Fish and Fishing 



pure wanton play. The small-mouthed bass 

 thrive in comparatively clear, cool, and rocky or 

 gravelly streams, and in lakes or ponds supplied by 

 such streams or having cold bottom springs. In 

 lakes of the latter character, it coexists with large- 

 mouthed bass in many instances. In such cases, 

 the small-mouthed will be found usually at the 

 inlet, or about springs, and the large-mouthed at 

 the outlet or in sheltered, grassy situations. One 

 of the features of the bass is its domestic habits. 



„ , ., The male and female pair off and 

 Habits 111. 11 



together they torm a nest on the bottom 



of gravel or coarse sand, in very rocky streams, 

 on a flat rock. The male fish does the work of 

 preparation by scouring with fins and tail a space 

 about twice his length in diameter, forming a 

 shallow, saucer-shaped depression, in which the 

 female deposits her eggs, which are fertilized by 

 the male, who hovers near by. The nest is care- 

 fully guarded from intruders by the 

 Bulldinc- P^^^^^ts until the eggs hatch, the period 

 of incubation being from one to two 

 weeks, according to the temperature of the water. 

 The fry are then watched and brooded by the male 

 fish for a week or so, when the young seek the shel- 

 ter of weeds and grasses in shallow water. Prob- 

 ably fifty per cent, of the young are later devoured 

 by adult fish. Many are the methods pursued 

 in its capture, trolling with artifical lures, and with 

 live bait, casting with the fly, and with bait, bobb- 

 ing, skittering, and still fishing— all are the same 

 to its hungry and ever-ready maw. 

 14 



