NATURAL HISTORY OF AMIA CALVA LINNtEUS. 101 



returned and swam about my feet and stopped with his nose against my boot 

 or nearly so. He went out 6 or 7 metres or more in every direction, and returning 

 passed several times through the dense weeds near me, but did not find his school." 

 Two days later he was again found and with his school. The behavior of a male 

 with a school of 50-millimetre larvae is thus described: "The male came up 

 against my boots and examined them apparently with great care. He kept well 

 covered and was exceedingly difficult to see in the weeds. During a part of the 

 15 minutes that I watched he was 1 to 2 metres from the swarm, and returned to 

 it two or three times and again came back to me." The male often comes out 

 to meet the observer thus. "I approached nest 12 (1901) about 3 p.m., and 

 when within eight feet saw the male approaching me as though he had detected 

 a movement in the water. He swam to within six inches of my feet, then 

 around me in front, then around me behind. He repeated this manoeuvre and, 

 as I remained quiet, was apparently satisfied and moved off toward his school." 

 This is commonly the behavior of males with schools when they are approached. 

 Males on the nest when approached usually do not move, and I have never seen 

 them come to meet the observer. They move at most but a few inches toward 

 the observer. If they find nothing and are undisturbed they remain on guard 

 over the nest. If disturbed they dash off. 



There are two myths concerning the behavior of the male that may here be 

 mentioned. One of these, already referred to, is that the male disappears into 

 deep water with the young larvse attached to him and returns later to shallow 

 water with the larger larvae now free (Dean, '96). The other affirms that the male 

 takes the young into his mouth when danger threatens (Hallock, '77, who quotes 

 Dr. Estes). These myths have, as I think, been both correctly explained by Whit- 

 man and Eycleshymer. That the male of Amia will eat the larvae of its own 

 species I know from having fed male Amia kept in aquaria on such larvae. This 

 is also true of some teleosts, as Polyacanthus viridi-auratus and Ameiurus nebu- 

 losus (Smith, :03). It is therefore entirely possible that after the larvae are well 

 grown the males swallow their own young. But that the whole swarm is taken 

 into the mouth and that later the "little captives are set at liberty," as thought 

 by Dr. Estes, is beyond belief. Yet it is not impossible that while the larvae are 

 still helpless in the nest they are taken into the mouth a few at a time and again 

 ejected for the purpose of cleaning them. This, according to Smith (:03), is the 

 case in Ameiurus nebulosus. 



io. Summary of Principal Observations. — 1. In the breeding season the sexes of 

 Amia may be readily distinguished at a considerable distance by their colors. 



