328 



SCIENCE. 



[Vol. I., Ko. 12. 



projected into the water. In this case, and 

 I know of many others, these fish plainly 

 showed the existence of strong mutual affec- 

 tion. Indeed, when once the nest is formed, 

 a pair of young sunflsh, mated but for the 

 single season, are evidentlj' very fond of each 

 other ; and, if one of them is caught, the other 

 is straightway stricken with grief, which it 

 shows bj- unmistakable signs. Grief is, of 

 necessitj', a true mental operation. It cannot 

 be referred to instinct, as defined by Mr. 

 Romanes ; and that sunfish are grief-stricken 

 when deprived of their mates is unquestion- 

 able. It is onlj' uecessar^f to take one from the 

 nest, and let it nearlj- die by exposiu'e to the 

 atmosphere ; then replace it, and watch the 

 actions of the other. No one will, I think, 

 hesitate to consider as grief the emotion that 

 controls the fish thus deprived of its mate. 



The common catfish (Amiurus catus) like- 

 wise exhibits great aflTectiou for its young, 

 which remain with the parent-fish for several 

 weeks after they are hatched. She does not, 

 indeed, always succeed in keeping her brood 

 together ; but, so long as she does, she will 

 defend them from all enemies, without regard 

 to her own safety-. I once placed a glass 

 globe containing a brood of J'onng catfish on 

 the bank of the stream from which they were 

 taken, and in full view of the parent^fish, 

 which was greatly excited by being deprived 

 of her charge. This fish at once recognized 

 that her j'oung were not in the creek, al- 

 though they were swimming in water. After 

 a variety of restless movements, its curiosity 

 overcame its discretion ; and it left the creek, 

 and, as best it could, made its way to the base 

 of the globe eontainino- her young, a distance 

 of about two feet. Here she remained ' for 

 nine minutes, quietty watching her brood, and 

 then returned to the water. In a few mo- 

 ments she returned, ha\'ing recovered from 

 the eflfects of exposure to the air. I now 

 liberated the young catfish ; and they imme- 

 diately clustered about their parent, and fol- 

 lowed her into deep water. In this case the 

 parent-fish made no effort to escape when 

 I approached, and allowed me to handle her 

 without any resistance. I haye since tried 

 similar experiments with these fish, and always 

 with essentiallj- the same results. 



Instances, also, might be multiplied indefi- 

 nitely of actions, on the part of fish, indica- 

 tive of cunning or forethought, — cunning in 

 their efforts to secure their prey, forethought 

 in their efforts to escape their enemies. I have 

 even seen ingennit3' exercised by a roach, 

 notoriously the most stupid of fish. Space, 



however, will not permit of further details. 

 Let it suffice to mention, that the actions of 

 predatory fish in hunting in schools, and 

 those of comparatively helpless fish (such as 

 the C3'prinoids) in keeping together in large 

 companies, that coUectivelj^ thej' may lessen 

 individual danger, are cases that exhibit evi- 

 dence of a realization of the fact that in union 

 there is strength. The predatory fish know, 

 that, by concerted action, their prej' can be 

 more readily captured. Those that are ex- 

 posed to attack know, that, as one in a thou- 

 sand, the chances of each of escaping its foes 

 are greater than if it wandered solitary and 

 alone. 



The verj' fact that our fish vary greatly 

 in their habits is, of itself, evidence that thej- 

 differ in their intellectual capacities ; those that 

 are solitarj' being the quicker witted, and the 

 more prompt to adopt some ingenious device 

 to meet the requirements of the moment. 

 Witness, in this regard, the pike, the black 

 bass, the etheosto molds, the mud-minnow 

 (Umbra). In these we have instances of 

 fish that clearly demonstrate the possession 

 of a considerable range of intelligence. On 

 the other hand, watch the distracted schools 

 of cyprinoids chased by rock-fish or perch. 

 It is seldom that they do more than trust to 

 luck ; and these fish are never seen except 

 associated in large numbers. 



Nor must the fact that manj- fish, as the 

 mud-sunfish (Acantharcus pomotis), eel, cat- 

 fish, and chub-sucker (Er3'mizon sucetta) , 

 have well-defined vocal powers be overlooked ; 

 for it, too, has a bearing on the subject of the 

 intelligence of fishes, in that the circumstances 

 under which these vocal powers are exercised 

 are such as indicate that they are intended 

 to convey ideas to others of their kind, — an 

 act which necessitates a complicated mental 

 effort. 



After years of familiaritj- with the many 

 species of fish found in the Delaware River 

 and its tributaries, I find that they can only 

 be intelligibly described by using such terms 

 as 'cunning,' 'fear,' 'grief,' 'ingenuity,' and 

 ' anger ; ' and if their actions unquestionably 

 indicate the possession of such emotions and 

 faculties, — and I claim that they do, — then 

 the great gulf, mentioned by Mr. Romanes, 

 between the intelligence of fish and- that of 

 ants and bees, is materially lessened ; and 

 future studies of the much-neglected subject 

 of the habits of fish will, I believe, ultimately 

 show that many fish are the intellectual 

 equals of any existing insects. 



Chas. C. Abbott, M.D. 



