9I4 THE AMERICAN NATURALIST. [VoL. XXXV. 
the stomach of Necturus. In one instance I partially removed 
the eggs from a nest, and upon returning the next day found the 
old Necturus in the nest as usual, but the remaining eggs 
could not be found. The parent was taken, and an examination 
revealed the fact that a number of eggs had been swallowed. 
It was interesting to watch the actions of the fish when the 
sheltering object was removed. A fence rail covering a nest- 
‘ing pair was carefully turned, when the fishes immediately 
sought its shelter. As it was turned farther and farther from 
the nest they followed, keeping as well secluded as possible, the 
while moving restlessly about in search of the nest. When the 
rail was finally lifted from the water the male lingered for a 
few moments, then darted for deeper water. The female 
approached the shore and began searching here and there for 
her lost nest. This she passed several times without recogni- 
tion, although she seemed to know the surrounding landmarks, 
since she would go but a short distance in either direction, 
then turning would pass back to the locality of the nest, 
which she found in a short time, and despite the fact that it 
was unsheltered, she remained. On the following morning the 
nest was visited, but again neither fish nor eggs were to be 
found. 
It is not difficult to allure the fish to.an improvised shelter. 
A number of boards were placed on the shore with one end 
projecting into the shallow water. The fishes sought these 
places and made their nests beneath the boards. It is worthy 
of note that in no case did I observe more than a single nest 
beneath the same cover, and this quite agrees with the pugna- 
cious character of the fish. 
Two nests which were occupied by both parent fishes were 
left undisturbed and when visited two days later only one fish 
was present. It was found by examination that in each case 
it was the male. When the female leaves the nest could not 
be definitely determined; as nearly as could be ascertained It 
would seem to be about the time the embryos begin to move. 
The eggs are laid in masses, quite unlike those of most fishes, 
but similar in general form to the egg masses of the common 
frog. They àre free from pigment and present when beneat 
