The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-09-27
THINGS AT THE AQUARIUM.
A Biz Lobster and Crocodile Newcomer
Funny Acts by tho Turtles.


United States Senator John F. Dryden
Of New Jersey sent to the New York
Aquarium last week as a gift big lobster
that he had CHANGED upon while on q cruise.
1t is the biggest lobster the Aquarium has
had in q long time, and as Holsters run
nowadays it can fairly be ranked as q
giant.
1t is about two feet in length over all.
and would weigh probably from twelve
to fifteen pounds One Of its big claws
is missing, but Judging from the size OF
the one renal ming this lobster must have
measured in spread, with big claws out
stretched, two and half to three feet
The Aquarium has now in one OF the jars
OF It's Matching apparatus about 10000 lob
ster eggs, the first it has ever had. They
were taken from Long Island lobster re-
ceived here on Sept 10. It takes lobster
eggs from ten to eleven months to hatch
out; and il everything goes well with them.
these lobster eggs may be expected to
hatch out about the middle Of June. 1904.
Lobster eggs are very small. the 10000
of the jar. The young lobster when 1t
emerges from the egg s about onee-third
of an inch in length, and attains length
of two thirds OF an inch in its first year.
In the same pool with the big three
legged alligator there is now installed an
American crocodile nine feet In length. 1t
came from Madeira Island, one OF tho
Florida Keys. 49,,
Many visitors to the Aquarium will
doubtless remember that at one end OF the
pool now occupied by the manatee, or sea-
COW, but formerly the home of the West
Indian seal, there is, or was, pla torn
upon which the big seal used to climb to
rest and sleep. Not being a shoregoin
animal at all the sea-cow did not need
this platform, which has now been enclosed
and made into shallow, semi.circular
pool, In which are shown variety OF smaller
turtles, including those up to foot or
so in length.
They are more or less lively, these small
turtles. and at first some Of them managed
to get out Of this shallow pool. One turtle
would get up into corner at the front and
another turtle would walk up on its back
and out. Wire screens were then placed
over these corners SO that the turtles
couldn't get out there.
To make this shallow pool on the plat
form a cement wall about foot high was
run across the front of it where 1t opened
on to the incline leading down into the water
OF the main pool, this wall having rounded
top Turtles big enough to do so stand
on the floor Of the shallow pool and lean
against this wall, or tight fence, and stretch
| their necks and look over into the pool OF
| the sea-cow. When ono Of the turtles was
doing this yesterday an attendant called
| to it.
Get down out OF that" and instantly
the turtle dropped away from the fence
| lust as a small boy would have done in like
circumstances at like command. just
chance that the turtle did that, probably
but 1t looked as though it had heard and
understood.
The other day turtle got up on the round
| ing top OF that fence or wall, and tried to
walk across from one side Of the pool tc
the other. Its fiat, hard, smooth under.
shell was not at all adapted to that sort Of
travelling, and It was too big and it's legs
too far apart to enable II to get good
grip with them, and 1t slipped partly on
time and again, always managing IN some
way, however, to hang on with its front
feet enough to keep from going OIL the
fence completely and then somehow
scrambling UP again to the top and once
more starting on.
In this way the turtle had made it's way
third Of the distance across, when visitor
with a sporting turn, q man who had beer
watching the turtle and who had been in
terested in it's plucky and persistent strlg
giles, turned to an Aquarium attendant
standing near, with:
1.-TWO to one the turtle gets across.
But he would have lost il his bet had beer
taken, for with it's very next slip the turtle
fell of the fence top entirely, and was too
tired to climb up again.
They turn on the steam, so to speak
at the Aquarium, meaning thereby tn,
warmed salt water supply for the tropica
fishes, early. 1t was started up for the com
ing season last week, when the salt water
as it flowed into the tanks. had dropped
to temperature OF about e711 degrees
With this warmed salt water supply tn
temperature Of the water In these fishes
tanks was raised again to about 10. 1t II
kept at from 10 to II through the winter