American citizen., 1875-03-20
The Water.Bear.

The water-bear is a comical-looking
little animal. His home is in fresh-water
shallow ponds, and he is so small that
only the practical eye can detect him
without the aid of the microscope.
Being less in size than an ordinary pin
head it is not necessary to take dogs and
guns to go in search of our bear" All
that the successful hunter needs is a
stout stick "a forked one is best to pull
the plants that harbor him from the
pond, and a supply of walls to hold the
water and plants.
An experienced hunter knows pretty
wei from the look of the water and
plants whether he has hit upon good
hunting grounds" Satisfied with his
captures he returns home, takes tiny
spray of plant from one of the walls
spreads it on a glass slide followed out
on one side for the purpose, and adds
little water from one of the vials to fill
the cavity. 1t is now ready for the mi
croscope. With very strong magnify
ing power the water in the glass slide
appears like deep pond, and the little
spray of plant like great branch and
here are myriads Of strange creatures
swimming about and frolicking with
each other. But the bear is the main
object of our search, and here he is. He
looks very much like his larger name
sake, only he has eight legs instead of
four.
He goes slowly grubbhg about among
the plants, eating as he goes, and food is
SO abundant where he lives that we never
find a poor, half-starved specimen.
Wa'er-bears always are fat and plump,
from the tiny cub up to full-grown,
grave looking fellows.
l have family of these bears in lit
tie glass cage upon my study-table. The
cage is supplied with pond-water and
plants; and as often as | find bear l
cage him; and when l become tired and
cross l take look at this happy family,
and the bears droll maneuvers never fail
to restore me to good humOr. The cage
is SO constructed that can conveniently
place it under the microscope.
Sometimes find bear sitting on his
launches, entrapped and held in this po-
sition by the plants. He strikes about
with his fore-paws, but still eats away as
if his very life depended upon his de-
vouring certain amount of food before
he can stop to eXtricate himself.
He changes his skin, don't know how
many times but as often as the old dress
becomes too tight and uncomfortable, 1
suppose; and he slips out of it SO nicely,
leaving it all whole, even to the little
claws, and there it stands, not thrown
down in heap nor mussed at ALI For
a time l was completely puzzled on see
ing these old dresses standing about as
if inflated, and thought they must be
skeletons-that the oody had decomposed
and left only the skin; but after awhile
l caught one slipping out of his dress,
and the mystery was explained.
The mother bear makes good use of
her old dress. She converts it into a
In slipping out of her skin she
manages to leave four or five eggs in
side of it; for the water-bear, unlike it's
great namesake, lays eggs, and the little
ones must take care-of themselves as
best they may. The egg is covered with
\ membrane, so transparent that we can
see through it, and in a few days after
the eggs are left we can see the outline
of the little bear all coiled up, with its
tiny paws close to its mouth. 1t soon
bursts the membrane, and goes slowly
plodding about, sometimes within the
walls for day or so, until at
last it makes its exit through slit or
opening in the back, and is fairly
into the great world of water
and plants, where it. at once becomes as
much at home as the oldest inhabitant.-
Nary Treat, an 81. Nicholas for March.