The Stickleback. 487 
perienced angler, even with a bent pin and coarse thread. 
Its hiding-places are among loose stones, under which 
the peculiar flattened form of its head enables it to thrust 
itself. Its popular name seems to have suggested itself 
from the resemblance the head of the fish is supposed to 
bear to the form of a miller's thumb, the peculiar con- 
formation of which is produced by his mode of testing 
samples of meal. 
THE STICKLEBACK, (Gastuostius aculiatus,) 
Is one of our smallest fishes, and appears to live indiffer- 
ently in fresh and salt water. It is exceedingly common 
in every pond, and may be caught easily, either with a 
hand-net, or by fishing for it with a small worm tied to the 
end of a piece of cotton ; he bites at this so boldly that 
he may be drawn out of the water without the aid of a 
hook. His name of Stickleback is given to him from his 
having thin spines on the back instead of a fin ; the 
sides of his body are covered with thin bony plates, and 
his ventral fins consist of single, strong, and sharp spines, 
which constitute formidable offensive weapons. 
The Stickleback, although so common, is one of the 
most interesting of fishes, on account of the singularity 
of its habits in the breeding season. Instead of deposit- 
ing its eggs in the sand or mud, and leaving them to 
take care of themselves, the Stickleback builds a curious 
nest of fragments of vegetable matter, and defends this 
most valiantly against all intruders until the hatching 
of the young ; the parental solicitude does not cease until 
the young Sticklebacks have grown too big to be any 
longer controlled. One curious feature in the business 
is, that it is the male that takes all this trouble ; he builds 
the nest, exposes himself to every danger in its defence, 
and watches anxiously over the vagaries of his young 
progeny, the female having nothing to do but to deposit 
her eggs in the already prepared nest. 
The Stickleback is an extremely pugnacious fish. 
The males fight together furiously, and the colours of 
their bodies become much more brilliant while they are 
so occupied than at any other time. 
