16 MARVELS OF FISH LIFE 



to those already in the nest, until the required com- 

 plement of some eighty eggs is made up. 



The male then mounts guard, a very necessary pro- 

 cedure, for should he wander far from home, the very 

 females who laid the eggs, and the other sticklebacks in 

 the water, would pounce down upon the nest, tear it 

 to pieces and devour the contents. 



When on guard the stickleback's spines are flat on 

 his back. Should an enemy approach too near, up go 

 the spines as an intimation to trespassers that he is 

 ready to defend his home, if necessary, with his life. 



When the young sticklebacks hatch, the father's 

 cares are redoubled ; for very soon they escape from 

 the nest, and would be devoured were it not for the fact 

 that the parent fish darts after them, seizes them in his 

 mouth, and literally spits them back into their nursery. 



Constant attention, periodic fights, and the impos- 

 sibility of wandering far in search of food, play havoc 

 with the stickleback's constitution. He becomes thinner 

 and thinner, and when his brood are ready to leave the 

 nest and fend for themselves, not infrequently the 

 exemplary father dies. 



When nesting, the male fish becomes excessively 

 bold, and if disturbed with a stick, he will viciously bite 

 the end. 



Another example of parental care is found in the 

 male pipe fish. This long narrow fish carries the eggs 

 and, afterwards, the young pipe fish in a pouch, in a 

 similar manner to the kangaroo. Even after the young 



