No. 470] 



HABITS OF NECTURUS 



133 



to the sun. The period of egg-laying usually covers two or three 

 weeks. There is no foundation whatever for the statement made 

 by Hans Virehow^ that the animals deposit their eggs so to speak 

 at the same hour. 



According to Professor Whitman's and my own experience the 

 best time for collecting is during the middle and hitter parts of 

 the month of May. The writer has collected eggs as early as 

 May 3, and as late as June 5, but these extremes mark the hegiii- 

 ning and closing of the early and late seasons. 



Preparatory to egg-laying, Necturus seeks the sandy shoals of 

 the lakes or streams. They seem to prefer those localities where 

 the bottom is strewn with numerous logs and boards. It is more 

 than probable that the animals seek these grounds at night since 

 they are rarely if ever seen moving about during the day. 



During the day they lie quietly concealed beneath the various 

 objects and one not familiar with their habits would rarely if ever 

 detect their presence. If one desires to see the animals in their 

 natural positions he must approach with much care and he may 

 perchance be rewarded by seeing the head of one protruding. If, 

 however, the jar of the boat or the scraping of an oar has caused 

 them to hide, he must overturn the concealing object. If this 

 is done with great care the animal is occasionally undisturbed 

 and lies for some time motionless, then begins to crawl slowly 

 about. If, how^ever, the disturbance be violent it darts away 

 and conceals itself beneath some other object. 



The nest of Necturus, if indeed, such it may be called, is, as 

 has been said, always carefully concealed beneath some object 

 and consists of nothing more than a slight excavation in the sand 

 with a narrow opening through which the animal's head pro- 

 trudes; the nest is thus perfecdy guarded against the attacks of 

 enemies. The objects beneath which the nests are most frequently 

 found are clean logs or boards which lie partially imbedded in 



in den zalreichen Seeen im siidlichen Wiyoonsin vor \in<l audi an 



Angaben der Briider Meyer Mitte Mai, im Jahre fiol sir auf <len '22. Mai, 

 d. h. spiiter wie gewohnlich; sie variirt nach deni Wasserstandc. Die Thicre 

 legeu nicht zii veiscliiedenen Zeiten ab, sondern angeblich zu gieicher Zeit, 



