f 
i 
| a S| 
! 
This novel little fish was first im- 
ported by the writer during the spring 
of last year, six specimens reaching New 
York alive after the long trip from Java 
aboard a Dutch steamer. Known to 
science as Haplochilus celebensis, the 
native Javanese call it the water fish, be- 
cause it is so transparent. In general ap- 
pearance it suggests the familiar Me- 
daka, H. latipes, but it is more slender 
and differs in color. The body can be 
described as the color of greenish glass 
and so transparent, or rather translucent, 
that the bones of the vertebral column 
are clearly visible; eyes, silvery blue; 
tail and anal fins with orange edges. 
The dorsal and anal fins of the male are 
more pronounced and have fringed 
edges, whereas in the female they are 
shorter and even. Length, 114 inches. 
Temperature, within certain limits, 
seems immaterial to this fish. My ex- 
amples were caught in a jungle pool, in 
water knee deep, that recorded 104 de- 
grees, Fahrenheit. Yet I have kept and 
bred them for nearly a year at a tem- 
perature of about 72 degrees, and this 
in a small all-glass tank holding less than 
two and a half gallons of water. 
While the four survivors, a male and 
three females, have consistently spawn- 
ed, I have not many youngsters to show. 
This probably because they have been 
kept with specimens of H. panchaxr and 
Hf. chaperi, which have no doubt eaten 
many. The fish proceeds to reproduce 
its kind after the manner of the Medaka. 
The eggs leave the genital tract and are 
carmied in clusters of three to six at- 
tached exteriorly to the vent in the fe- 
THE WATER FISH 
| WALTER LANNOY BRIND, F. Z. S. 
ee ee ee 6 6 a a a Oa a a as es 
a Fa FH PE a Sa a S| 
oe 1 Oe | 
<2 
male. As the female swims among the 
plants, which should be of the tiny-leav- 
ed sorts, such as Myriophyllum, Utricu- 
laria minor or Cabomba, the eggs are 
rubbed off and become attached to the 
plants singly by a hair-like filament. The 
eggs hatch in about ten days. 
As far as food is concerned, the water- 
fish is easily satisfied. One day, if for- 
tune smiles, they get Daphne; the next 
Haplochilus celebensis 
may bring enchytrae or white worms, 
or mashed potatoes with scrambled eggs 
and Graham crackers. All are taken 
with the same apparent gusto. In dis- 
position they are exceedingly docile, and 
I have yet to note the slightest sign of 
quarrelsomeness. 
The illustration is an enlargement of 
a clipping from a film of a motion pic- 
ture produced by the writer and entitled 
“The Freshwater Aquarium.” In the 
group appears a pair of Haplochilus 
chaperi, that the transparency of H. 
celebensis may be made more apparent 
by the contrast. 
