What makes a flying fish jump?
Andy loves to watch the flying fish off the shores of Southern California. From the island of Catalina you can take a boat trip by night and watch them fly by searchlight or moonlight. As the pretty creatures zoom this way and that through the air, they look for all the world like a troupe of gauzy winged pixies and fairies. Most fishes spend their lives in the watery world of the sea. But the flying fishes zoom above the waves and take off on graceful flights through the air. These fellows have extra large and gauzy fins that serve as wings. When they leave the waves, the fins open like dainty fans and take the flying fishes riding along like miniature gliders. Some experts claim that the pretty creatures do not fly by flapping their wings as the birds do. But many of us have seen their wings shiver and shake and vibrate like the wings of a zooming dragonfly. Most of their trips above the water are made because the flying fishes are afraid. Danger lurks below in the water, and the lit
