The Apodes, or Eel-like Fishes 147 
there to die. A great migration of grown eels in spring or 
summer has never been reported, and it appears certain that 
all the female eels which have once found their way to the sea 
are lost to the fisherman. 
Food of the Eel.—Eels, in the words of Mr. W. H. Ballou, 
are “among the most voracious of carnivorous fishes. They 
eat most inland fishes, except the garfish and the chub. Inves- 
tigation of six hundred stomachs by Oswego fishermen showed 
that the latter bony fish never had a place in their bill of fare. 
They are particularly fond of game-fishes, and show the delicate 
taste of a connoisseur in their selection from choice trout, bass, 
pickerel, and shad. They fear not to attack any object when 
disposed, and their bite in human flesh shows even a vicious 
attitude towards man. On their hunting excursions they over- 
turn huge and small stones alike, working for hours if neces- 
sary, beneath which they find species of shrimp and crayfish, 
of which they are exceedingly fond. Of shrimps they devour 
vast numbers. Their noses are poked into every imaginable 
hole in their search for food, to the terror of innumerable small 
fishes.”’ 
In the opinion of Mr. Ballou, too, “eels are to the water 
what the fishhawk is to the air. They are, perhaps, the most 
powerful and rapid of natatorians. Again, they hide in the 
mud beneath some log or overhanging rock, and dart out with 
tremendous fury at the unsuspecting prey. They attack the 
spawn of other fishes open-mouthed, and are even said to suck 
the eggs from an impaled female. They fearlessly and rapidly © 
dive head-foremost in the mud, disappearing from view in the 
twinkling of a star. They are owl-like in their habits, commit- 
ting many of their depredations at night. 
“No fish is yet reported to utilize a full-grown eel as food. 
Pickerel, garfish, and bass, which are particularly numerous 
in these lakes, are supposed to literally devour the young fry. 
Mr. Sawyer describes the operation of the pickerel darting 
through a long column of young eels open-mouthed and de- 
vouring vast numbers of them.” 
Larva of the Eel.—The translucent band-shaped larva of 
the common eel has been very recently identified and described 
by Dr. Eigenmann. It is probable that all true eels, Enchely- 
