THE SALMON, THE TROUT, AND THE SHAD. 749 



ascend the Ehine for the express purpose of spawning. 1 With regard to 

 this winter-salmon, which I have mentioned so often, I have made some 

 observations, up to this date, (October, 1874,) which I will give in this 

 place. 2 



Till quite recently, the opinion was prevalent, that the Trutta salar 

 spawned every year. An anonymous writer in Loudon's Magazine 3 was 

 tho first to show that this opinion is erroneous. This writer says: 

 " Neither the salmon nor the trout spawns every year, for specimens of 

 both kinds are frequently caught in January whose roe is smaller than 

 mustard-seed, which, therefore, could not have spawned in that year; 

 while, on the other hand, in the red fish, (spawn-fish,) which ascends the 

 rivers in November and December, the spawn is almost ripe, and in March 

 and April no trace of roe is found." This observation is correct. From 

 September till May, specimens of Trutta salar appear in the Ehine whose 

 sexual organs are entirely undeveloped. The fishermen call these "TVin- 

 tersalme," (winter-salmon,) and esteem them very highly on account of 

 their fat red flesh (Rhine salmon). It is absolutely certain that these 

 fishes cannot have spawned in that one year, for they> appear at the 

 same time as the spawn-salmon, whose eggs have the size of pease. 4 

 The question is only whether this barrenness is permanent or temporary. 



Siebold, who was the first to show that permanently barren individ- 

 uals occur in several species of salmonoids, 4 is inclined likewise to con- 

 sider these winter-salmon as permanently barren individuals; 5 audi 

 thought at first that he was right, from reasons which I will proceed to 

 give. 



Siebold shows that, in Truttalacustris, the barren ones arc distinguished 

 from the fruitful ones by some unimportant differences ; the body of the 

 barren ones is much more slender, and does not reach so large a weight 

 as that of the fruitful ones ; the mouth seems to be cleft deeper ; the 

 caudal fin does not so soon lose its emargination ; no hook is formed on 

 the lower jaw in old males ; and, in their color, they differ much from the 

 fruitful ones. 



1 Siebold, Die Siisswasserfische, &c, p. !£)9. 



2 1 will not deny that, in exceptional cases, the salmon, while in the Rhine, feels a 

 desire for taking food, for this is quite natural. Thus von clem Borne, in his interesting 

 " Handbuch der Angelfischerei," Berneuchen, 1875, says that an Englishman, Mr. Sachs, 

 near Schaffhausen, caught a salmon, -weighing 16| pounds, with an articficial Squalius 

 leueiscus. According to von clem Borne, it seems that the salmon is more inclined to 

 seek food in the English rivers than in the Rhine. It is true that he says, " While 

 ascending the rivers, the salmon eats but little. BucMancl has examined the entrails 

 of hundreds of salmon, and always found them without food, and only containing 

 entozoa;" but afterward he mentions various bait (insects, fish, &c.) with which the 

 salmon is caught in England. 



3 Loudon, The Magazine of Natural History, vol. ii, 1834, p. 207, in an extract in TFieg- 

 mann's " Archiv fur Naturgeschicbte," 1835, vol. ii, p. 267. 



4 From Mr. Bidder, in Wesel, I reoeived the entrails of the first Winlersalm during 

 this period (1874) on September 24. 



5 Siebold, op. cit., pp. 276, 302, 321. 



6 Siebold, op. cit., p. 277. 



