The Middlebury register and Addison County journal. [volume] (Middlebury, Vt.) 1883-1885, 1884-05-30
Fish That Go Ashore.

Fish That Go Ashore.
An old fisherman took scientific re-
porter of the New York Sun to a pool on
Long Island, where they found numerous
little fishes (lIillies) resting partly out of
water, with their heads high and dry upon
blades of grass. The old man also spun
a yarn about some large fishes that he had
seen hopping along on the banks of a river
in the Malay country. These fishes were
recognized from the fsherman's dcscrip-
ton by the man of science, who then took
his turn at telling fish stories as follows:
"The fish is only one of a dozen or twenty
that are more or less amphibious. When
the Ceradotus is under water it breathes
by the gills, but it has habit of leaving
the water and proving around on the
marshes of the Mary river AS soon as it
leaves the water the gas in the air bad-
der is expelled with noise that can be
heard half mile. The fish takes in air
at the mouth or nostril that passes into
the air bladder, to which the heart is now
pumping blood to be purified, instead of
sending it to tho gills.
"The Ceradotus which may be called a
dry land fish, is over six feet long, and
lSoks like a great eel with two pairs
of fins that compare with feet, and the
most curious part of it is that previous to
1870 the fish was unknown, except as a
fossil. These fossil remains were described
years ago by Professor Owen as the Cera-
dotus. Strange stories came from the Mary
river Of loud noises that were heard in the
swzmps az night, and the crushing and
rushing as of some huge animal. At last
these rumors attracted the attention of
naturalist, who went to the locality, and
the discovery of the fish was the result.
They live on leaves and vegetable matter
that they obtain partly out of water, and
they are the last of a powerful race that
is probably doomed to extinction.
The killies are not the only fishes
that leave the water Last year | spent
some weeks near small fishing village
where there was large eel pond, and to
say that it was alive with these animals
is putting it extremely mild. Some au-
thorities say that the eel goes down to
the sea only once a year, but these fell
lows went out to sea every night, COM
pletely filling the little channel so that in
wading across you stepped on hundreds
that writhed about your feet and legs.
If there happened to be dory or other
boat about that blocked the way, the cells
left the water and wriggled away over
land, presenting curious sight, and
moving with such rapidity that 1t was an
impossibility to catch them. l thought
it might be accidental, and inquired of
the fishermen how it was, and one told
me that several years before the entrance
to the pond became clogged by sand
after storm, and the cells finding no
way of getting out, started across the
sand every night, forming passageways
by which they returned.
In England, when pike pond gets
too low to suit its occupants, they, ac-
cording to Couch, start overland in regu-
lar droves, and travel until they reach
some place better suited to their require
ments. This is true of large number of
fishes that are peculiar to the East and to
South America. In the latter country the
cattishes known Doras and Hussars, when
left in drying pools, travel overland in
droves, and are caught in great num-
bers by birds and various ami
mails as well az men. Fishes of
another genera from North America,
have been found far from water Per-
haps the most curious is the Protopterus,
some being found in Africa as we'll
They also breathe by the air bladder
when deprived of water, but instead OF
migrating overland they descend into
the mud and encase themselves into u
ball, the interior of which is lined with
a Shiny secretion. and thus closed up as
it were, they lie until the rainy season
comes again, and they are soaked out.
In certain parts of Africa barren wastes
have suddenly become flooded, and the
sudden appearance Of fishes hos given
rise to ideas of spontaneous generation
as the enormous quantities of fishes could
not be explained on any other hypothesis
unless they had rained down. Dadorf,
the Danish naturalist, caught an anatas,
a perch like fish climbing a palm, work
ing its way up by its sharp fins. Hence,
these fish are called climbing porch. They
don't climb usually, but they are perfect
ly amphibious, like frog.
GAS a matter of course, these fishes
have been experimental upon. An Eng
lish naturalist put blenny in an aquar-
ium, and at certain times noticed that the
fish tried to jump out of water To see
what it would do, he set a stone in the
water that formed little island, and in
moment the blcnny jumped upon it,
high and dry out of water. The expert
uentalist noticed that it was then low
tide on the beach, and every day at ex-
actly low tide the fish jumped out upon
the rock, and returned to the water at
flood tide. 1t is remarkable that the
fish should leave the water but how
much more so that it should in house
and tank Lnoyv tba firm of tho ti1o