The Siscowet 



Fishing is done from the time the ice breaks up in the spring until 

 late in the fall. 



Lake trout spawn on the reefs and live in deep water at other 

 times. The spawning season begins in Lake Superior late in 

 September, in Lakes Huron and Michigan the height of the season 

 is in early November, and spawning continues into December. 

 The spawning grounds are on the reefs of "honeycomb" rock, 

 10 to 15 miles off shore, and in water 6 to 120 feet deep. The 

 number of eggs produced is not large; a 24-pound fish produced 

 14,943 eggs, but the usual number does not exceed 5,000 or 6,000. 



As a game-fish the lake trout is held in different degrees of 

 esteem by different anglers. There are those who regard it with 

 slight favour, while with others it is rated as a fish which can 

 give the angler a great deal of sport. It is usually taken by trolling 

 either with the spoon or live minnow, and, as it is a powerful 

 fish, strong tackle is required. Thaddeus Norris, most delightful 

 writer among American anglers, mentions hooking several trout 

 on stout o o Kirby hooks baited with a white rag and a piece of red 

 flannel, and the hooks in every instance but one (a small 8 pound 

 trout) were straightened or broken and the fish lost. 



Head 4^; depth 4; eye 4^; Br. n or 12; D. 1 1 ; A. 1 1 ; scales 

 185 to 205; maxillary 2; interorbital 4. Body long; head very long, 

 its upper surface flattened; mouth very large, the maxillary extending 

 much beyond the eye, the head and jaws proportionately lengthened 

 and pointed; ' caudal fin well forked; adipose fin small; teeth very 

 strong. General colouration, dark gray, sometimes pale, sometimes 

 almost black, everywhere with rounded pale spots which are often 

 reddish tinged; head usually vermiculate above; dorsal and caudal 

 reticulate with darker. 



Siscowet 

 Cristivomer siscozuet (Agassiz) 



The siscowet differs from the ordinary Great Lake trout in 

 having a deeper body which is covered with a thicker skin, beneath 

 which is an excessive development of fatty tissue. The scales are 

 somewhat larger and the colour is usually somewhat paler. 



This fish is practically confined to Lake Superior where it is 

 abundant in deep water. Occasional examples .have been taken 

 in Lakes Huron and Erie. 



205 



