210 
An anadromous form, which has been destroyed from the 
upper waters of the Severn since the erection of navigation 
weirs, in 1842, is the flounder, for its mode of swimming will 
not serve to take it up a fish-pass or over a weir, while only a 
few can obtain access through the lochs. To this broad 
assertion, however, an exception has to be made in favour of 
the Tewkesbury Weir, which at spring tides has from two to 
three feet of water passing over its summit, thus enabling 
these fish to ascend and find access into the Teme, although 
they are unable to pass the Diglis weir on the Severn. Prior 
to the erection of these lochs they used to be taken at Shrews- 
bury with a worm, and so common were they in the spring that 
certain fishermen earned a livelihood by their capture. Also 
some fishes of the Severn which used to ascend in shoals of 
goodly numbers, but whose place is beginning to know them 
no more, belong to the herring family, and migrate into our 
rivers to breed, are designated as the shad or Allis shad. It is 
observed entering the Severn about the middle of April, but 
the time depends, to a considerable extent, on the condition of 
the water, as it does not appear to like to face Severn floods, 
waiting until such have subsided. But as these fishes are 
unable to ascend the fish-passes, and but rarely have the oppor- 
tunity of passing through the pound-lochs, it is solely at the 
periods of heavy freshes, when the weirs are covered with 
water, that they are able to cross them, the very time they 
seem to normally object to face the river. When migrating 
into the river, small males arrive first, but subsequently larger 
ones. It deposits its spawn about June in fresh waters, where 
the young have likewise been captured. The shad is sometimes 
taken as high as Worcester, but has diminished in numbers 
during recent years, most likely consequent upon the navigation 
weirs; in fact in the year 1869 it was noticed in the annual 
report of the Conservators of the river that the run of shad 
and twaite up the river during the spring was very large, much 
better than it had been known for many years. While in 1872 
the taking of two shad near Shrewsbury (one was found dead) 
was considered worth recording, as their capture had been of 
