Conclusion 255 



track drives them farther afield each 

 succeeding year. So great in fact is the 

 havoc wrought in recent times amongst 

 the flat fishes ithat numerous species once 

 despised as food now bulk largely in the 

 national diet sheet. Such creatures as 

 oysters, mussels and lobsters are now 

 artificially fostered with as much care 

 and " applied science " as any garden 

 plants or field crops. 



The natural elimination of one form of 

 life is gradual, and in the past the waning 

 of one group heralded the dawn of 

 another which took its place and so pre- 

 served the balance. When, however, 

 Man once sets about the systematic 

 destruction of a group there is no such 

 compensating substitute forthcoming, 

 and a race may be blotted out effectually 

 and finally in the course of a few years. 

 As a result of human activities it will 

 soon become incorrect to refer to the 

 " balance of Nature " a balance which 



