78 



aquatic fLitt 



that he might live. 



After this I caught a swarm of minnow 

 fry and turned them in with the little bass 

 for company and for food. Until his 

 appetite prodded he ignored them, but 

 when the spirit moved he gave them un- 

 swerving attention. Then he would slide 

 up through the water toward the glinting 

 drove, all of which were longer than him- 

 self, and aim his baleful eyes and bulldog 

 nose at the one he intended to kill. Time 

 and again I watched him make his selec- 

 tion. They were in limited space, and he 

 could be deliberate. The minnow chosen 

 seemed to know that ill was brewing and 

 would rush alone from the throng, wildly 

 seeking an escape. A wire screen cover- 

 ing the tank prevented an aerial egress. 



The little bass fed twice daily, as regu- 

 lar as a clock, in mid-forenoon and mid- 

 afternoon. He rarely missed his first 

 strike, usually catching his prey by the 

 middle, then quickly and deftly shifting 

 his hold to the head, and swallowing with 

 a quick gulp and a wriggle of his body. 

 Nearly always the tail of the minnow 

 protruded from his mouth for two or 

 three hours after. A few times I saw 

 him snatch a frantic minnow by the tail 

 and try to swallow him that way. Usually 

 the vibrating tail of the victim would 

 work out through his gills, when he 

 would shake it free and then take head 

 first. When he struck he sped in a slight 

 arc, so fast that he resembled a silvery 

 dart thrown with incredible speed from 

 a sling. If he missed he became angry 

 and the speed of his next seemed dou- 

 bled, if indeed greater speed be possible. 

 There was no perceptible "open mouth 

 effect" when striking; he snapped as his 

 snout met the minnow, its scales flying in 

 a shimmery shower. 



The other minnows would soon be 

 playing and feeding again, not showing 

 any particular alarm, even when the 



gorged bass would lazily swim among 

 them. I kept this interesting little fellow 

 three months. In that time he consumed 

 160 minnows, including his own relatives. 

 He grew about an inch a month, and was 

 slightly under three inches in length on 

 the first of September. 



Among the many other fascinating lit- 

 tle native fishes which I have kept was 

 a young Warmouth or Mud bass. This 

 fellow was even more bulldog-like in ap- 

 pearance than the black bass, but was 

 fairly gentle and as proud as a peacock. 

 He would change his colors and dark 

 mottling into several beautiful combina- 

 tions in less time than it takes to tell it. 

 Once I put a piece of mirror behind his 

 tank. Whether this delighted or in- 

 censed him I could never make out. Be- 

 fore it he would bristle and strut with 

 mouth agap, his colors blazing and gills 

 expanded until they resembled a rosy 

 blossom. With all fins spread, he would 

 wriggle about, rolling his fiery eyes at 

 his reflection. A dog would have laughed 

 at his antics. 



He would eat almost anything, and 

 was altogether a very satisfactory aqua- 

 rium pet. Goldfish shared his tank, and 

 to them he made love. This he did in 

 the most ardent and mirth-provoking 

 style, until the goldfish in consternation 

 would flee into the weeds. 



Last summer I had a mud minnow and 

 two young bluegill sunfish. The two spe- 

 cies engaged in a feud which ended in 

 disaster. Not a day passed but the three 

 staged a battle or two, in which the mud 

 minnow nearly always bested his two 

 doughty antagonists. The longer they 

 lived together the more savage the fights 

 became. The minnow usually started 

 hostilities by sliding out from his weedy 

 retreat with his head twisted sidewise, 

 fins spread and undulating with nervous 

 energy. Slowly he approached the hid- 



