INSTINCTS OF NATUKE. 267 



fill, he has recourse to artifice darts forth, seems actively 

 engaged in the pursuit of an imaginary prey, and often succeeds 

 in diverting the aggressor's attention from his nest. 



The black goby, an inhabitant of the Mediterranean, likewise 

 deposits its spawn in burrows dug among the roots of the sea- 

 grass, and, watching over the entrance of the house, opposes 

 sharp rows of teeth to every intruder ; and the hassar, which I 

 have already had occasion to mention for his extraordinary 

 land-excursions, is no less remarkable for his habit of constructing 

 nests, which are quite as well-formed as those of the stickle- 

 back, and are made of grass blades, straws, and leaves. These 

 nests are very plentiful in the little muddy streamlets that in- 

 tersect the sugar-marshes of Guiana, so that the habits of the 

 fish can be easily watched. The parent-fish is very jealous of 

 the eggs, and waits near them until they are hatched, and the 

 young family committed to the water. The parental solicitude 

 of the hassar is shamefully misused by man for his destruction : 

 a small basket is held before the entrance, then the nest i$ 

 gently struck with a stick; and furious, with extended fins, whose 

 sharp points are able to inflict a painful wound, the poor 

 hassar darts into the fatal basket. 



