the Salmon, Herring, and Vendace. 487 



indeed asserted that hundreds of unspawned fish may be found 

 in the end of March and beginning of April in the Tweed as low 

 as Kelso ; I imagine that they are in error. Kelts taken in April 

 and May might pass for unspawned fish with some to whom the 

 anatomy of the organs was not familiar. I have taken, and seen 

 taken, in the Tweed at Clovenford, female salmon on the 25th 

 April, and have known them taken a few days later with the ova 

 very highly developed, so that they might easily have been mis- 

 taken for unspawned fish : they were merely female kelts which 

 had remained long in the Tweed, and its tributary streams, and 

 were on their way to the ocean. Persons not familiar with animal 

 structure may very readily be deceived in these respects. I 

 reckon their testimony and observations of little or no value. 

 The kelt feeds and grows much stouter, and with the growth of 

 the other parts the roe and milt again begin to be developed. 

 Many salmon spawn early in October ; now it has not been pro- 

 ved that they necessarily hybernate like trout, but rather return 

 to the tide- way with the first floods. Salmon spawned so early, 

 may very readily recommence their migration into rivers in prime 

 condition with the first flood of January and February. More- 

 over, great numbers do not get into the spawning condition ; but 

 they deteriorate constantly by a residence in fresh water *. 



During the months of March, April, and May, the rivers 

 abound with kelts or spawned salmon descending towards the 

 ocean, and smolts or fry pursuing the same course. The mi- 

 gration of salmon in prime condition into the estuary, and a short 

 way up the rivers, continues, and become, as summer advances, 

 more frequent ; but I will not readily believe that many of these 

 salmon would early in the season push high up the rivers so as 



* The great cause, however, of the deterioration of the salmon, is his disincli- 

 nation to feed during the rapid growth of the organs of generation. A barren fish 

 coming into fresh-water would not, in all likelihood, fall off so soon as the fish about 

 to spawn. 



