Evening star., 1935-01-12
THIS AND THAT
BY CHARLES E. TRACEWELL.

harmful after effects, as far as could
be determined, are not very many,
1t is true.
The fact that both resulted after
rather heavy morning feeding seems
indicative that food, with some sort
of indigestion resulting, may be at the
bottom of this queer aquarium trouble.
If water conditions had been at
fault, it seems likely that more than
two out Of a hundred creatures would
have been seized.
The harmful effects Of over-eating
are not SO easily traced. There Is
little doubt that fishes, like humans,
have wide latitude in this respect.
Just as with us, the fact that SO
could partake of a given dinner with
out disasterous results does not show
that two others necessarily must be
immune.
The fact that great many persons
can eat of all foods Unfortunately
without indigestion does not mean
that some one person can eat as he
pleases. Too often the latter knows
differently!
X X \ X
It Is probable, too, that dried foods,
the types commonly used for con-
venience, might result in these cases
of "barrel-rolling," or "corkscrew
twist" where no such ailment might
eventuate in case some live food were
offered the fishes from time to time.
There is a curious distinction be-
tween the term live food" as used
by the aquarist, and live bait" as
used by the angler.
Garden worms, the small boys
"fshin' worms" are among the finest
of live food to be offered to aquarium
inmates.
But the fisherman does not regard
them as live bait" at all. Only min
nows, mad toms and the like, which
will swim vigorously, are so considered.
1t is difficult to pin a fisherman down
to just what he does think worm
is, but he probably believes it strictly
dead, in so far as fish catching Is
concerned, the idea being that any
living thing out Of its natural ele-
ment is either defunct or just as good
as dead.
Plain fishing worms, however. make
the finest sort of live food for
aquarium fishes large enough to take
them. Not the so-called might crawl
ers," as the large worms with bands
across them at intervals are called,
but the smaller varieties, some of
them being very slender and not more
than an inch or two long. There
is nothing that the popular scalare.
or angel fish, likes better than q
small earthworm.
1t Is likely that If some such food
were fed aquarium fishes regularly,
at least two feelings per week, there
would be few cases of "barrel-rolling"
to report.
On the other hand, the compare
tive crowding to which practically
all guppies. at least, are subjected.
may have something to do with the
matter.
This crowding, in turn, would un-
doubtedly affect the water in obscure
ways of which science has little
record to date. 1t must be kept in
mind that aquarium keeping has been
regarded, until the past few years,
as a fanatical experiment. In the
early days of the tropical fish hobby
the aquarist was regarded by all his
friends, and often by his family. as
mildly insane. Even today some per-
sons not interested in the avocation
are likely to attempt to make joke
out of the matter.
Scientific interest in the aquarium,
however. is now to the fore. Aquarium
fishes are being used more and more
for experiments In geneticS, medicine
and other fields. In that more serious
work same attention should be given
to the phenomenon Of "barrel-rolling"
among the lowly guppies.