The home aquarium and how to care for it; a guide to its fishes, other animals, and plants

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1902 Excerpt: ...greenish or olivaceous, below dusky yellowish, with bluish reflections and bars. In the breeding season the males are very beautiful, often deep blue above, the lower fins yellow with dark borders, a dark spot on the dorsal fin in front. The females are more silvery. This killy, though really a brackish-water fish, thrives better in the aquarium than the former species, and is tamed just as readily. It grows to nearly five inches in length. D. 11; A. 10. Scales, 35--13. The Mayfish or Mummichog, Fundulus majalis (Walbauni), is found in purely saltwater, but can be accustomed to the aquarium by gradual steps. It is a larger fish than the two others. The general color is olivaceous, with bars dark or black in the male, while the female has irregular longitudinal black lines on the sides, with only one or two bars near the tail. D. 12; A. 10. Scales, 36--13. The Rain-water Fish, Lucania parva (Baird & Girard), is small, scarcely two inches long. It is shorter and deeper than the Fundulus species and of a plain olivaceous color above. The dorsal fin of the male is dusky orange, with a black spot at the base in front. The other fins are orange or yellowish, with dusky edges. The females have plain fins. This little fish is found along the coast in the salt-water. D. ii; A. 10. Scales, 26--8. The Sheepshead or Pursy Minnow, Cyprinodon variegatus Lacdpede, (Fig. 68). This fish is short and compact, deeper than the last named. The color of the male is olivaceous, blue on the upper parts before the dorsal, weakly red-tinged below. The tailfin has a black bar at both base and tip. The fins are orange-bordered. The female is plainer, with dark, irregular crossbars or streaks on the sides. The young have a black blotch on the rear end of the dorsal fin. This bright...