PROBLEMS oi" FiSJl AM) li>Ui.N(i 



liDi) 



Finally, dmfl a plan I'ur .stuckint^^ and maintaining llic 

 waters of the district at their inaxiiimiu production, ;ind 

 have this printed in tlic local pa[)crs. 



Fishes Day.' \\'e have liiid Day and Arlx)!- Day and 

 A[)[)lc Day. Wliy not have Fislics Day? \\'»' ought to 

 know otir fishes better. We oui-lit to know tlicir lial)its and 

 habitats, their foods, and especially tlieir nesting and spawn- 

 ing seasons; and if we did, it would come to be considered 

 as much an outrage to 

 take a tish from her 

 nest as to kill a mother 

 bird on hers. When we 

 all know these things 

 and come, as a whole 

 people, to have a right 

 feelino- for them, we 

 may then combine in- 

 telligently to have onr 

 waters teemhio* with all 

 the best fishes they are 

 capable of supporting. 



Aquarium manage- 

 ment, d his may be 

 nsed as a key to the solution of onr problems. A ''balanced 

 aquarium" is one in which just the right pro})ortions of animal 

 and j)lant life are maintained, witli tlie right amount of liglit, 

 so that the \vater remains clear and sweet. This means that 

 there are plants enough, under tl»e light admitted t(^ th(» a(pKi- 

 rium, [)ro})erly to oxygenate the water for tlie animals, and ani- 

 mals enough to supply the carbonic acid and nitrogenous wa,stes 



^ An,ijler.s often wonder why tlie fishes do not interest the public as do the 

 birds, as they are also attractive and their habits interestiuir, indeed, fasci- 

 nating. The reason, possibly, is. that birds are always in sight, while it takes 

 searching to find the fishes. — Hoi.nr.u and Jouk.vn, "Fish Stories," y. '1'1^\ 



Fig. 140. Hluegill snntish — best tish for 

 pond culture 



Photograph by Kcighard 



