[29] FISH CULTURE IN CENTRAL EUROPE. 567 



plished under the water, as with other kinds of fish that lay adhesive 

 eggs, in recognition of the fact that the spawn of fish which spawn in 

 summer matures less rapidly when brought in contact with water than 

 the spawn of fish whose fecundation takes place in cold water. 



I regret very much that the season was not favorable for seeing in full 

 operation the Liibbinchen ponds described by Max von dem Borne, and 

 arranged in such a manner as to insure the greatest possible result from 

 the spawning of carp, and the keeping of many other kinds of fish. As 

 it is not my intention to give a detailed description, I shall merely give 

 the general plan on which they are constructed. The ponds are deep 

 in the center, have flat shores, and are connected by numerous open- 

 ings with canals which are much lower. On the bottom near the shores 

 the collectors (bushes or branches) are placed, and are soon covered 

 with the eggs of the spawning carp. After the eggs have been laid, 

 these collectors are placed in other ponds, or in the canals surrounding 

 the ponds, care being taken to prevent the spawning fish from entering 

 these canals. It is necessary to remove the eggs from the spawning 

 fish, as the grown carp will injure them and devour the young fry. 

 The spawning ponds should be allowed to lie dry during winter, so as 

 to kill the small animals which are enemies of the carp, and especially 

 the pike which may have got into the ponds. The young fish would 

 soon suffer from want of food if this contingency was not provided for 

 by distributing them in suitable quantities in the growing ponds. 



Mr. Max von dem Borne has even the smallest carp taken out of the 

 pond by a man who stands in the water and uses for this purpose a 

 muslin dipper. All the fish which he catches in this way he throws 

 into floating barrels with a bottom of very fine wire. After he has 

 gathered a sufficient quantity, he transfers them, by means of a zinc 

 basin with a spout, to the tin cans in which they are conveyed to the 

 ponds for which they are intended. 



The growing ponds should be proportioned to the number of fish 

 which it is intended to raise in them, due regard being taken to the 

 amount of food which they contain. The fish are distributed according 

 to age ; for which reason rational carp-culture requires many of these 

 ponds. 



In the growing ponds other fish may be kept with the carp; for in- 

 stance, pike and bass. These fish should, however, be very small, sof s 

 not to prey upon the carp. The principal object of having these 9& m 

 the ponds is to prevent the carp from spawning, as spawns woulu 

 make them lean. In these ponds artificial food is also i»^d, consisting 

 of flour-balls, vegetables, potatoes, bran, dung (frojv cattle), larvse ot 

 flies, &c. 



If the conditions are favorable, the carp can winter in the ponds ; but 

 in some establishments, as, for instance, at Kiiningen, there are special 

 winter ponds, in which the carp are kept during the cold season. For 

 these ponds spring water is used if it is somewhat warm. To prevent 



