THE GOLDFISH AND ITS CULTURE. 93 



its spawn in the ponds, and when the tad-poles are hatched, they 

 consume a great per centage of the natural food found in the pond, 

 thus depriving the young fish of proper nourishment, in this way 

 being indirectly injurious. 



The frogs are furthermore dangerous, through their habit of 

 wandering in the night from one locality to another, during their 

 spawning season, and thus often unconsciously introduce into the 

 ponds, the spawn of minnows, which being adhesive, sticks to the 

 skin of the frog, and is, of course, carried about by it. 



The frogs make their appearance early in the spring, and it is at 

 that time that they can be most effectually destroyed in the following 

 manner : water is let into one of the ponds, to the height of several 

 inches, in this pond they will collect at night, in order to deposit 

 their spawn. Next morning, most of the frogs themselves can be 

 caught with a dip-net, and the spawn also removed and exposed to 

 the sun to dry up, by merely placing it upon the ground, where the 

 sun can reach it. If this process is systematically carried out, during 

 their spawning season, not many frogs will trouble the establishment 

 during the season. When it appears that all are captured, the pond 

 is drained off, so that any tad-poles that might have been hatched in 

 it will die by being dried up in the sun. 



In destroying the frogs the culturist must be careful not to 

 mistake the common American toad (Buffo americanus) for the frog, 

 as this innocent creature is worthy of our protection. They may 

 very easily be distinguished by their color, which is brownish and 

 yellow, the skin moreover being warty. Their eggs also differ from 

 those of the frog by the manner in which they are joined together; 

 those of the frog are found in one compact mass, a lump, in other 

 words ; those of the toad, in strings; the eggs of tree and grass frogs 

 in sheets. If the amateur will bear these distinctions in mind he will 

 have no trouble ridding himself of a pest and preserving a friend. 



