The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1899-06-11
THE BLACK BASS AND HER YOUNG.
A Maternal Duty mt the Aquarium That
Seemed to Grow TiresOme.


A small mother black bass In a tank at the
Aquarium. one OF lot brought last fall from
the lake in Prospect Park. scoopod out nest
In the gravel on the bottom OF the tank recent
ly and deposited her spawn in It, In due course
the spawn Matched ont and there appeared In
the tank thousands OF tiny bass, looking at
little distance as much like Rnats us anything.
Tho mother fish. who had faithfully guarded
the spawn in the nest, now defended the young
fish from destruction. She could cover tho
cloud OF them in one corner OF tho tank with
comparative case. by keeping In front OF them.
but she could not herd UP the little ones that
were scattered about. These being mostly
nenr the bottom. she could protect by keeping
the other bass In tho tank besides herself at the
top OF the water and that is what tho mother
bass set out to do and what she did: she kept
oil the other bass in the tank. q dozen or so.
at the top and at that end OF the tank re-
hottest from the gnat-like cloud Of lit
tie bass down in that lower, corner. To
do this she had to kenE busting all
top, they wanted 10 be free to 60 about, and.
aside from any question OF eating the little
%e to GIT lit to tho wb@n hey 70 wn rT
odto, The black bass has two ,dorsa fins.
soft SO dorsal and spinous d 1 the srinpqs
l,ss faniiko; the spnous. dorsaIi; Yi,h it;
down in a little trough-like recess along tho
nsh's back. flush with the ridge When tho
bass is or eSed It mn ths
here would do.
When bass started to come down from the
spnous dorsal. with it's sharp. ominous-ook-
ing spines at the top. and make fierce rush
for the intruder She never failed to drive him
back She was as big a bass ms there was In
the tank and resolute to protect her young.
Day after day she drove them back in this
course. Of the time that she thus stood guard
over the young fishes hundreds of PUSHES ut
intruding fishes that wanted 70 reach the bot
tom. Almost always she would head them Off
before they got half way down and MT turn then
spnous dorsa down again and go back to the
lit ones i'll the corner.
top was the smallest. which either lacked in
tcIligence or was chihlshy obstinate. This
little lass on plumber Of Gee 9nscari9ns ieft the
gardinG the first forward rush o. the mother
bass, but keeping right on: and all hut making
bass got over there she would not only drive il
away but follow it up until she had herself
rushed clean w among the Sn 1ss at tnS t2r
they have attached to them n little sack which
they gradually absorb nature thus provides
DAYS Of their existence. week after this lot
OF bass were Matched out the larger mentors
pac "% IL H hachng box in u Of the e"S @
tanks Of the Aquarium. to preserve them
from the big fishes and viii view to rear rear
siphOned out included those that con-
stituted the cloud, OF little fishes in
the corner: the rest, those scattered about in
mother bass still protected. driving the other
bass away from them as before. But one
moved had been taken from the tank, il was
discovered that the fishes, in tn" bass tank
were no longer separated the mother bass
had given up guarding the remaining little
ones and had Joined the rest and the bass
were now ranging about the tank rs usual.
had been eaten to the last one Besides eat
ing the little ones the bass devoted themselves
at the outset to cleaning Themselves up: for
day or two they made frequent darts at the
gravel from which they had been kept away
80 long and then things went on as usual
OF the fry that were taken ont Of the tank
and placed in tho Matching box. these little
fishes being now about three weeks old there
are som" hundreds yet living and apparently
doing well. the larger ones OF the lot being
about half an inch in length.