20 



REPORT ON OYSTER CULTURE 

 Fig. 12. — Various Diatomaceae found at Hayling. 



The time required for fattening depends altogether on locality. 

 At Marennes, an oyster grows fat more rapidly than in the claires 

 of the He de Re. 



The only instance of importance of enclosed or tank cultivation 

 in France which we visited is that of Madame Felix, as already 

 stated. Her experiments proved most successful. The enclosure 

 is about four hectares (about ten acres) in extent ; in this 1 1,000 

 oysters were placed and 11,000 tiles. The first year, 1864, the 

 tiles were covered with spat, some of them having as many as 103 

 oysters, and the least of them about 20. 



Madame Felix contemplated operations on a much larger scale, 

 having only entered on the one described to ascertain what could 

 be accomplished. Owing to private causes, as well as some local 

 opposition offered to her enclosing a larger portion of the bay, 

 she has suspended further action for the present. 



Natural Oyster Banks. 



With respect to the natural oyster banks of France, most of 

 them became so denuded of oysters down to 1850, as to be hardly 

 worth fishing, and some, formerly of great importance — such as 

 those of Cancale, Granville, &c. — have been all but destroyed. 



The most important authorities on the subject in France com- 

 bine in attributing the exhaustion of the natural banks mainly to 

 over-dredging. 



In 1 850, the French Government became alive to the urgent 

 necessity of adopting stringent measures to prevent the threatened 

 destruction of the comparatively few that remained on the natural 

 banks, as well as to endeavour to replenish them where exhaus- 

 tion had taken place. The laws for this object are very effective. 

 (See Appendix B.) 



In brief, it may be stated, that the Government assume the 



