Some Peculiar Fishes.

Otago Witness, Issue 1899, 13 April 1888, Page 28

Some Peculiar Fishes.

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The Anabas scandens, or climbing perch of ' India, is, perhaps, the most celebrated of any fish which voluntarily comes on shore, as he ce.rtainly is the most accomplished in terrestrial feats. He is a little fellow, very like a perch in the general form, with large scales and spiny dorsal fin, and is to be found in rivers and ponds in most parts of the East Indies. When the waters which he inhabits seem in danger of being dried up he leaves them and travels off in search of others. Though he prefers to make these journeys in the night or in the early morning while the dew lies upon the grass, he oftens travels by day, and has even 1 beep met toiling along a hot, dusty gravel

road under the ■ full glare of an Indian midday sun. It is, however, for his climbing powers that this extraordinary fish is famed above all others that frequent the land. By the aid of his spiny gill covers and tail fin, which he pushes in the crevices in their bark, he manages to climb trees, and even tall palm trees. That he does it awkwardly is true, moving somewhat after the manner of a measuring or looping caterpillar, bat the fact that he can accomplish it at all is as marvellous as his object in attempting the feat is explicable. Boatmen upon the Ganges and other rivers where these climbing perch abound catch them and put them in earthen pots, keeping them alive, without any water often for as many as six days, killing when they wish to use them, and find them during the whole time as lively as when newly caught.

The common perch of our own waters, while unable to climb trees, or even to walk about the fields, is possessed of great tenacity of life after being taken from the water. When given a blanket of wet moss it can be carried in apparent comfort for long distances, and in some parts of Europe the fishermen will offer these perch for sale during the day and, if not successful in disposing of them, will replace them in the ponds from which they were taken in the morning, seemingly none the worse for their outing. Many kinds of fish build nests in the water for the protection of their eggs, but the doras make theirs upon the beach. This they do at the beginning of the rainy season. The mat is formed very nearly like that of a bird, and is built of dry leaves, which the little creatures go inland to fetch. When it is finished the eggs are deposited within, and these small fish parents cover up their embryo offspring most carefully and watch over them ,with great solicitude. The common eel is known to have a similar habit of moving about on the land, and will even live several days out of water. When an eel is drawn from the water and laid upon the earth it at once puffs out its cheeks in a very noticeable manner. These cheeks are formed of distensible pouches or sacs covering the gills, which the eels fill with water in order that the, gill fibres may be kept moist, by which means he is enabled to remain upon the dry land for a considerable time without coming to serious harm. So when the pond where the eel makes his home begins to get dry he takes in a good supply of water and starts off to find another, moving like a snake in an apparently sinuous course, but really in a straight line, for the place of water he wishes to reach, whose direction he seems, by some curious instinct, to know.