OF GREAT BRITAIN. 67 



Unlike the rest of its congeners of the Salmon 

 family generally, the Grayling never jumps out of 

 water, and is apparently unable to surmount either 

 natural or artificial obstructions or to stem very 

 rapid torrents, being, in fact, much more prone 

 to going down than up the stream. It has the 

 power, however, of raising itself rapidly to the 

 surface, and of descending again with stone-like 

 velocity — a faculty which has been ascribed to the 

 action of the large dorsal fin striking either up- 

 wards or downwards against the current, but which 

 is more probably attributable to the unusual size 

 of the swimming- or air-bladder. 



The eggs are numerous but considerably smaller 

 than those- of the Trout, being about the size of 

 partridge-shot, and when viewed in the rays of the 

 sun having very much the colour of the opal. The 

 body of the embryo fish becomes distinctly visible 

 in about nine days, and the egg itself hatches in 

 fourteen or fifteen days from the date of deposit, — 

 results obtained in the case of the eggs of the 

 Trout in about thirty-five and fifty days respec- 

 tively. 



The spawning-time is in April or the beginning 

 of May, the fish getting into condition in July, and 

 reaching its prime in October and November, 

 when most of the other Salmonidce are going off. 

 The Grayling has, moreover, according to Sir 

 Humphry Davy, the advantage of rarely being so 

 much out of season as to be unfit for food or un- 



