EIVER GARDENS ; 



last of the species frequenting the fresh as well as 

 salt water is G. pungitim, the ten-spined Stickle- 

 back, a very distinct species, much smaller than 

 any of the preceding. Cuvier makes a second 

 species in the ten-spined division ; but it is not found 

 in England. There is, however, one more native 

 kind, the fifteen-spined, which remains always in 

 the sea, but, like its relatives, will live in fresh 

 water. If, therefore, it can be procured, it should 

 be present, to complete the collection of native 

 species in an Aquarium, for which purpose I would 

 recommend preparing a special tank, which, consi- 

 dering the interesting habits of this pretty tribe of 

 miniature fishes, would well repay the trouble. The 

 last-named species, though a thoroughly well-charac- 

 terised Gasterosteus, is of very peculiar form, almost 

 Eel-like in his proportions, from which it has been 

 termed the Sea Adder. Mr. Yarrell gives a very in- 

 teresting account of the capture of a specimen of this 

 rather rare species, in the stomach of which he found 

 a specimen of the curious Opossum Shrimp, which he 

 had never seen before. The peculiarity of the Opos- 

 sum Shrimp, as described by Montague, is that the 

 female is furnished with a natural external pouch, 

 like that of the Opossum or Kangaroo tribe, in 

 which she carries her ova and afterwards her young. 



