16§ PHTSOSTOMI. 



males pursued one of the other sex which "was heavy in spawn, and rolled her 

 like a ball upon the ground for a distance of several metres, and continued this 

 process without rest or relaxation for two days, until the exhausted female (who 

 during this period had been unable to recover her equilibrum for a moment) had 

 at last evacuated all her ova. Mr. Waddington, of Bury (Hardw. Sc. Gossip, 

 1876, p. 278) instances a pair of gold-fish, kept in an inverted propagating glass, 

 which commenced breeding August 27th, the male pursuing the female with the 

 greatest fury, rubbing against its sides, and at times almost pushing it out of the 

 water. The eggs were laid singly or two or three adherent together, and the 

 male devoured them with the greatest avidity. The eyes in the eggs appeared on 

 the third day and they hatched on the eighth. At Oldenburg, the fry ordinarily 

 attain by the autumn 1± to 2f inches in length, and if properly coloured the 

 largest are saleable for globes. The gold carp will cross with the common carassin 

 and probably with the common carp. 



Diseases. — When at Oxford, in the warm months of 1880, Mr. W. Hatchett 

 Jackson showed me some gold-fish affected with the parasitic infusorian 

 Ichthyophthirius multifiliis of M. Fouquet. Other fish from the Isis had previously 

 been observed to be similarly affected, and doubtless in many instances of reputed 

 recovery from Saprolegnia ferax, the fish had really been suffering from the above 

 parasitic infusorian. 



Owls have been observed to be destructive to these fish (Mag. Nat. Hist, i, 

 1829, p. 179). 



Habitat. — A native of Japan and China, its lively and variable colours, its 

 curiously modified forms, and its generally interesting habits have caused it to be 

 kept in glass vases, fountains, and pleasure grounds in many parts of the world. 

 It is now spread throughout Europe, and not only flourishes domesticated but also 

 thrives in ponds and suitable pieces of water. 



The year in which they were first introduced into England is uncertain and 

 has been stated as 1611, also 1691, but were said to have been destroyed, 

 consequently the fish was not generally known, according to Pennant, till 1728, 

 when a great number were brought over and presented first to Sir Matthew 

 Dekker, and by him circulated round the neighbourhood of London. The 

 earliest seen in France are said to have been sent to Madame Pompadour. A 

 correspondent of Loudon's (Mag. Nat. Hist, iii, p. 478) suggests that gold carp 

 were probably introduced into Portugal at an early period, after the people of 

 that country had discovered the route to the East Indies by the Cape of Good 

 Hope, as they appear to be now completely naturalized there. Having lived some 

 years at Cochin, on the Malabar coast of India, and investigated the fishes, I must 

 demur to this, as the gold carp is not found wild in any part of India, and I have 

 never even seen it domesticated on the Malabar coast. 



It grows to about 10 or 11 inches in length in this country, but in China 

 attains a much larger size. 



