EEL AND COMMON CARP 
Reed-Warbler exclaims, ‘I can’t stand that person ; 
he’s so like the Adder, who ate my little sister last year 
when she fell to the ground as she was learning to fly. 
He has the same offensive manners, and is just as 
slippery.” 
True the Eel zs slippery, as has already been stated, 
but to compare it with the Adder in this respect is an 
injustice to the latter, though it is more than probable 
the Snake in question zs capable of devouring Mrs. 
Reed-Warbler’s “ little sister.’ 
ee ee 
) iB 
iy vas be = 
Common Carp | Fig4! 
Common Carp. —- Cyprinus carpio (Fig. 41). Whilst 
there are three species of Carp on the British list, two 
species—the Common Carp and the well-known Goldfish 
(Carassius auratus)—have been introduced from China, 
and the third—the Crucian Carp (Carassius vulgaris)— 
is of European origin, but probably is not entitled to 
inclusion in our own native fauna. As my own family 
used to have the fishing rights in the old pool belonging to 
Sopwell Nunnery, I have a personal interest for men- 
tioning that the first reference to the Carp as a British 
79 
