THE STICKLEBACKS. 393 



These fishes make their nests of the delicate vegetation that is 

 found in fresh water, and will carry materials from some little 

 distance in order to complete the home. They do not, however, 

 range to any great extent, because they would intrude upon the 

 preserve of some other fish, and be ruthlessly driven away. 



When the male Stickleback has fixed upon a spot for his nest, 

 he seems to consider a certain area around as his own especial 

 property, and will not suffer any other fish to intrude within its 

 limits. His boldness is astonishing, for he will dash at a fish of 

 ten times his size, and, by dint of his fierce onset and his bristling 

 spears, drive the enemy away. Even if a stick be placed within 

 the sacred circle, he will dart at it, repeating the assault as often 

 as the stick may trespass upon his domains. Within this limit, 

 therefore, he must seek materials for his nest, as he can hardly 

 move for six inches beyond it without intruding upon the 

 grounds of another fish. This right of property only seems to 

 extend along the banks and a few inches outward, the centre of 

 the stream or ditch being common property. Along the bank, 

 however, where vegetation is most luxuriant, there is scarcely a 

 foot of space that is not occupied by some Stickleback, and jeal- 

 ously guarded by him. 



Although the nests of the Stickleback are plentiful enough, 

 they are not so familiar to the public as might be expected, prin- 

 cipally because they are very conspicuous, and few of the unini- 

 tiated would know what .they were, even if they were pointed 

 out. Being of such very delicate materials, and but loosely hung 

 together, they will not retain their form when they are removed 

 from the water, but fall together in an undistinguishable mass, 

 like a coil of tangled thread that had been soaked in water for a 

 few weeks. 



The materials of which the nest is made are extremely varia- 

 ble, but they are always constructed so as to harmonize with the 

 surrounding objects, and thus to escape ordinary observation. 

 Sometimes it is made of bits of grass which have been blown into 

 the river, sometimes of straws, and sometimes of growing plants. 

 The object of the nest is evident enough when the habits of the 

 Stickleback are considered. As is the case with many other fish, 

 there are no more determined destroyers of Stickleback eggs than 

 the Sticklebacks themselves, and the nests are evidently construct- 

 ed for the purpose of affording a resting-place for the eggs until 

 they are hatched. If a few of these nests be removed from the 



