FAMILY " WITH HARD CHEEKS." 85 



The Sticklebacks feed usually upon grubs of all sorts, 

 small insects, and minute fry and other animal matters, 

 and are remarkable for their extraordinary voracity, being 

 in fact the only species which, without hook or snare, will 

 suffer themselves to be taken rather than resign their 

 prey. They are believed to be excessively destructive to 

 the ova of other fish; and it has been considered a doubtful 

 race in this particular between the little Eels and the 

 Sticklebacks, as to which devour the greatest quantity. 

 The partiality of the latter for all sorts of ova, and their 

 restless and inconsiderate rapacity sometimes entail a sin- 

 gular death : they dart into the lumps of frog- spawn with 

 which in March and April the ditches abound, and, their 

 spines preventing retreat, are there suffocated. It is by 

 no means uncommon to find two or three Sticklebacks 

 thus choked in a single bed of spawn. This fact has, I 

 believe, hitherto escaped the notice of naturalists. It 

 seems probable that Stickleback-life rarely exceeds two or, 

 at most, three years. 



The Rough-tailed Stickleback (a representation of which, 

 of the natural size, is given at page 78) is very generally 

 distributed throughout most parts of England, Ireland, 

 and Scotland, inhabiting indifferently fresh and salt, run- 

 ning and stagnant waters; and, although maturing but 

 few eggs, the numbers of individuals are so great as, ac- 

 cording to Pennant, to have enabled a Lincolnshire 

 labourer to earn four shillings a day during a consider- 

 able period by catching and selling them at the rate of 



