An Account of an Experiment in Artificially Fertilizing the 

 Ova of the European Oyster (Ostreaedulis.) 



Having been engaged during the summers of 1878 — 9 

 under the direction of the U. S. Coast and G-eodetic Sur- 

 vey upon an investigation of the oyster beds of Cliesa- 

 peafe Bay. and having devoted some attention to the 

 biology of the American oyster during those seasons, 

 such study being an incidental and partially a necessary 

 portion of my work, I have been lead, by the interest 

 awakened by my previous labors, and by Dr. Brooks' 

 late . successful experiment in artificially impregnating 

 the ova of the American oyster, to attempt a like ex- 

 periment with the European species. AYliile the vessel 

 to which I am at present attached was off Cadiz, Spain, 

 I was so fortunate as to obtain about one hundred oys- 

 ters fit for fertilization from the waters of the Bay of 

 Cadiz, and my exi3eriment having been successful beyond 

 my expectations, I have concluded to lay the record of 

 it before the Marvland Academy of Sciences, think- 

 ing that any information regarding the oyster, whether 

 of the European or American species, could not fail to 

 be of interest to the Academy. During the summer 

 of 1879 I had the x)leasure of witnessing the experiments 

 of Dr. Brooks, which he has detailed in his paper upon 

 the Develox)ment of the American Oyster, and with 

 which the Academy is doubtless familiar, and in con- 

 ducting my own experiment I have followed his method 

 as nearly as possible, and have used his figures in de- 

 scribing the development of tlie Euroi)ean animal. I 

 can therefore lay no claim to originality in either the 

 cpnception or execution of the experiment which I un- 

 dertook, and I am but a follower in Dr. Brooks' foot- 

 steps. As however, this is, so far as I am aware, the 



