REPORT OF COMMISSIONER OF FISH AND FISHERIES. 165 
Between April 16 and June 135, 1890, 723 lobsters furnished 8,317,000 
eggs yielding 4,511,000 embryos. Between April 28 and June 30, 1891, 
4,353,000 eggs were obtained from 482 lobsters, and from these 3,533,000 
embryos were secured. The proportion of eggs hatched in 1889 was 
about 51 per cent; in 1890, 54 per cent; and in 1891, 81 per cent. The 
greatly increased percentage in the last-mentioned year was due to 
greater skill in the handling of the eggs, and to the exclusive use of 
the automatic shad jar, which is better adapted to the treatment 
of lobster eggs than any other apparatus yet employed for that pur- 
pose. Observations made in 1890 tended to show that the lobster eggs 
did not hatch in the apparatus until the temperature of the water had 
risen to between 54° and 59° F. This fact, however, needs to be cor- 
roborated. 
During the seasons of 1890 and 1891, Mr. V. N. Edwards kept a 
careful record respecting the sizes of all breeding lobsters which he 
handled, and the number of eggs furnished by each. The results ob- 
tained are exceedingly interesting, and indicate that a larger propor- 
tion of the lobsters begin to spawn at an early age than has generally 
been supposed. These facts are shown in the following table: 
Table showing the number of eggs to lobsters of each size, seasons of 1890 and 1891. 
; Novae ; Average No. 
Size. Tehstecs No. of eggs. | of eggs to 
ine each size. 
Sitorssinches.....5~).2-6--.- fea 23 149, 226 6, 480 
Oinon OSM GHA sos tee sees ona eie Se aaa ae 344 2,642, 291 7, 600 
Tl) joni brn one Oe Sk Bee aerasosemesoncec A 553 5, 763, 542 10, 400 
lstoM 2 INCHOsssss58 - 2 - cea ase ee ae ee ees 226 3, 095, 037 13, 600 
PaO ouNCHOSs a sac. oee baw os sc nS ealee erases 50 907, 830 18, 000 
PICO) JA vin CHESS Selava a oo 0a a's ere ste atararsialele <i 9 208, 590 23, 100 
Potala paca sass caer eas ene 1, 205 12, 766, 016 10, 594 
The averages given in this table do not represent the total numbers 
actually extruded by the females, as in a large percentage of the speci- 
mens many of the eggs had been removed by one cause or another 
before the lobsters were captured. Hels, cunners, and other small 
rapacious fishes are undoubtedly responsible for much of this destrue- 
tion. The extreme range in the number of eggs recorded for each size 
was as follows: In specimens measuring from 8 to 8? inches, 3,000 to 
12,000 eggs; 9 to 10 inches, 3,000 to 16,500 eggs; 10 to 11 inches, 3,000 
to 21,000 eggs; 11 to 12 inches, 3,000 to 24,000 eggs; 12 to 13 inches, 
6,000 to 30,000 eggs; 13 to 14 inches, 15,000 to 36,000 eggs. 
Over one-fourth of the breeding lobsters were between 9 and 10 
inches long, and nearly one-half between 10 and 11 inches long. Only 
59 were taken whose size was above 12 inches, and none exceeded 14 
inches. It may, therefore, be concluded with respect to the Vineyard 
Sound region that the average size of the breeding lobsters is much 
