The Scottish Naturalist. 339 



amined specimens that seemed to possess nearly all the char- 

 acteristics claimed for that fish, both in the shape of the 

 gill-cover and the stronger maxillary and mandible, unfortu- 

 nately none of the examples I have met with were of sufficient 

 size to absolutely determine the matter, bearing in mind the 

 amount of hybridism that exists among the Salmonidcz. Besides, 

 Dr. Giinther states that the former character cannot be in all 

 cases relied upon, that there are examples of S, trutta and 

 S. eriox (cambricus) which have the gill-covers of precisely the 

 same shape, and that he had not seen a specimen of this trout 

 from Scotland — the S. eriox of Yarrell, and others from Scot- 

 land, being founded on either males of S. trutta, or hybrids 

 between the sea-trout and the common river-trout. He also 

 considers that the bull-trout of the Scottish rivers is not a dis- 

 tinct species, and is either sea-trout of peculiar aspect or (as in 

 the case of the Beauly) hybrids between the salmon and sea- 

 trout, or salmon returned from the sea without being well 

 mended, or sterile individuals of the salmon. However this 

 may be, it seems evident that the so-called bull-trout abounds 

 in the Coquet, the Tyne, the Tees, and other rivers on the east 

 coast. There is also a trout fast increasing in number in the 

 Tweed called bull-trout. Whether these trout in the former rivers 

 belong in the main to S. eriox, and in the latter to S. trutta, or are 

 to a greater or less extent, as is asserted, hybrids of one kind or 

 other, is on the whole of less importance than the baneful 

 influence they exercise, when too numerous, on the prosperity 

 of the salmon. The trout, from several causes, are enabled to 

 arrive first at, and from their number get an undue command of, 

 the spawning beds, and when once they have got possession of 

 these, it is stated that the salmon is shy of approaching them. 

 In the Coquet, according to Mr. Buckland, the bull-trout have 

 almost exterminated the salmon, and the Tyne and the Tees 

 are threatened with the same fate. 



In the latter river there are ten trout or " scurfs " to one 

 salmon. Mr Buckland considers that this unsatisfactory state 

 of matters is owing to the presence of weirs over which the 

 trout can pass when the salmon t cannot, and to the size of the 

 mesh of the nets — which I should say is most to blame — through 

 which a great number of the trout escape, while the salmon is 

 captured. The salmon is thus "handicapped," and in the struggle 

 for existence carried on against such heavy odds, the superior 

 animal, as in all similar cases, disappears before its inferior but 



