206 



etable matter,— the so-called ''green fl*og*spawn" (spirogyra) and 

 duckweed. If you supply the sticklebacks with plenty of tine 

 vegetable material, you may induce them to build a nest ia the 

 aquarium jar, but they must be caught and placed in the jar early 

 in the season before they spawn. 



The Johnny Darters. 



In Xew York State every swift stream which has a bed of gravel 

 and liat stone ousfht to contain some one of the Jolinnv darters, for 

 there are a great many different kinds (Fig. 110). They are little 



creatures, d e - 

 lighting in clear 

 water and swift 

 currents, wliere 

 they dart about, 

 hidino; u n d e r 

 stones and 

 leaves, or rest- 

 ing on the bot- 

 tom with their 

 heads upstream. 

 The body of a 



darter is compact and spindle-shaped, gradually tapering from the 

 short head to a narrow tail. The eyes are situated nearly on top of 

 the head. The color of the darters varies o-reatlv with the different 

 kinds. Some are verj^ plain, the light ground color being broken 

 only by a few brown markings. Others are gorgeous in their col- 

 orings, it seeming as if they had attempted to reproduce the rain- 

 bow on their sides. Such kinds are indeed very attractive and are 

 ranked with the most beautifully colored of all our common iishes. 

 AYhen a darter swims he appears bird-like, for he flies through tlie 

 water much as a bird flies through the air. He does not use his 

 tail alone in swimming as the catfish, the sunfish, the stickleback, 

 and most of the other fishes do, but flies Avith his pectoral fins. 



You surely must have a Johnny darter in your aquarium jar. 

 The Johnnies are true American fishes. Though small, they face 



306 



110. — A Johnny Darter 



