ZOO NOTES

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 2255, 15 September 1914, Page 3

ZOO NOTES

0 — v WELLINGTON'S AQUARIUM WOMAN'S CURIOSITY SOME FACTS ABOUT PISH (By John Crewes. President of i3io Wellington Zoological Society.) From the time when Eve moved and mused amid the fruit trees of Eden, to the time when lmny people are eagerly looking for the opening of the Wellington Aquarium, the curiosity of woman has . been very interesting, somewhat dangerous, and generally troublesome, l'lsli are very timid animals, the perch fo:- instance, which I- mentioned in my last batch of notes instantly turn palo when frightened, and the catfish are more timid than'the. perch. Of course wien Mr. Aysou, Mr. Langridge, and Councillor Frost tried to make arrangements for fish placed in the Aquarium to be allowed to settle down quietly in their new habitations, before being exposed to public view. A barricade was therefore erected and a note asking the public to keep away from the tanks was placed in, a s - prominent position. Venerable'and other loyal matrons noticed the propriety of this, and kept themselves as desired: But the sight of' a fence, a hiut at obedience, and the . glistening colours of the iisli gliding about in the tanks have fired, irresistibly, the Edeiiic instinct of several visitors to the Zoo, and lately, as a consequence, the versatility of the Malayan sun-boar performing on the end of a perpendicular pole, arid the agility of the young bonnot monkey Hinging himself in a somersault over the head of his mater, have been exceedtftl in interest by the ingenuity and persistency of modest modem human mothers, fashionably attired in the latest impedimenta, striding over, or hending undtsr, a well-intentioned but ineffectual rustic barricade. It is only fair to the fish however fo eay i. they have shown no signs of extraordinary alarm at the intrusion. They seom to instinctively idealise that woman's curiosity is an essential part of tho recognised order' of the universe. Christopher Columbus and F. M. B. Fisher. . • ■: Christopher Columbus wanted to lead people into a, new world. Some people" would not agree to follow him. Later ue found a few pioneers of 'progress. Ho led them, and they discovered America. F. M. B. Fisher wanted to lead people into a new world: Tho people of Auckland would ; not. follow htm. Then Castle, Orewes; and Frost, of Wellington, read the would-be leader's suggestion. They .said if you will lead the people of Wellington into a new world we aro on . Now the troub'-,' to keep people out of tho Aquarium that Mr. Fisher has found for them: Soon the new world that a few intrepid explorers have seen will bo opened to the public. Now I venture to predict that as thousands of people* to-day are rushing to America, the place that Columbus could not at first persuade a dozen pebplo to visit, thousands of people will soon bo pressing into the aquarium in Newtown Park, and' lauding to the very heavens the treasures that a littlo while ago Auckland would not accept as a present. But is an aquarium a now world, and should a man who provides an aquarium for the education and delectation of a young State be ranked high among the benefactors of mankind? Yes. ,', People didn't appreciate duty, while Columbus was alive, what: he discovered! for them, nor do men to-day appreciate at its true value what Mr. Fisher and Mr.. Frost. have moved the Wellington City Council'and the Government of Now Zealand to provide for New Zealand, in the Wellington aquarium. But' the aquarium is in Newtown Park, and an aquarium that moves intelligent women, fashionably attired in modern skirts, to stride over fences, , or bend under them, to see it, must be worth seeing. What's What In the Aquarium? Well, girls and boys, and all other readers, this is a complex question. Hundreds of years ago a great man delivered'*, a great speech. Some -who heard it mocked. Others said "Wo will hear thec.again of this matter." Others believed what he said, and they agreed with him. Similar effects are produced by my Zoo notes. When I suggest that the Government and tho City Council have opened a new world, some men laugh; others cross a street, or bend over in a tramcar, or 'write from some more or less distant township, saying,- "I was greatly interested 'in. your last Zoo notes, and am eagerly watching for the next lot:" others say, ''What you say is true, although it did not immediately appear." But remember that to see what is in.a zoo*, we must train our eyes and intellects and hearts. I once asked a statesman to help me to improve a zoo. He replied that "The people must be fed," and he deoply emphasised the word "fed." But an English statesman once wrote an essay oil "The Sublime and the Beautiful." Now, Mr. Fisher com-, bines the two. If, then, a mere feeder goes to the aquarium he probably will be attracted by tho large trout or sal-, mon, or whatever the largest of tho promising , youngsters 'prove to be. There are some beautiful young fish there. If an admirer of beauty goes there he will probably prefer the rainbow trout. There -are some beautiful rainbow trout there. He will be fascinated, also, by the carp, of which there are several beautiful varieties represented. If a student goes there to study protective colouring, he will be attracted .by the peroh. There are some beautiful perch there; If a downright lazy person, wanting to find something in full sympathy with his drowsy soul, goes there he will be satisfied to see New Zealand trout, and feel himself to be: ■ "Like lazy Kokopu in darkling pools asleep." But if an admirer of the sublimely beautiful goes in search of the beautiful, he will find the Japanese gold fish, worth a vqyago to Japan, to see. Our Aquarium ie young yet; but there is a world of beauty and revelation and suggestiveness in it. If visitors do not see a new world, then, it is not because there is not a new world tihere to be seen, but because their eyes have cot been trained. ■ Over tho Aquarium might well bo written, in letters of gold the appropriate exhortation: "He that hath eyes to.see, let him eee." Cold and Sliver Fish. Some white-haired old men say. "When I was young I had beautiful golden hair." We see then that it is not safe to say that golden-headed men and silver-headed are two distincL .varieties. This awakens us to study carefully when we eee golden and silver carp. Some fish that are gold fish in one part of their lifetime are silver in another. From aquariums careful observers have learned that some fish that were supposed to be of different species are fish of the same species, but of different age or \indcr other different conditions. For instance, there may bo a distinct species of fish known as whitebait. But a few years ago it was discovered that'enormous quantities of young herring were being sold as whitebait, in England. Wo have read also that sardines are small piteharde. It has also been discovered'that it'he glass crab (phyllosoma) is really the young sea crayfish (palinuriis quadricornis). To spoak scientifically then we must speak very . cautiously. Of courso many persons will nek, "What are the exquisitely, beautiful little

Japanese lish in our Aquarium P" I do not answer very confidently; but 1 venture to suggest that they are or may bo Fringe-tail gold fish (Oarassius auratus, var. japonicus bicaudatus), and Fan-tail gold fish (Carassius auratus, var. oyiformis). Of course these names rejoice my friend ' Mr. Castle with joy unspeakable, but they are rather too prodigious for my Zoo notes. However, I hope that the censors will ■maintain the right spelling—they changed Tyrian into Syrian in my last notes.