BRITISH FRESH-WATER FISHES 
which always resorted to a certain spot overhung by 
bushes in a backwater of the River Colne at Bricket 
Wood, Hertfordshire, but never succeeded in catching 
one of those wary monsters. It responds to the art of 
the fly-fisherman, and is also caught with lob-worm, or 
greaves and paste. It is a hardy customer to deal with 
even when securely hooked, but “its dogged that does 
it,” as Charles Darwin used to say, and the fish is soon 
overpowered. It feeds upon other fishes, as well as 
insects, shrimps, worms, and weeds. The eggs are 
deposited from Spring to early Summer, and the antics 
of the parent fish whilst engaged in the propagation of 
their species are most entertaining to watch, as they 
leap out of the water and add a touch of animation to the 
environment. The males have small tubercles on the 
head during the breeding season, and the scales are 
rougher than at other times. 
Minnow.—Phoxinus aphya (Fig. 49). ‘This gay little 
species, active and beautiful withal, is a prime favourite 
dating from boyhood days. One thinks straight away of 
quiet stretches of the River Colne on a hot day in June. 
Standing on the old wooden bridge and peering into the 
clear stream beneath, a shoal of Minnows were always 
to be seen disporting themselves, and very engaging they 
were as one watched them at both work and play. Of 
voracious disposition, I often used to catch these silvery 
little tenants of the Colne by using a maggot, or caddis 
worm, as bait. So eager were the fish for the fray, that 
I have often hooked them other than in the mouth. 
92 
