108 ITS TRAGICAL FATE. 



of the leafy weeds, especially the bushy Cliondrus., 

 taking all positions and attitudes in order to scrutinise 

 the inmost corners ; and with encouraging success, 

 for he was continually picking off something, invisible 

 indeed to my eye, but eaten with evident gusto, to 

 judge by the smacking of his lips. I suppose these 

 were chiefly Ento^nostraca, or perhaps Infusoria^ 

 which the globular crystalline lens of his eye magnified 

 at the short distance at which he saw them. This 

 distance, which was commonly about half-an-inch, was 

 made sufficiently manifest, by the action of the fish, 

 for the snap was made doubtless the moment the prey 

 was seen. I never once saw the Corkwing attempt 

 to take or even notice any floating atoms of food, 

 but only such as was attached, either to the Alg^ or 

 to stones,* 



This pretty little fish came to an untimely end in 

 a singular way. K large specimen of the Parasitic 

 Actinia was in the Tank, a species which shoots out 

 its thread-bearing filaments in unusual abundance and 

 to great length, when alarmed. I suppose the Cork- 

 wing must have accidentally touched the Zoophyte in 

 passing, but this I did not see. On looking at the 

 Aquarium, I saw the little fish with one of the filaments 

 sticking to its mouth, evidently the accident of that 

 very instant. It was greatly distressed ; darted hither 

 and thither wildly as if in agony ; soon lay down on 

 its side, and though two or three times it started up 

 and essayed to swim, it was presently dead. 



* Since then, however, I have had a Corkwing, which snapped up 

 readily atoms of cooked meat, thrown in by hand. {Second Edition.) 



