318 



Proceedings of Indiana Academy of Science 



Reigard says that the relation between the sexes of Eupomotis gih- 

 hosus "may be regai'ded as promiscuous polygamy." This relationship 

 is probably the saine for the bluegill. As soon as the young bluegills 

 have entirely absorbed their yolk sac they begin to leave the nest and 

 within a few days all are gone, unguarded by either parent. Within 

 a very few days the male will be seen hovering over another group of 

 eggs in the same nest. This may happen two or three times during 

 the same summer. 



Not only do the females lay in the same nest successively but more 

 than a single female's eggs are in a nest at the same time. This was 



ffS 



Fii;. 3. Same as fiKure 1, except that it is for 1923. 



determined in the following manner. A number of females with ripe 

 ovaries were collected, the ovaries were lemoved and preserved, and 

 from thse ovaries one of average size was selected for the determination. 

 The ovary was 3.3 cm. long and 2.3 cm. wide (from a fish 14 cm. in 

 length). The eggs within it were large and fully developed. It was 

 hardened in formalin and the eggs were readily teased apart for count- 

 ing. In this ovary there were 11,257 eggs. Although there were some 

 ovaries that contained twice as many eggs it hardly seems possible that 

 the 224,900 embryos found in one nest were laid by a single female. 



Assuming that the average number of eggs laid per female is 11,- 

 257 for the year 1923 there should be 18,467 egg-laying females in 



