28 OYSTER BOTTOMS IN VICINITY OF APALACHICOLA, FLA. 
12. BULKHEAD AND EAST HOLE BARS. 
These two large, continuous reefs may, for the purposes of this dis- 
cussion, be designated as one body. ‘They lie in a broad, but gradu- 
ally narrowing, band reaching in a southeast direction from the 
dredged channel or cut, immediately south of Cat Point Bar, to St. 
George Island. The bars have a length of nearly 3 miles, an average 
width of about three-fourths mile, and an approximate area of 1,379 
acres. The northernmost portion is locally denominated Bulkhead 
Bar, the remaining part East Hole Bar. There appears to be no 
distinct line of separation between the beds, but there is a difference 
in the quality of the stock. 
With the exception of a projection on the extreme west border and 
an indentation or bay at the southeast corner the outlines of the beds 
are fairly straight. The depth of water (mean low level) is from 54 
to 9 feet on the upper part and from 14 to 54 feet on the lower. The 
bottoms are composed of mud, or mud and sand, with some shell, 
and are raised above the adjacent territory from 1 to 5 feet. The 
beds appear to have progressed slightly westward during the last 20 
years. 
About 95 per cent of the total area of the beds has dense growth. 
The remaining portion, consisting of 57 acres situated off St. George 
Island, has scattering or very scattermg growths and depleted bot- 
toms. The oysters occur in clusters and as singles, generally of good 
shape, although at several stations the clustered raccoon type pre- 
dominated, particularly on the denser and unworked areas. At the 
time of the examination the quality of the material varied from poor 
to good, the better grades being found along the upper and central 
parts of East Hole Bar. Mussels and barnacles were plentiful at 
several stations. Algz were abundant especially near the south shore. 
But very little oystering was being pursued on Bulkhead Bar 
during the survey. It was stated that the product from this bed is 
used more particularly for steam stock. It appears that this bar 
would be improved by more extensive fishing. From six to eight 
boats were engaged in the fishery on east Hole Bar and were obtaining 
a good yield and satisfactory prices. | 
More than 90 biological stations were made on these bars. The 
areas, details of examination, and other data are given in the following 
tables: 
