Write a tweet thread on the male stickleback nest-builder from The Home of a Fish.

The stickleback that builds the nursery

Holder’s stickleback story flips the usual nest story: the mother takes little interest.

The male builds the home.

The stickleback that builds the nursery

He gathers soft weed and refuse into an oval pouch—sometimes on the bottom, sometimes hung like a tiny marine hammock.

The stickleback that builds the nursery

Silk-like threads from his body bind the nest.

He butts an opening through it, then waits while the female leaves her eggs.

The stickleback that builds the nursery

After that, the entire duty is his: he mounts guard and fans a current of water over the eggs so fungus cannot take them.

The stickleback that builds the nursery

When fry stray, Holder watched a father suck wanderers into his mouth and shoot them back into the nest.

Parenting, 1899 edition.

The stickleback that builds the nursery