THE NEW YORK AQUARIUM JOURNAL. 
23 
THE BANDED PROTEUS, 
Memobranchus Lateralis. 
The Banded Proteus now to be seen in table 
tank w of the fresh water series, is one of the 
most curious and interesting of aquatic animals. 
As the visitor to the Aquarium will be able to ob¬ 
serve its peculiarities of form and structure, no 
extended description of them is needed. It will 
be well, however, to direct attention to the pe¬ 
culiar form of the gills, there being three on 
each side, ramified and fringed, and ot a red 
color, on account of the blood which circu¬ 
lates through them. Dr. Beall invented an in¬ 
genious arrangement by which this phenomenon 
of circulation could be witnessed. The blood 
dies are of so extraordinary a size that they can 
be distinguished by an ordinary pocket magni¬ 
fier while passing through the vessels. 
The Banded Proteus is found in Lake Cham¬ 
plain and at the outlet of Lake George. It is 
also to be found in certain of our Northern lakes, 
where its presence is a bane to the fishermen, 
since it has a peculiar fondness for the spawns of 
the white fish. Its movements in the water are 
usually slow, but, from the size of its tail, it is 
evident that when occasion demands it can 
move with great speed. They are said occasion¬ 
ally to come upon the land. Its color is brown¬ 
ish with blackish spots, and its length varies 
from one to two feet. 
Wood, writing of the proms anguinus, says 
that the discovery of this animal is extremely 
valuable, not only as an aid to the science of 
comparative anatomy, but as affording another 
instance of the strange and wondrous forms of 
animal life which still survive in hidden and 
lavished nooks of t he earth. _The speci mens I 
now aT the Aquarium are displayed to the best 
advantage, and the visitor can but regard them 
with curious interest. 
-- - 
THE ALLEGHANY HELL-BENDER. 
Menopontd Alleghaniensis. 
The interest which attaches itself to the series 
of fresh water tanks at the Aquarium is mainly 
divided at present between the Proteus described 
above and the subject of the present sketch. As 
its name indicates, the Hell-bender is found in 
the Alleghany river and other tributaries of the 
Ohio. It is also known as the Salamander of 
the Alleghanies. The specimens shown in tank 
r were presented to the Aquarium by the Buffalo 
Society of Natural Sciences, through its Secretary, 
Mr. A. R. Geote, who also read an interesting 
paper on the subject before the American Acad¬ 
emy at its last meeting. This gentleman also 
records, in the American Journal of Science, the 
interesting fact that this animal sheds a trans¬ 
parent membrane, which he Believes to be the 
exterior layer of the skin. While observing one 
in the Aquarium of the Buffalo Society of Nat¬ 
ural Sciences, an almost complete skin, all the 
feet and toes being readily perceived, was seen 
floating in the water, and later the creature was 
discovered in the act of swallowing his former 
covering, a practice which has also been ob¬ 
served in the toad. The visitor who watches 
the menopoma, will observe a swaying motion of 
the body ; this action is not yet fully accounted 
for, though it is possible that it is connected with 
the animal’s desire to rid himself of his ugly 
skin. 
A female Hell-bender opened on the 21st of 
August contained well developed eggs attached 
by a membrane to the oviary. These eggs are 
laid in a connected string, and are deposited along 
the muddy banks of the river. At this time 
there is a change in the ^external appearance of 
the creature. The tail broadens, and there 
is a plaited extension of the skin along the sides 
of the body. 
The two specimens of Hell-benders now on 
view are worthy of special study, and, as in 
many other cases, we would advise those inter¬ 
ested to view them as soon as possible, as al¬ 
ready the confinement of the Aquarium has re¬ 
sulted in the death of one rare creature of this 
class. 
HERMIT CRABS. 
Scattered at intervals on the shingle bottomed 
tank(j) or in closely collected groups,will be seen 
numbers of those quaint Crustacea, remarkable 
for their habit of approaching the deserted shells 
of other animals, for the better protection of their 
otherwise tender and defenceless hinder quarters. 
This foregoing peculiarity has won for them the 
popular title ot Hermit Crabs, although on ac¬ 
count of their extremely irritable and pugilistic 
disposition, they are about equally well known 
as Soldier Crabs. The Hermit C .ab {Pagurus 
bernhardus), is most frequently found, when 
young, inhabiting the cast-off shell of the Dog- 
winkle (. Purpura lapillus ), and at a more ad¬ 
vanced condition of growth than that of the Com- 
mon Whelk( Buccinum undatum ). The process by 
which the Hermit Crabs have gained possession 
of these highly ornament villa residences, in place 
of their former sybaritic hut, is an artificial one, 
each individual having been originally extracted 
from an ordinary Whelk shell, and left in com¬ 
pany with others of a foreign type from which it 
almost immediately made a selection. Qn the 
WrmaUy-1 
inhabit these, brilliantly-colored and fantastic- 
shaped abodes, including also the beautifully- 
spotted and naturally highly-polished Cowries ; 
in this latter instance, the species of Hermit has 
a specially flattened body and general contour to 
enable it to utilize these remarkably narrow-ap- 
ertured shells as a suitable protection. 
LOBSTER. 
Homarus Americanus. 
The Common Lobster is a well-known mem¬ 
ber of the Crustacea. Its color is blue-black, 
flecked and clouded in a most elegant manner, 
but after boiling, it becomes of an almost uniform 
red. Its structure follows that of the genus , 
which has been treated generally. Its claws are 
powerful weapons, and are remarkable for being 
dissimilar. One is larger than the other, and 
one is furnished with saw-like elevations, the 
other is marked by rounded knobs. The 
wounds produced by the saw-shaped claw are 
very painful and difficult of healing. The Lob¬ 
ster is extremely nimble, and darts with a pro¬ 
pulsion of the tail upon its prey, or evades pur- 
suitwith a surprising celerity. If endangered by 
an enemy, it penetrates into crevices in the rocks 
much smaller than its apparent bulk. It is very 
combative with its own species, and after a fierce 
encounter, the conquered frequently retires 
minus one or more limbs. But as these grow 
again, the damage is not of a mortal kind. It 
is very voracious, and this aids greatly in its cap¬ 
ture, for it cannot resist the bait which is laid for 
it. The traps are made of basket work or pots, 
and the numbers caught are enormous. It 
is found on our northern coasts, even to the 
extreme north, and grows under favoring con¬ 
dition to a great size, some having been taken 
sixteen pounds in weight. It is most prolific, as 
may be observed from the mass of dark spawn 
often found clustered under the abdomen. If 
COMMON STICKLEBACK. 
Gasterosteus Pungitius. 
This well-known fish is found in ponds, 
streams, and rivers, and appears equally suited 
to salt water. It is extremely voracious.. An 
observer, once standing by the side of an orna¬ 
mental lake, saw a young Irog hopping past. He 
threw it in a short distance to exhibit its powers 
of swimming to a young bather, anxious to learn 
the art. The momemt it reached the surface of 
the water, a flash of light seemed to be emitted 
from the bottom. It was caused by a shoal of 
Sticklebacks, which pounced upon the unfor¬ 
tunate frog with great fierceness. In a few 
moments the four legs of the poor creature were 
eaten away, and new shoals came hurrying from 
more distant parts of the lake to the. prey. The 
battle that took place round the victim was as 
desperate as could be imagined. Though pelted 
at with bits of gravel, they would not leave it, 
but continued to nibble and battle among them¬ 
selves as long as a particle remained. This in¬ 
stance of voracity is, however, not surprising, for 
they do not hesitate to devour one another. An 
illustrated description of the Stickleback ap¬ 
peared in the first number of the Aquairum 
Journal. 
---- 
THE SKATE, or CLEAR NOSED RAY. 
Raia diaphanes. 
Among the inhabitants of the deep sea tank, 
C, we find the Skate or Fluke, known as the 
“Clear Nosed Ray.” Although extremely 
~oUr 'Coasi^' lUry Aifni an Tffter-~ 
eating object of attention from a peculiar habit 
of pressing their anterior side against the 
glass, showing a pure white surface, while the 
mouth and gill openings form a strong like¬ 
ness to a flat, old fashioned human face, and 
tends to create no little amusement at times 
among its auditors. At times they cover 
themselves with sand, and only the gentle 
movement of the gills tells of the life within. 
In the same tank are the peculiar eggs of this 
fish, called by some “ Sea Barrows,” from the 
four appendages that spring from the four cor 
ners, and unconsciously seize the grass and 
algae, thus holding the young skate in posi¬ 
tion. They feed upon young crustucea, and 
are consequently unfit for use, the flesh being 
usipid and gelatenious. 
GAR FISH. 
Lepidosteus Osseug Liu. 
One of the most interesting fish in the large 
fresh water tank, is the Bony Gar Pike, and 
here we find a living representative < 4 the 
old Ganoid race thay are now only known 
by their impressions in the hardened sand¬ 
stones that tell of seas that rose and fell, per¬ 
haps millions of years ago. The fish is com¬ 
pletely encased in a coat of smooth, thick, 
and rhomboidal scales, an armor equal to any 
foe. They grow to a large size, often exceed¬ 
ing four feet, and with their long bill armed 
with needle like teeth, and powerful fins 
form no mean antagonist to the fish¬ 
erman or sportsman. They are quite com¬ 
mon in Lake Erie, where they are known as 
the Buffalo fish, a species, probably the same 
has been found in Lake Champlain. They 
are fed in the Aquarium upon small Lace, and 
their quick movements in securing their prey 
render them specially worthy of notice at the 
time of feeding. 
