Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1935-09-26

fishs eyes are extra prominent, sticking
out slightly from the side of the head.
The fish Is not nervous at any time,
but swims placidly, yet with plenty of
pep" 1t minds its own business in an
aquarium and is never afraid of the
human shapes which from time TO time
come UP to look at it.
This is most excellent quality in any
fish whose destiny is to adorn home
aquarium, because few persons who have
not had much experience keeping trop-
ical fishes have any idea in the world
how "scary" many Of these creatures are.
A fish technically named Copeina gut
tata. which offers one OF the most beauti-
full blue colorationS of any of the several
hundred species now in tanks. neverthe-
less is so skittish that it becomes bore
to keep it.
Especially at mating time, the slightest
noise or movement near its tank causes
it and its mates to dash nadly around
the aquarium. A fish that has this habit
is never, of course, very popular as a
home aquarium fish, and this has been
the fate OF this Copeina. Another MEM
Der of this family has the interesting
habit of leaping clear out Of the water
with its mate, the eggs being deposited
on a leaf above the surface of the water
or even on the inner side of the glass
lid which commonly is kept over tropical
fish tanks.
Even the best behaved fishes-those
most adaptable to aquarium condi-
tions-will show traces of nervousness
with increasing age and also when
thoughtless observers do two things:
/. Rush up to a tank too precipitately.
2. Stand looking down at the water
from above.
The advent of human being rushing
at them top-speed is one naturally in
clined to scare a collection of aquatic
animals, since in Nature there would
never be any parallel to it, especially in
the pools and small streams from which
most of our exotic fishes come. Probably
the advent of boat would be the nearest
thing to it such fish would ever en-
counter, and we may imagine the speed
with which they would swim away. 1t
is no wonder, then, that when fish in
a glass home sees something looming up
suddenly that it tends to dash away into
the plants.
With the exception of the wonderful
little guppies, there are few fishes which
are not frightened by some one looking
down at them from the top. In Nature
many of their enemies descend upon
them in exactly the same way. That is
why most fishes are dark-colored on top,
so that they will blend with the natural
darkness Of the waters below; and col
ored light on the stomach, so that they
will blend with the light above in the
eyes of any enemy coming up from the
bottom
The mosaic gourami Is superior fish
to the blue form. and most persons will
esteem it more than the old-fashioned
"three-spot." but as for us, We remain
firm in our liking for the latter. The
"three-spot" or "two-spot,' is a swell
fish, no matter how many spots" you
call
All of the members of the gourami
family, with the exception OF the dwarf,
possess one trait in common-they love
to eat, will eat anything and will thrive
on it. All they ask is enough! Such
healthy digeStionS and eliminative proc
esses are seldom seen in this world, and
when one does see them he ought to
admire them, because they mean perfec-
ton where so often imperfection and
disease run riot.