310 WHITMAN AND EYCLESHYMER. [VoL. XII. 
So far as we have been able to learn, no eggs of Amia had 
ever been collected or seen before the date above given. No 
one knew where to look for them, whether in deep or shallow 
water, under stumps and logs, or in open places, on sandy or 
marshy bottom. Whether they were to be found free or adher- 
ing to roots or leaves, scattered among grass and reeds or col- 
lected in nests or beds, no one could foretell. Fishermen had 
seen the young in swarms along the shores of many of the Wis- 
consin lakes, but they knew nothing of the nesting habits and 
could only guess at the time of spawning. 
Amia is very shy and nocturnal in habit. Its nests are not 
designed to catch the eye. One who had never seen them 
might pass over dozens and fail to notice them. They are often 
concealed beneath supernatant grass or reeds, and appear, at 
first sight, like natural depressions. The eggs agree so closely 
in color with the ground that the inexperienced observer must 
get close over the nest to see them, and even then he may 
fail if the water is the least clouded with mud or rippled by the 
wind. 
The male fish, which alone guards the nest, lies motionless 
at the approach of a boat, and often allows it to pass over him 
without stirring. If frightened by a jar in the boat or by the 
movement of the oars, he leaves the nest, but in doing so gen- 
erally raises a cloud of mud, and darts off under its cover, 
stealthily, but with wonderful rapidity. The nest and eggs are 
often thus effectually concealed from view. If this behavior 
were something special and peculiar to the care of the nest, as 
one might suspect on first acquaintance, it would serve to indi- 
cate approximately its location ; but one soon learns that not 
every streak of mud in the wake of an Amia leads to a nest. 
Indeed, one may search for hours on such trails and find nothing. 
Amia is fond of shallow and quiet bays, where the water first 
gets warm in spring, and hiding-places are easy to find among 
the reeds and logs. In such places they spend the day in quiet 
concealment. When approached in a boat pushed forward with 
great care to avoid noise and disturbance of the water, they 
may keep their places, if concealed from view, letting the boat 
pass by or even over them without moving. Sometimes they 
pl ee 
