118 VERTEBRATA. PISCES. 



mouth over the next side to me, with a care and 

 gentleness so very remarkable, as to afford me much 

 surprise. I repeated the experiment six or seven 

 times, and always with the same result. Then, chang- 

 ing the bait, I employed a young Grasshopper, 

 which I floated into the egg-bed. The insect was 

 removed, as the worm had been, and two attempts 

 to hook the fish were unsuccessful. I now threw 

 my line with the hook bare, and managed as be- 

 fore. The Sunny appeared quite alarmed. It swam 

 to one side, then to another, in rapid succession, and 

 seemed to entertain a fear that the removal of the 

 suspicious object, might prove extremely dangerous 

 to it. Yet it gradually approached the hook, took it 

 delicately up, and the next instant dropped it over 

 the edge of the bed. 



" Satisfied that at this period, the Sun-fish was 

 more than a match for me, I rolled up my line, and 

 with my rod gave a rap on the water, as nearly over the 

 fish as I could. The Sunny darted off to a distance 

 of several yards, poised itself steadily, and as soon as 

 my rod was raised from the water, returned to its 

 station. The effect of the blow on the water, was 

 now apparent; for I perceived that the fish was busily 

 employed in smoothing the bed : but here ended my 

 experiments on the Sun-fish."* 



To this family belongs a genus of fishes, (Scarus, f) 

 numerous in the seas of the tropics, and for the 

 most part distinguished by the splendour of their 



* Orn. Biog. Vol. iii. p. 50. 



t Sxa^aj, skaros, its ancient Greek name. 



