BAUDITTEN CARP-CULTURE. 669 



there are many reeds. In the stomach of such a diver which had been 

 caught about the end of June last year there were found a large num- 

 ber of young carp about an inch in length. At such a tender age they 

 fall a prey to this dangerous bird, which, in spite of its small size, may 

 cause a total failure of the carp-fisheries. This spring, when the reeds 

 were not as yet covering the banks, 5 divers were shot on a pond of 

 about 8 acres near Bauditten, but 8 escaped and could neither be caught 

 nor shot. Their nests, which are very hard to find, were destroyed sev- 

 eral times, and 121 eggs were taken ; still they did not cease to build 

 nests and lay eggs. 



If every one of these 4 pair hatches 8 young ones, there will be — the 

 old birds included — 40 divers. And if every one of these destroy 100 

 young carp a day, this will make 4,000 a day, or nearly 30,000 a week. 

 Wherever, therefore, no other cause can be assigned why a hatching- 

 pond has proved a failure, the sui)position Hes very near that divers or 

 other aquatic birds were the cause. 



The frogs also must be kept away from the ponds as much as possi- 

 ble. This is best done by drawing their spawn ashore with rakes, and 

 then either burying it or letting it dry. The greatest possible calm 

 should prevail in and about such a pond ; no cattle should graze near 

 it, it should contain no pike, and the water should be of equal depth aU 

 the year round. After having hatched carp for several years, a farmer 

 will have fish one, two, and three years old, which must be kept sep- 

 arate, carefuUy arranged according to years. For if small fish are in 

 the same pond with larger fish, the smaller ones will suffer. If a small 

 fish, e. g.f catches a worm, the larger fish will immediately take it away ; 

 one begrudges it to the other just as it is among men, and the weaker 

 has always to give way to the stronger. 



If the hatching ponds contain much food, i. €., if they have good 

 water, a clayey and rich bottom, and are not too much crowded with 

 fish, the carp will under favorable conditions weigh ui)wards of two 

 pounds in the autumn of the third year. The number and nature of the 

 ponds will plainly indicate whether carp should be kept a fourth year. 

 In the ponds for the growing carp the pike forms an important ele- 

 ment. The common idea that it makes the lazy carp move about, and 

 thus gives them the necessary exercise, is certainly erroneous; but the 

 pike certainly prevents the carps in these ponds from spawning, which 

 would only do harm, and destroys useless fish, e. g., bleaks and crucians, 

 which only take the food fi-om the carp. In the hatching-ponds, how- 

 ever, the pike is a dangerous enemy. 



Time will not allow me to speak of the cheapest and best way of 

 arranging the ponds, which will go hand in hand with the cultivation 

 of fields and meadows, and I will therefore close with a few remarks on 

 the different varieties of the carp. The following must be distinguished : 



1. The "carp proper," Udelkarpfen. (So called to distinguish it from 

 the crucian.) 



