
SOME FRESHWATER AQUARIUM FISHES . 

The lower forms of life are present in all bodies of water but in rapid 
streams minnows, shiners, sunfishes, dace, chub, suckers, newts, salaman- 
ders and crayfishes will be found; and in springwater streams trout, troutlets, 
sticklebacks, dace, pickerel and bass; also fontinalis, chara, and sometimes 
anacharis of the long-leaved variety. In ditches many insects and their 
larve abound; also catfishes, sunfishes, killifishes, carp, eels, tadpoles, 
mussels and some varieties of the snails; while the ponds afford sunfishes, 
catfishes, chub, carp, eels, frogs and tadpoles; and in these latter two most 
of the desired aquatic plants will be found, and a great variety of bivalve 
and univalve molluscs, together with many of the insects and their larve. 
In ponds, ditches and pools the tiny entomastraca, which form the natural 
food for young fishes, may be found. 
PHoToGrapHInG Fisues. The photographing of the ichthyfauna 
in the natural element and surroundings is a recent achievement of the 
instantaneous processes but the difficulties are so many that good results 
are extremely rare. Probably the best work in this line was done by 
R. W. Shufeld, of the Medical Corps, U.S. Army. The usual conditions 
are unfavorable to proper light, the incessant movements of the fishes 
makes focusing difficult, the refraction of the glass front of the aquarium 
is troublesome and the reflection produces a mirror as likely to show the 
camera and operator as the contents of the aquarium. By the use of a 
glass plate behind the fish, to restrict its movement, one element of difh- 
culty may be partially obviated; but a specially constructed very narrow 
miniature aquarium, fitted to a tripod and backed by a screen will lead to 
more satisfactory results, as it may be set in the open air and in favorable 
light. Theapparent plant life, to form a natural background, may con- 
sist of a sepia drawing secured to the back of the aquarium; the front 
being constructed of the thinnest portrait glass; but even this interposes 
a slight screen to the contents and sometimes interferes with a perfectly 
clear picture. 
The constant, almost imperceptible movement of the fins and the 
rarity with which they are all fully expanded compelled the abandonment 
of this method of illustrating this volume and forced the author to adopt 
the considerable labor of making accurate pen drawings. The restlessness 
of the subject prevented the taking of snapshots with every detail of form 
and fin at their best so as to serve as types of the most perfect fishes of 
the recognized breeds. ‘2 
