New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1904-12-25
HOW THE FISH DO THEIR COlRllNG.
cTyBJOr7S CHARACTERISTICS OF DIFFERENT SPECIES
BRILLIANT COLORS OF MALES.

81
how closely man is initiated by many OF theSs'
To,h eea,ns IN have the same power OF pro-
61,csng widely different emotions. from. that OF
intense rage at an intru6ing rival 20 tehoeI
soliiitude for the object OF ones Affections IN
r,ariy, Of the lower animals IN man himself
while The counting habits Of the fishes Tor
obyjsI,s reasons Rave not been so wen stuoieu
as shose of other vertebrates. particularly ING
birds Vet enough interesting data have aifeaoy
neoI cleaned TO indicate that when more fully
studied they will prove even more wohaeT1"i
than those Of the latter.
with the human beings the female SeneFAl!
adoans herself with brilliant colors 10 fasclhale
the male. while with the lower animals the re-
verse is the case: but it is not many centuries
back since man acted in the same manner.
I'M many species of fishes the male alone is
ornamented with bright colors or peculiar ap-
pendages. or these are much brighter in the
maid than IN The female, while the males OF
many species which differ permanently in color
from the females often become more brilliant
Ia the breeding season This is likewise the case
witt a multitude of fishes the sexes of which
are identical IL color al all other seasons OF
the year
The male Callionymus lyra has been called
tbe .tgeTifneous dragonet'' from its brilliant,
geu5ike colors. Its body is yellow, OF various
SHADES striped and spotted with vivid blue on
-. head; the dorsal fms pale brown, with
aarE LONGITUDINAL bands the veEtral, oaudaI
arc anal fins are blush black The female
or .isordid dragonet," was considered by LIN
nasuf and by many subsequent naturalists as
"a distinct species, IL is of a dtn6y reddish
Brown with dorsaI fin brown and the other ms
white The sexes differ also in the posltoh
Gf the eyes and in the proportional size Of the
Sead and mouth. but the most striking diifer-
ence is in the extra elongation in the male of
STE dorsal I'm As there i apparent useful
Furpose subserved by this singular appendage
e IS Urobaby used by the males for the purpose
OF fascinating their mates.
Tee male of the Cottus scorpius. or sea scoT-
p.oai Is slenderer and smaller than the female.
The+a is also a great difference in color. 1t IS
difitult for any one who has not seen THIS Ilsil
II tie breeding season, when its hues are bright
est. TO conceive the adrnxture Of brilliant col
o-s with which il in other respects so i'll ia
vordd Is al that time adorned.
The male sricklaback in the breeding season
f. exceedingly brilliant. Its eyes are of splen-
cid green, with a peculiar metallic lusJre The
thr,at and belly are of bright crimson, the
back of an ashy green. while the whole nsh ap-
PEARS as though it We're somewhat translucent
and glowed with an internal incandesoence. the
female. on The contrary. has a brown and white
bell5 while its eyes are of a pale brown. after
the breeding season is over the brilliant colors
Of the male change very much. the throat ana
hellt- becoming Of q paler red, the back more
green. while the glowing tints Of the body sub
SIDE very materially
In our own pike the colors Of the male become
exceedingly intense brilliant end iridescent in
tbe breeding season. The eel also puts on an in
tense siIvery color in the breeding season, Whlch
Is very noticeable, and at one time caused natu-
ralt.ts 10 distinguish il as distinct species
The male Of the tencl, roach and perch shows
z marked increase III brilliancy in the breeding
season. TIE male Atlantic salmon in the same
season IS marked on the cheeks with orange col
pred stripes. which give it the appearance Of
Labrus and the BODY Dartakes of golden
orange ti1ge. The females Of this species are
dark in cG.oI. and are frequently called black
6sh" An analogous and even greater change
pcctrs q. this time in the males of the bull trout
and the char. members Of the Salmonidee family.
with some blennies q crest is developed on
the head Of the male only in the breeding sea-
son and the body at the same time becomes
more brightly colored. AS the female does not
Exhibit a trace of it. it serves probably as
temporal sexual ornament.
Professor AEassiz reports that the male Cicha,
from South America, has a conspicuous pro-
tuberance on the forehead. which is wholly
wanting in the females and in the young males
He says that IN the breeding season it is very
prominent while at other times il is small
completely wanting.
IN the male of Mollienesia petenensis the dor
sal m IS greatly developed and IS marked with
row of large, round ocellated, bright colored
spots, while the same fin in the female IS smaller,
Of a different shape, and marked only with ir-
regularly curved brown spots. In the male Of an
allied form the Xiphorhorus hellerii the in
ferior margin Of the tail is developed into a long
flHnent. which IS striped with bright colors.
During me breeding season the male long
ndsed sucker. which is common in Lake Erie is
prpfusely covered with tUberces on the head
and fms and has broad rosy band along the
middle Of the body.
After III Fish has put on his most brilliant
clothing and other ornaments. he would "a-woo-
Ing 20" and then is when he shows his most
cuFious similarity to man; but while man has
LITTLE 70 fear from the object o. his affections
except rebuff, the male fish, who IS in nearly
every case smaller than the female. has 10 take
care that he does NOT make himself so attractive
10 re female that she cannot resist the desire to
absorb him into herself. The female pike has
most unpleasant habit, for the male, Of doing
this very thing when the within seizes her. and
the males Of all carnivorous species have 10
guard against such an cventualty.
The beautiful little paradise fish CMacropodus
viridiauratus) which was introduced from China
seine years ago, is ardent wooer. Both sexes
have most extraordinary fms. The dorsal I'm
extends from near the back Of the head quite
70 the tail, while The anal in is quite as long
as the dorsal- Botn ms have bony rays which
gradually increase in height from the com
Gnencement Of the fin, the last ray in each TN
extending 10 the eXtrenlittes Of the tail The
tail is large and forled, and also consists OF
botay rays with sharp points. Each Of the ven
tr4l dns has q few short bony rays and one ex-
cefdmgly long and apparently strong ray. The