SPAWNING OF BLACK BASS 25 



water, as well as to act as a sunshade to the 

 fish. A spot several inches deep and two feet 

 square is excavated in the pond, the box is 

 placed therein, and the hole filled with gravel, 

 varying from the size of a goose-egg to that of 

 a marble, to the top-level of the strips. It is 

 policy to place some of the large stones in the 

 centre, as a bass would do if it were construct- 

 ing the nest. 



It is the male that selects the site for the 

 nest and gets it ready for use. He does this 

 before he has even looked about him for a 

 mate. If he has started early in the season, 

 say the latter part of May, while he is yet un- 

 ripe or "hard," he sometimes digs for days 

 before the nest is completed to his satisfaction. 



Construction of the Natural Nest. The 

 nest-building season begins usually about the 

 middle or latter part of May and sometimes 

 does not end until after the first week in July. 

 As a rule the site for a nest is selected with 

 great care and with close attention to sur- 

 rounding conditions. Bottoms with small 

 loose stones, or with gravel or clean sand, are 

 invariably preferred. Places with large rocks 



