i82 THE COURTSHIP OF ANIMALS 



persistent enemies — the females who laid them. As soon 

 as the fry appear the duties of the male are still further 

 increased. He must guard them from their mothers, 

 and other foes, and he must prevent their too extensive 

 wanderings. Such as stray too far afield are sucked 

 into the mouth and brought back again to the nursery, 

 where they are set at liberty by a reversal of the sucking 

 action. That the male of a polygamous species, and with 

 all the attributes of a polygamous species — pugnacity 

 and vivid coloration — should take upon himself the duties 

 which under like circumstances among the higher 

 vertebrates are undertaken by the female is a very 

 remarkable and puzzling feature. I n this species, in short 

 the male plays successively a polygamous and a poly- 

 androus role. 



Strange as these facts are, they are not apparently 

 without parallel among fishes, for certain of the laby- 

 rinth-gilled fish present many features in common, 

 though as yet proof seems to be wanting. Thus the 

 small Siamese " Fighting Fish " {Betta pugnax) is endowed 

 with so ferocious a nature that it is kept, as the Malays 

 keep fighting cocks, for the amusement of native sports- 

 men, two fish being pitted against one another and large 

 bets being made on the result. In a state of quiescence 

 it presents no very remarkable coloration, but if two 

 be brought together, or if one sees its image in a looking- 

 glass, it becomes thrown into a paroxysm of rage, the fins 

 are raised and the whole body becomes irradiated with 

 metallic colours of dazzling beauty. There can be no 

 doubt but that a like play of colour occurs during moments 

 of sexual excitement ; it is highly probable that it is 

 polygamous. Of its breeding habits, however, little or 

 nothing seems to be known. Not so, however, in the 



