=Carp= (_Cyprinus_), constitutes a group of fishes without spines in the
fins. The true carp originated in China and was introduced into Europe
three hundred years ago, and much later into America. The back is
blackish gray or brown, the sides yellowish brown, the belly yellow. The
usual length is between one and two feet, but large forms five feet long
or more have been caught.
The carp is mainly vegetarian, but also eats small animals, such as
larvæ and worms. The general habit is sluggish, except at the spawning
period in May and June. Their longevity is great; some are said to have
lived one hundred and fifty to two hundred years. The carp is an
important food fish, and is largely bred in the United States.
=Goldfish=, or GOLDEN CARP (_Carassius auratus_), a Chinese and Japanese
fresh-water fish nearly allied to the carp but lacking barbels. In its
warm native waters it is brownish, like its neighbor species, the
crucian carp (_C. carassius_) while in its more familiar domesticated
state it loses the black and brown pigment, becomes golden-yellow, or
passes more completely into albinism in those unpigmented forms known as
silver fish. The goldfish is naturalized in some rivers, and has had a
wide artificial distribution throughout the world.
[Illustration: =BUSY BIDDY AND HER BROOD OF NEW-BORN CHICKS=]