THE 



AQUARIUM 



t^ 



streamers which terminate its upper and 

 lower fins), is at home. Its body is 

 bright blue or violet, its fins yellow and 

 red. Of all the beautiful, gaudy fishes 

 found at Bernuida, this one is pre- 

 eminent, and tourists often bring back 

 stickpins with representations of it as 

 souvenirs of that island. Specimens 

 are often brought from there and kept 

 in the New York Aquarium. Despite 

 their angelic appearance, they are armed 

 with savage spines, and many other 

 species cannot safely be kept in the 

 same tank with them. The angel fish 

 has a small mouth and dovibtless feeds 

 mostly on shrimps and other small 

 animals. It is found on coral reefs from 

 Brazil to the Florida Keys and the 

 Bermudas, reaches a length of one or 

 two feet, and is a fair food fish. 



On Getting Rid of Hydra. 



L. M. DOKSEV, Jr., lMuladelplii;i . 



TN a collection of aquatic snails 

 -'- secured from a prominent German 

 dealer I acquired several specimens 

 of what the Germans call AmpiiUaria 

 gigas, popularly called by them the 

 American Deckelschnecke. Upon careful 

 examination, 1 recognized it as the 

 species called Singapore Snail in this 

 country. 



The genus Ampidlaria comprises 

 many species and occurs in Africa as 

 well as South America. While I have 

 said that my specimen is referable to 

 A. gigas, it more closely resembles and 

 might properly be considered A. 

 doloides. Ampidlaria gigas attains the 

 size of a large orange, doloides is not 

 so large. These snails have a beautifully 

 marked thin brown horny shell and 

 heel. 



In their native haunts the Ampidlaria 

 are said to deposit their spawn on the 



overhanging limbs of trees, or on the 

 rocks, but always above water. The 

 mass of eggs resendjles a half raspberry 

 of salmon-pink color about one-third 

 the size of the snail. Twenty to thirty 

 days are required for the development 

 of the eggs which are then released from 

 their hardened encasing, falling into the 

 water perfect little snails. Probably 

 twenty-five to forty may result from a 

 spawn. 



Their usual food is green, growing 

 aquatic vegetation, making their presence 

 in the aquarium undesirable and very 

 destructive. Some experiences have, 

 however, proven certain carnivorous 

 propensities. I have known weak and 

 sickly young goldfish in crowded 

 quarters to be devoured while still 

 alive. 



In various efforts to vUilize these un- 

 usual characteristics they were placed in 

 Daphnia tubs to consume the dead, and 

 in this way were discovered to eat the 

 Hydra. Further tests by the writer and 

 others have revealed these snails as 

 thorough and effective destroyers of 

 Hydra, that pest of pests. My repeated 

 experiments have convinced me that 

 while Hydra are to be had, they will 

 feed upon them in preference to plants, 

 except possibly the tender, succulent 

 kinds. In my case they have wrought 

 no appreciable damage to the plants 

 when used for cleaning out the Hydra. 

 The task has never taken them longer 

 than a week. I find that young snails 

 are probably to be preferred as they are 

 not so gross in their vegetable feeding 

 and are just as active. In every case 

 there was no return of the Hydra. 



"Nature has placed in profusion about 

 us objects to act on our senses so that 

 they need never become atrophied from 

 disuse." Exchange. 



