296 Fresh Water Aquarium 



greenish luster. The abdomen is dark gray 

 or grayish brown. The Boat-fly swims on 

 its back and being very rapid and agile in 

 its movements, will easily catch smaller in- 

 sects for its prey. As it will attack and 

 torment, if not destroy, small fishes it should 

 not be kept in the aquarium together with 

 them. 



The Giant Water-bug (Bclostoma amcrica- 

 na ) is a strange-looking insect, not very at- 

 tractive either in shape or color. Fairly 

 broad and very flat, of a somber color, vary- 

 ing from a mottled gray to a dirty light 

 brown, it haunts the vegetation of streams 

 and ponds for its prey, which consists of soft 

 larvae and small fishes. The strong sharply 

 pointed and tong-shaped fore legs enable it 

 to take a good firm hold of anything it can 

 catch. The Giant Water-bug is not a rapid 

 swimmer, but its large wings enable it to 

 fly long distances in a short time, so that 

 it is often found far away from its breeding 

 places. Some of the related water-bugs of 



