THE NATIVE OYSTERS OF THE WEST 



COAST 



By Robert E. C. Stearns 

 Honorary Associate in Zoology, U. S. National Museum 



IN reading Dr Smith's interesting- 

 article, "Our Fish Immigrants," in 

 a recent number of this Maga- 

 zine, his comments on the native oysters 

 of the west coast attracted my attention. 

 "When we consider the fact that our 

 "natives" are absolutely unpretentious, 

 it would seem as if criticism should be 

 tempered with mercy. 



Several species and varieties of oys- 

 ters* inhabit the long stretch of shore 

 between Vancouver Island and San 

 Diego, and doubtless these are found 

 for a considerable distance north and 

 south of the points indicated, as well as 

 in the various bays and inlets connected 

 directly or indirectly with the sea, espe- 

 cially that great body of inland water, 

 Puget Sound. They also occur on the 

 rocky margins of the islands in the Santa 

 Barbara Channel and elsewhere on the 

 islands and islets farther north. In 

 bygone days they furnished food for the 

 Indians, to a limited extent, as they do 

 now to the palefaces. The abundance 

 of abalones and ''clams" of many species 

 afforded an ampler supply to the "red 

 men," as is proven by the remains of clam 

 bakes in the mounds and shell-heaps 

 (Kitchenmiddens) here and there, silent 

 testimony of many old-time festivals. 



The principal or best-known native 

 oyster is O. lurida, which is the only 

 species of commercial importance. It is 

 always purchasable in the San Francisco 

 markets and has been to my knowledge 

 for nearly or quite fifty years. At the 

 present time it is quotable on the retail 

 stalls at 40 to 50 cents a hundred, the 

 transplanted Atlantic 0. virginica selling 

 at 30 to 40 cents a dozen. 



* Ostrea lurida, and varieties expansa and 

 laticaudata; O. concaphila, also O. amara ; the 

 latter, however, belongs to a more southerly 

 fauna. 



The common "natives" of the British 

 Isles and the general seaboard of north- 

 ern Europe, O. edulis, according to com- 

 mon report, have the same "coppery 

 flavor" as O. lurida; as they usually oc- 

 cur, they are about the same size. In the 

 matter of flavor, it should be borne in 

 mind that oysters of the same species 

 vary considerably according to the 

 locality or station where they occur. In 

 the still, shallow waters of lagoons they 

 are usually much saltier than in the proxi- 

 mate deeper water along the shores,, that 

 are more thoroughly washed by the daily 

 tides. This was observed by me when 

 on the Gulf coast of Florida in 1869. 

 Presumably the above, and other factors 

 not so easily perceived, affect the flavor 

 one way or another. 



The writing of this paper revives the 

 memory of a plate of "natives" eaten 

 at Astoria, in July, 1882, on the invitation 

 of the late Justice Stephen J. Field, of 

 the Supreme Court of the United States. 

 By a happy coincidence we were fellow- 

 travelers on the steamer from Portland, 

 Oregon, to San Francisco. We had 

 known each other for twenty years. Our 

 oyster feast was therefore akin to a love 

 feast, for the Justice was a genial com- 

 panion. He pronounced the oysters 

 good, and they were good ; the best 

 "natives" I had ever tasted. Locality, as 

 before remarked, is to be considered 

 when we discuss flavors. 



This applies with equal or greater 

 force to clams. Mya arenaria, the com- 

 mon long-necked clam, or "mananose," 

 occurs in clean sandy stations ; also in 

 beds that are more or less muddy, in 

 which case the flavor is impaired and the 

 meats, as an epicure would say, have 

 an "off taste." 



Our native 0. lurida is small; when 

 "shucked," about the size of a half-dol- 



