
  Alabama 
  have 
  been 
  so 
  thor- 
  

   oughly 
  worked 
  that 
  many 
  of 
  the 
  oystermen 
  have 
  for 
  some 
  years 
  been 
  

   turning 
  their 
  attention 
  to 
  oyster 
  planting 
  on 
  private 
  beds. 
  This 
  is 
  partic- 
  

   ularly 
  the 
  case 
  at 
  Coden, 
  Bayou 
  Labatre, 
  and 
  Granite, 
  in 
  Mobile 
  County, 
  

   and 
  at 
  Bon 
  Secour, 
  Gasque, 
  and 
  Navy 
  Cove, 
  in 
  Baldwin 
  County. 
  The 
  

   seed 
  oysters 
  are 
  taken 
  mostly 
  on 
  the 
  western 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  bay. 
  No 
  restric- 
  

   tion 
  is 
  placed 
  on 
  the 
  time 
  of 
  taking 
  them, 
  but 
  they 
  are 
  usually 
  secured 
  

   during 
  March, 
  April, 
  and 
  May. 
  The 
  laws 
  of 
  Ala])ama 
  allow 
  oysters 
  

   to 
  be 
  planted 
  to 
  a 
  distance 
  of 
  600 
  yards 
  be3'ond 
  low-water 
  mark. 
  

   They 
  may 
  be 
  taken 
  for 
  market 
  from 
  the 
  natural 
  reefs 
  at 
  any 
  time 
  

   in 
  the 
  year, 
  the 
  fishermen 
  being 
  governed 
  entirely 
  by 
  the 
  demand, 
  

   which 
  is 
  greatest 
  from 
  September 
  1 
  to 
  April 
  15. 
  Tongs 
  are 
  the 
  

   only 
  apparatus 
  allowed 
  in 
  catching 
  them. 
  No 
  oysters 
  can 
  be 
  taken 
  

   measuring 
  less 
  than 
  2^ 
  inches 
  from 
  hinge 
  to 
  mouth, 
  and 
  the 
  maximum 
  

   quantit}' 
  a 
  single 
  boat 
  may 
  take 
  is 
  3,500 
  bushels 
  per 
  week. 
  The 
  ves- 
  

   sels 
  employed 
  in 
  transporting 
  oysters 
  from 
  the 
  grounds 
  to 
  market 
  

   also 
  engage 
  more 
  or 
  less 
  in 
  oystering 
  while 
  waiting 
  for 
  a 
  load. 
  The 
  

   greater 
  part 
  of 
  the 
  cateh 
  is 
  taken 
  to 
  Mobile, 
  but 
  many 
  are 
  sold 
  to 
  

   transporting 
  vessels 
  from 
  canneries 
  in 
  Mississippi. 
  The 
  prices 
  

   ranged 
  in 
  1902 
  from 
  40 
  cents 
  paid 
  by 
  the 
  Mississippi 
  vessels, 
  to 
  50 
  

   cents 
  per 
  barrel 
  paid 
  by 
  those 
  from 
  Mobile. 
  Oysters 
  from 
  the 
  nat- 
  

   ural 
  reefs 
  on 
  the 
  western 
  shore 
  of 
  Mobile 
  Bay 
  are 
  called 
  " 
  western 
  

   reefers," 
  and 
  those 
  from 
  the 
  eastern 
  side 
  of 
  the 
  bay 
  " 
  eastern 
  reefers."" 
  

  

  Med 
  snappers. 
  — 
  -This 
  fishery 
  centers 
  at 
  Mobile, 
  which 
  in 
  1902 
  sent 
  

   a 
  fleet 
  of 
  seven 
  vessels 
  to 
  the 
  snapper 
  banks. 
  The 
  prosecution 
  of 
  the 
  

   industry 
  has 
  been 
  pushed 
  with 
  much 
  energy 
  during 
  recent 
  years, 
  and 
  

   the 
  number 
  of 
  vessels 
  engaged, 
  which 
  vary 
  in 
  size 
  from 
  24 
  to 
  60 
  net 
  

   tons, 
  is 
  gradually 
  increasing. 
  Mobile 
  vessels 
  go 
  as 
  far 
  east 
  as 
  Tampa, 
  

   and 
  westward 
  to 
  the 
  coast 
  of 
  Mexico. 
  The 
  banks 
  nearest 
  to 
  Mobile 
  

   are 
  about 
  10 
  miles 
  from 
  the 
  mouth 
  of 
  the 
  bay. 
  

  

  