The Morgan City daily review. (Morgan City, La.) 1916-1920, 1917-04-03

WHICH SUOulu Uc OO1uC ~ "'NAN
industry benefiting from it.
"Three classes Of problems can
conveniently be distinguished for
general discussion. as follows:
l. 1.-The discovery of various
means of combating the natural
pests and Affections affecting she'll
fish.
?. 1.-The conservation Of the ma
tural fertility and advantages CT
our coastal waters.
8. 1.-The development Of method
whereby the industry can be en-
tended and increased so as to utiliz.,
the great food reserve which at the
present time runs waste into the
sea.
The extension Of planting in it.
self brings forward the greatest un-
solved problem-the collection OF
plentiful seed oysters. So long as
the planted areas remain small com
pared to natural oyster areas.
abundant seed is readily obtained.
With the increase in demand more
and more difficulty is experienced in
finding natural seed. and artificial
means must be restored to for saw
ing further proportion of the
enormous production of eggs. Of
late years even these methods have
largely failed and more strenuous
measures must be taken, if large
areas in Long Island Sound are to
continue to be planted in the COM
ing year.
1T is evidently impossible to take
up at once all the problems which
present themselves. Some are more
acute. and Of these some offer more
definite promise of ready solution,
while others can be best solved by
the men actually engaged in the
work. 1t is far better TO concentrate
attention upon each in turn. and
bring it to o successful conclusion
than to scatter the interest over all
and so to finish none completely.
At the present time the most urgent
need is undoubtedly the collection
of set" Unless the failure OF the
last few years are made up. enor-
nous losses are sure to follow.
This seams the more strange
when one realizes that millions of
eggs are produced every year for
each adult oyster lying on the bot
tom. There are in these regions four
or five crops of bearing oysters for
each crop annually removed. Ger
tainly among every million eggs
spawned hardly one is destined to
reach the cultch spread out to col
lect it. and could but q smallest por-
ton be saved, the yield of young
oysters would be ample for al
needs. Not until something Of the
distribution of the larvae and their
development during this critical
period of existence is understood
and methods of chance and guess
work replaced by those based upon
scientific information and examina-
ton, can a rational dependable
method of seed collection be estab-
lished.
1T is the intention of the Bureau
of Fisheries during the coming
spawning season to make an extern
sive study of the conditions under
which set" can most certainly be
obtained. A station has been loca-
ted at Milford. Conn.,, the center of
the seed industry of Long Island
Sound. Careful examination of the
water will be made at regular in
tervals over the whole region. and
the number of young oysters and
their stage of development deter
mined. From this data it may be
possible to predict the quantity and
trend Of the swarms Of oysters
larvae, and advanced statements is
sued describing their progress. and
likely regions for 8 successful
strike, and the probable time of
occurrence. When this chapter of
the life history Of the oyster IS
written, it should serve as q found
alton for q rational system of seed
culture.