FOREST AND STREAM. 



165 



^itml HSjjisiorg. 



CRAWFISH. 



THE habits of the crawfish (Astacus) differ somewhat with 

 the species. For instance, those found in Canada and 

 the Northeastern States (A. bartonti) prefer stony brooks, 

 Where they love to hide during the day, as 1 think they arc all 

 more or less nocturnal, while the A. missismppien&is of the 

 Western States burrows vertically as well as laterally, and 

 builds n cylinder or well on top of the ground, often ten inches 

 high, where it ascends during a rise of the water, which it 

 likes to leave at times. I have seen these mound3 or burrows 

 ou the rolling prairies of Kansas, five miles from any visible 

 stream; and it is well known to the frontiersmen that m 

 digging a well it is safe to follow a crawfish hole down, as it 

 is believed that they come up from an underground stream or 

 stratum of water, instead of crawling over the prairie and 

 burrowing down. This species is larger than the other, often 

 measuring four and a half inches, while A. barloivii seldom 

 if ever exceeds three. They breed much as the lobsters do ; 

 . i lie female carries the eggs in the appendages under her 

 tail until they hatch, but differing from the lobster in the 

 young undergoing no metamorphosis as most other decapods 

 do. The sexes are distinct, and differ in the structure of the 

 abdominal appendages, the first pair being soft in the female, 

 who also has the genital orifices at the ba-sis of the middle, pair 

 of legs, while those of the male are at the basis of the last 

 pair. I noticed in some eggs that I hatched this year that the 

 embryo was coiled in the egg with the ventral outward, and 

 the yolk or umbilicus appeared to be behind, but was called 

 away and did not complete the observations, as they were 

 all hatched on returning. 



They are great nuisances about fish ponds, especially in clay, 

 where their burrow never closes, but remains a permanent 

 drain. Dams and bridges have been destroyed by their 

 undermining, and why your correspondent wishes to intro- 

 duce, them 1 do not know, unless for the table. They are 

 good boiled or made into a salad, and I often eat them when 

 opportunity occurs to get a quantity of sufficient size. If this 

 is the object, perhaps the Oregon species (A. oregmvas or A. 

 trowhridgii) would be preferable, as they are the largest, I 

 think, of the fresh water forms. One found in the Columbia 

 River is said to have grown to the length of eight inches. 

 They are excellent bait for some fishes — the basses, etc. The 

 name is sometimes spelled crayfish, and. according to Web- 

 ster, " Is corrupted from O. n. German — krebiz, now krebs ; 

 or from French, eoreome, which is itself derived from krehie^ 

 and in many places hi the interior, notably parts of western 

 New York, Illinois and Indiana, they are locally known as 

 crabs. Dams have been successfully protected from them by 

 facing with saw-dust, or, better yet, spent tan bark, which 

 settles down and fills the hole as fast as made. 



Fbkd. Mathee. 



A Wae with Bats. — A curious story comes from Dog 

 Prairie, St. Charles county, concerning the manner in which 

 the house of Mr. T. J. McAtee has recently become infested 

 With bats. McAlee lives in a double log house. His atten- 

 tion was first directed to the neighborhood of his front gate, at 

 which point he heard innumerable flitting noises like a storm 

 in the distance. lie saw what at first he took to be a black 

 cloud approaching, but as it got nearer he realized that it was 

 a horde of bats. As the swarm neared the house it lowered, 

 and Me Alee instini itively retreated from the formidable enein y, 

 rushed through the front door, closed the shutter and lowered 

 the window sashes. A considerable number found entrance 

 into the room, and McAtee and a hired man succeeded in 

 killing about one hundred. On the outside could be heard a 

 tremendous commotion, as if the bats were swarming and 

 fighting among themselves. McAtee went through the back 

 door into the back yard and around to the south side of the 

 bouse, where the horde had congregated. The scene at the 

 window is described by him to have been of the most extra- 

 ordinary character. The air was filled with myriads of bats, 

 flying and circling about in all directions and darting against 

 •each other with audible force. A huge and writhing mass had 

 settled on the window sill, and the entire frame as well as the 

 wooden part of the sash was covered with them. The weather 

 boarding for at least five feet on each side of the window and 

 from the lower logs to the top of the house was covered with 

 ithe black throng, A bright light shone through the window 

 panes and everything on the outside was plainly visible. 

 Though the greater part of the invaders showed a preference 

 for 1 his window, a general inspection showed that they were 

 distributed over the entire premises. Every outhouse 'on the 

 place was either invaded or surrounded. In the stable, where 

 throe horses were munching their evening oats, there was a 

 •dread pawing and whinnying, and an examination revealed 

 the fact that every stall and trough was infested wi<h bats, 

 and McAtee deemed it a matter of prudence to turn the horses 

 loose in the pasture. The dogs— of which there were six on 

 the place— went around howling in dismay at the strange 

 spectacle. 



Overcome and confused by Ibis phenomenal visitation, 

 McAtee finally conceived a, plan which resulted in the capture 

 a.nd death of a very large number of them. The window T sash 

 was raised, and thousands rushed in, and in five minutes there 

 was not a vacant spot on ceiling, wall, floor, table, bedpost, 

 bureau or chair. The window was then closed, and McAtee 

 and his hired man began fhe.work of destruction. The two 

 men were armed with ax helves, and they made fearful 

 havoc among the foe. The slaughter continued an hour and 

 $ half. The result, by actual count, was 4,103 dead bats, 

 and their carcasses filled a large barrel which holds over 

 five bushels. Though this onslaught greatly' diminished the 

 number of invaders there were still hundreds, and perhaps 

 thousands, of them left, though, owing to the darkness, it, 

 was found impracticable to make further war on than. Next 

 morning when McAtee awoke not a bat wns to he seen, all 

 urvivors having disappeared as mysteriously as they 

 came. t 



It seems, however, that the bats, were determined to make 

 McAfee's house their haunt, and the following night they 

 swarmed as formidably as on their first visit, and over three 

 thousand were killed. They still persist in coming, and up 

 to this time there have been upward of seventeen 

 thousand slain, and, though there is a visible and gratifying 

 falling off in the number of invaders, they yet infest the 

 premises in sufficient numbers to be very troublesome. It is 

 believed that they come from an immense thicket about ten 

 miles up the Missouri River, where they breed in countless 

 quantities. It is known that this thicket or swamp is thickly 

 infested with them, and still hunters have often found them 

 so numerous in certain spots that they could not make head- 

 way without great annoyance. McAtee considers the visita- 

 tion a serious calamity, and is carrying on a relentless war of 

 extermination. The invading bat is of the common insectivor- 

 ous species, cmadrupedal and with a body much like that of a 

 mouse. The story is certainly an extraordinary one, and its 

 truth is vouched for by several reliable witnesses.— St. Louis 

 Globe Democrat , Sept, 3. 



•—"••—• . 



A Japanese in the Aquaeittm.- — A j'ouug Japanese student 

 who has been visiting the. New York Aquarium describes his 

 visit in a letter to the Tokio Times, July 28. He says : 



" But that which interested me personally was the beautiful 

 three-tailed gold fish, solitary, but in his glory, with this label 

 on his tank : " The three-tailed Kingiyo— Japan. Offered 

 $2,000." You know what kind I mean. I should think it 

 was a very fine specimen of our Kingiyo. Its body was not 

 more than two inches long, and was beautifully colored, white 

 and red ; hut its tad, in three branches, was near four inches 

 long. Is it strange that I felt a sort of kinship existing be- 

 tween me and this lonely creature on that spot ? I was at 

 once reminded of Bayard Taylor's experience with the lion at 

 the Centxal Park Menagerie. I brought my face close to the 

 tank and whispered in Japanese, " Ohayau, Mr. Kingiyo,' 7 

 when, lo and behold, Mr. Kingiyo made straight to my face, 

 and to me seemed to make signs of recognition at me. Perhaps 

 it was only my nose he recognized, and took it for a remark- 

 ably inviting bait ; and to say the truth, he did nibble 

 affectionately and most eagerly at that organ through the thick 

 partition of the glass tank." 



Ortolans.— Tour special correspondent, under date, Washington. 

 Aug. 10th, in writing of rail shooting, speaks of those birds as ortolans. 

 Why is this? I have supposed the ortolan (Kmbcriza hortulana) be- 

 longs to the. Bunting family, and was not aware that this species (orto- 

 lan) inhabits this country. As their name Indicates, they are not a 

 marsh bird, but whose characteristics are quite the reverse of those of 

 the rail family. If in this, however, I am in error, I shall be glad to be 

 set aright. Again, he says, '• Reed birds, unlike the ortolan, Beldoin pen- 

 etrate into the interior of this country." I am sure your correspondent, 

 upon further inquiry, will find that they quite commonly penetrate the 

 whole interior of this country. I have seen them upon our Nebraska 

 prairies quite frequently during the past ten or twelve years, and they 

 gather in flocks here before starting South, In autumn— the same as 1 

 observed them in Vermont 25 years ago, Yours truly, 



Omaha, Aug. 21. 187T. B. E. B. Kennedy. 



[The above writer evidently confounds the bobolink (Doli- 

 chonfto vpymoms) with sora rail, or ortolan (Porzona Caro- 

 lina). The sora rail we have frequently met on the prairies of 

 Nebraska.— Ed.] 



Do Fishes Heak ? — Apropos of this question, which has 

 already been discussed in Forest and Stkkam, the experience 

 of Mr. Prank Hale, of Pigeon Cove, Mass., is interesting, as 

 told by the Cape Ann Advertiser: 



Mr. Hale, often visited the brook at the rear of his lot and found 

 that articles of food thrown in were eagerly consumed by 

 some eels that inhabited it. Daily feeding the eels established 

 a friendly acquaintance, so that they in time fed directly out 

 of his hand. Latterly, the friendship is so cordial on their 

 part, that when he approaches the. brook and makes a sort of 

 whistling noise to call them, they swim briskly up from their 

 haunt down stream, come to his hand held in the water, fondle, 

 and play lovingly around his fingers, and eat gratefully and 

 very heartily, too, of the fish and mackerel he brings them : 

 one large one, fully two feet long, and very large around and 

 heavy ; two smaller ones, who joined the happy family since 

 the old one began the acquaintance ; and one a little younger, 

 who has come in only lately. The old one is so sociable that 

 he allows Mr. H. to lift him quite out of the water, play with 

 him, passing his slippery form from hand to hand very freely. 

 How much farther this singular acquaintance may be carried 

 does not yet appear. What subtle link of Darwinian kindred 

 there may be between eels and humans we shall perhaps know 

 by-and-by. 



> .#. 



Disgust. — A writer in the Mevne des Deux Mmules says that 

 disgust, on ultimate analysis, will be found to be an instinct- 

 ive sentiment of protection, varying with species, and with 

 the alimentation, habits and education of individuals. It is in 

 conseriuence of the hereditary instinct which has apprised our 

 ancestors that certain animals and substances might be danger- 

 ous for us. He points out that disgust sometimes attaches to 

 the total form of objects, and may diminish and become ex- 

 tinct as scientific analysis disjoins the parts of the repugnant 

 whole. Thus a spider, viewed as a whole, is a repulsive crea- 

 ture ; but take a leg or an eye of it and study in the micro- 

 scope the marvelous arrangement of those organs, and the 

 sight will awaken admiration instead of disgust. Again, habit 

 is evidently an important factor in feelings of disgust. To eat 

 frogs or snails is repugnant to us, yet we eat without disgust 

 such things as black pudding, tripe, liver, high game and de- 

 cayed cheese. The aversion to horse flesh is not readily ac- 

 counted for, except by habit. 



+ ~f\ u lomitllologist has taken the trouble to find out 

 at what hour during the summer the commonest small birds 

 wake up and begin to sing. The result of his inquiry shows 

 that the earliest riser of all is the greenfinch, who tunes up at 

 about half past 1 a. m., some hours before the more robust and 

 melodious species of finches are ready for work. The second 

 to put in an appearance is the blackcap, who is to be heard at 

 hall past 3, or thereabouts ;and half au hour later the quail 

 makes his first attempt at a musical performance. It is nearly 

 4 o clock, and the sun is well above the horizon, before the 

 first; real songster appears in the person of the blackbird who 

 precedes the thrush about half an hour, and the chirp of the 

 robin is about the same length of time before that of the wren. 

 i< malJy, the house sparrow and the tomtit occupy the last 

 place on the list. 



♦ •» 



Tortoises as Weather Indicators.— If there be any truth 

 in a paper read by a French savant at a recent meeting of the 

 Academy of Sciences in Paris, every well-regulated household 

 should have one or more tortoises about the premises. Accord- 

 ing to M. Bouchard, tortoises take extraordinary precautions 

 against; cold weather. Their instinct tells them in the milder 

 seasons when the thermometer is likely to fall to freezing 

 point, and toward the end of autumn warns them also of the 

 approach of winter. In both cases they take precaution to 

 screen themselves from cold, a>vl by carefully observing them, 

 M. Bouchard has for years been enabled to regulate his hot- 

 house. At the end of autumn, when the winter threatens to 

 be severe, tortoises creep deep into the earth, so as to com- 

 pletely conceal themselves from view. If, on the contrary, 

 the winter promises to be mild, they scarcely go down an inch 

 or two, just enough to protect the opening's of their shells. 

 Last January, which was so mild, they even went about. 

 Last month, the thermometer standing at 50 deg. Fahrenheit 

 our author saw his tortoises creep into the ground, and that 

 very night the glass fell to 28 deg. Fahrenheit, On tho 1st 

 inst., the mercury being at 110 deg. Fahrenheit in the sun, one 

 of the tortoises hid itself; on the following morning there 

 was hoar frost. 



—The Mt. Sterling, Pa., Democrat mys: A large rattle- 

 snake was killed in Breathitt county, a few days .ago, that 

 proved to be quite a curiosity. It was perfectly formed, 

 save it had two well-developed necks and heads. The prongs 

 of the necks were about four inches long, and the snake used 

 both heads at the same time, striking with both and thrusting 

 out its tongues in a spiteful manner, and had the appearance 

 of two snakes— so much so that the parties who killed it did 

 not discover the deformity until his snakeship was dead. Wo 

 give Judge E. C. Strong, of Breathitt, as authority for the 

 above, and he says it can be substantiated by a dozen good 

 witnesses. B 



, —The sea lion in the Coney Island Aquarium was taken 

 sick a tow days ago. How to relieve his ailments was a ques- 

 tion that puzzled his keeper. The following devise was finally 

 adopted: Afresh herring was procured and cleansed, it was 

 then filled witn castor oil. When it was thrown into the tank 

 the sea lion seized and swallowed it in a second, and has re- 

 covered his wonted good health, and is now as noisy as ever. 



Arrivals at Philadelphia Zoological Garden during week end- 

 ran Tuesday, Sept. i, ISTT.-One night heron (NyctianUa gardent), pre- 

 sented; two gopher tortoises (Testudo Carolina), presented ; one alli- 

 gator (A. niississippiensis), presented ; one great horned owl (Bubo vir- 

 iiinianus), presented ; one llama (Lama peruana), born in garden ; 

 one diamond rattlesnake (Crotalva adamanlus), presented ; two chicken . 

 snakes (Ophibolus getulus), presented ; one black snake (Boscamon cmi- 

 sMetor),, presented ; two glass snakes (Opluxmurw ventralii), present- 

 ed ; two alligators (A. mississipiensis), purchased ; twenty-three gray 

 lizards (& undulatim, purchased; seven chameleons (A. principalis), 

 purchased ; one whip snake {it. fiagclliforinis), purchased ; one green 

 snake (Cyelophte vernalis) purchased. 



Arthur E, Brown, Gen'l Supt. 



«-~H»h — . . 



Arrivals at Philadelphia. Zoological Gardens for week ending 

 Tuesday, Sep. 11.— One raccoon, Procyon lotor, presented ; one gray 

 fox, Vulpes virginianus, do ; three canary birds, presented ; two 

 laughing gulls, Lama atricilla, presented ; one woodchuck, Arctomys 

 monax, presented ; twenty-four gray lizards, Sceloporuaundulalm, pur- 

 chased : fourteen chameleons, Anolim principalis, do. 



Abthur E. Brown. 



—Camp's automatic cartridge loader is an invention, that 

 must commend itself to sportsmen. Two receivers are filled, 

 one with powder, the other with shot, and they deliver the 

 charges to each shell as desired, only three motions being re- 

 quired to load. Try it.— [See ado. 



l§oodlnnd t $wm nnd %mdm. 



EFFECTS OF AUTUMN FOLIAGE. 



—Immense flocks of swallows haunt a little copse in West- 

 erly. Hundreds of thousands of these birds gather, filling tho 

 air and confusing the mind with their twittering. They come 

 singly, in pairs, by the score, in hundreds, and even in' flocks 

 of thousands, until there seems to be no room in the ah for 

 more. All at once, as if by magic, they shoot into the copse 

 and disappear. It is really a wonderful sight. Westerly peo- 

 ple visit the place every evening, and many come over even 

 from Watch Hill and Stonington to witness the singular phe- 

 nomenon. They have been known to gather there for a num- 

 ber of years, but in numbers they excel this ve,ax,—Pr mi t:l ,,,, : 

 Journal. 



TVTOW that the season is w r ell advanced, and summer 

 -L ^ merges into autumn's lap, and the gorgeous fall tints 

 of our trees and shrubs develop more and more eveiy day, it 

 woidd be well for those interested in beautifying their country 

 homes to study well the effects of this coloring, and, when 

 possible, have their trees so planted in future that a flower gar- 

 den, as it were, will be presented to the eye long after the 

 flowers themselves have faded. Last season we saw a country 

 seat, planted some years since with special reference to this 

 idea, and now that the selected specimens have grown and 

 rounded the various groups into perfect fullness, the exquisite 

 blending and contrast of colors may well be termed surpris- 

 ingly beautiful. The scarlet of the Scarlet Oak, the yellow of 

 the Sassafras, the crimson of the Liquid Amber or Gum Troe 

 and Pepperidgc, the orange of the Red Maple and Sugar Ma- 

 ple in one group will be, in these later days, almost dazzling, 

 and then to heighten the effect, if that were possible, the 

 American Ivy, with its brilliant festoons of crimson leaves, and 

 I the greeu Briar with its golden-ycilow foliage will twine 



