408 POPULAR SCIENCE MONTHLY. 



The sunfishes make a brilliant display, as do the pearl roaches 

 caught in Harlem Mere at Central Park. For downright homeliness 

 the great eighty-pound channel catfish from the Mississippi takes the 

 first place. The bow fin (Amia) and the gar (Lepidosteus) always 

 attract attention, together with the carp and the whitefish that come 

 from the Great Lakes. 



Along with the fresh-water fishes are three groups of amphibians: 

 great bullfrogs from New York State, the mud puppy (Necturus) from 

 the great lakes, and the hellbender (Cryptobranchiis) from the Ohio 

 Paver. There is always a group of visitors in front of the tanks of the 

 l wo latter animals, watching the beautiful gills of the mud puppy and 

 commenting on the loose suit of clothes worn by the hellbender. 



On the salt-water side, the tropical fishes furnish by far the greatest 

 beauty and attraction. Their gaudy colors and strange forms are in 

 strong contrast to the somewhat monotonous hues of most of our coast- 

 wise fishes, but both are harmonious with their surroundings. In the 

 clear, limpid waters of Bermuda and the West Indies, under a tropic 

 sun, the 'sea gardens' flourish, and great purple sea-fans, bright saffron 

 sea-rods, large clumps of bright red and vivid green sea-weeds make a 

 brilliant setting for the higher forms of life. 



The world below the brine. 



Forests at the bottom of the sea — the branches and leaves, 



Sea-lettuce, vast lichens, strange flowers and seeds — the thick tangle, the openings 



and the pink turf, 

 Different colors, pale gray and green, purple, white and gold — the play of light 



through the water, 

 Dumb swimmers there among the rocks — coral, gluten, grass, rushes — and the 



aliment of the swimmers, 

 Sluggish existence grazing there, suspended, or slowly crawling close to the 



bottom. 



In such environment the beautiful Angel-fish, with its long, stream- 

 ing, yellow fins and sky-blue body, is no longer conspicuous as in the 

 tanks. The ruddy Hind conceals itself easily at the bottom, while the 

 little Four-eyed-fish (so called), brilliant in golden livery with jet- 

 black markings, vanishes from sight by merely shifting its position. 

 On the other hand, the Parrot fishes — which range in color from bright 

 grass green through blues and browns — are boldly conspicuous in 

 their warning colors, for their flesh is poisonous to other animals, 

 including man. The Squirrel-fish, in his brilliant scarlet coat, is 

 equally conspicuous; for woe to the unwary captor that attempts to 

 swallow him! His strong, sharp spine and rough scales would lacerate 

 the maw of the hardiest carnivore, and he swims about among them free 

 from any fear. 



These tropical fishes exhibit the function of changing their color 

 in a high degree. The great Groupers are worth watching as they move 



