THE STICKLEBACK'S NEST. 195 



eggs. This fish inhabits the slimy bottoms of the lagoons 

 near Venice, and burrows galleries in the clayey soil, where 

 it spends the greater part of the year, protected against storms 

 and enemies. In spring it digs more superficial dwellings 

 among the roots of the sea-grass, to which the spawn attaches 

 itself. The architect watches over the entrance of the house, 

 opposing sharp rows of teeth to every intruder. 



A similar care may be admired in the tiny Stickleback, which 

 the celebrated ichthyologist, M. Coste, has often watched build- 

 ing its nest. After the fish has collected the materials, it 

 covers them with sand, glues the walls with a mucous secretion, 

 and prepares a suitable entrance. At a later period it becomes 

 the bold and indefatigable defender of its eggs, repelling with 

 tooth and prickles all other sticklebacks that approach the nest. 

 If the enemy is too powerful, it has recourse to artifice, darts 

 forth, seems actively engaged in the pursuit of an imaginary 

 prey, and often succeeds in diverting the aggressor's attention 

 from its nest. The Eiver Bullhead is likewise said to evince 

 the same parental affection for its ova, as a bird for its nest, 

 returning quickly to the spot, and being unwilling to quit it 

 when disturbed. It is believed, also, of the Lump-Sucker, that 

 the male first keeps watch over the deposited ova, and guards 

 them from every foe with the utmost courage. If driven from 

 the spot by man, he does not go far, but is continually looking 

 back, and in a short time returns. Thus we find among the 

 inferior animals glimpses of a higher nature, which prove that 

 all created beings form a continuous chain, linked together by 

 one all-pervading and almighty Power. 



The senses of the fishes are also in perfect harmony with 

 the peculiarities of their mode of life. Their eyes are indeed 

 wanting in the fire and animation which gives so much expres- 

 sion to the physiognomy of the higher animals, but the structure 

 of these organs is admirably calculated for the element in which 

 they are plunged, as the spherical form and great size of the 

 crystalline lens, by concentrating the rays of light, enables them 

 to see with distinctness even through so dense a medium as that 

 which surrounds them. When water is clear, smooth, and un- 

 disturbed the sight of fishes is very acute, a circumstance well 

 known to anglers, who prefer a breeze xmdulating over the 

 surface, as they can then approach much nearer the objects of 



