Spawn

the eggs or ova of fishes, mollusks, crustaceans, and many amphibious animals, as frogs, toads, etc. The term as used is confined to the roe of the female. The corresponding product of the male is milt. The number of eggs produced in a season varies greatly. The spawn of the codfish is thought to comprise several million eggs. Many fishes prepare level places in gravel beds and elsewhere, or inclosures, even nests, in which to leave their spawn. Fishes of some species ascend rivers to deposit the spawn in the small streams in the head waters. Other fishes go down stream to place their eggs in the sea. It is not difficult to cause the female fish to discharge the spawn by pressing or stripping the body with the hand much as the cow is milked. In fish hatcheries this method is employed to obtain spawn and milt from which to rear young fish. Ordinarily, fishes abandon the spawn as soon as it is discharged, though some wait about the nest to defend it from intruders. The lobster carries her spawn in a mass under her tail until the young are hatched and able to take care of themselves. Certain toads carry the spawn in pits on the back. The term, "spawn," is never given to the eggs of scaly reptiles, as the crocodile, nor to the eggs of birds. The pickled spawn or roe of certain large fishes, notably the sturgeon, is an esteemed article of food. It is known in commerce as "caviare," a word of Turkish or Tartar origin. See Oyster; Caviare; Herring; Salmon; Codfish, etc.