152 



FEESH-WATEE AQUAKIA, 



"taking in," as the schoolboy would say, equal to that of the 

 fresh-water shark himself. 



SmaU Pike or Pickerel can easily be kept in an aquarium, 

 but of course it is almost unnecessary to say that they should 

 have no companions. Even two Pike, especially if one were much 

 bigger than the other, would not be safe together. I have seen 

 it seriously stated that Pike will not touch tench, perch, or 

 gold-fish. And the reasons given for the Pike's very unusual 

 reluctance to dine iipon his fellow-fish are, that he is never 

 ungi-ateful enough to forget that the tench is the curer of aU 

 the ills the piscine tribe is heir to; that he dare not attempt 

 to swallow the perch and his formidable " fixed bayonets" ; and 

 that the gold-fish is quite safe because of his colour. But I 



Fig. 105. Pike (Esox lucius). 



am quite sure that if a hungry Pike had these three fish for 

 his companions in an aquarium, it would not be very long 

 before he and his friends became so closely acquainted as to 

 arrive at a state of perfect unity. Most fishermen know quite 

 weU that the Pike is often ready to take both perch and tench ; 

 and as for the gold-fish, there can be for Pike no more deadly 

 bait. There are, however, circumstances under which, with 

 care, Pike may be allowed companions while in confinement. 

 The circumstances are these : If when a young Pike is first 

 caught he is placed in an aquarium with other small fish also 

 just caught, he seems to look upon them as companions of his 

 misfortune, and will not touch them, at any rate for some days. 

 Directly he begins to get very hungry, a strange fish should 

 be placed in the tank, and he will, if the owner will stand far 

 back, most likely immediately pick this one out from the rest 



