SCOUTING FOR GIRLS 
435 
the Sting-Rays and the Torpedo. The Sturgeon is the 
most common example of the ganoid fish. They are all 
heavily clad with a bony armor. Most of the fishes that 
we find, however, belong to the third group, i. e., bony 
fishes. Among the salt-water species, the cod, the hali- 
but, the mackerel, and the bluefish are especially valuable 
as food. Of the salt-water fishes that go up the rivers 
into fresh water to breed, the salmon and the shad are 
widely known. Of the strictly fresh-water fish, the sun- 
fish and catfish are very common. Among the game-fish 
are the trout, bass, pickerel, and salmon. 
For those who live in cities, a convenient place to begin 
the study of fishes is in the fish-market. Here we may 
learn to know the common food-fishes by name, and to 
know many interesting things about them. If there is a 
Public Aquarium or a Natural History Museum in your 
city, you can use it in connection with the fish-market. 
Especially valuable in Museums are the habitat groups of 
fishes, that is, those in which the fishes are shown in their 
natural surroundings. But, best of all, the place to study 
fishes, as is true of all other animals, is out-of-doors in 
their native haunts. With your dip-net or hook and line, 
catch the fish, and then by the aid of one of the books 
listed below find out what its name is. Then, by observa- 
tion of the fish see what is interesting in its life-history. 
Find out where the mother-fish lays her eggs. Does 
either parent guard them? Has the fish any natural 
weapons of defense? If so, what are they? Does either 
parent care for the young after they are hatched? What 
does the fish feed upon ? In what way is the fish protec- 
tively colored. In the study of fishes, an interesting 
means is the home aquarium. Any Girl Scout can easily 
learn how to install and maintain a balanced aquarium, 
that is, one in which the water does not have to be changed 
and in fact should not be changed. In such an aquarium, 
