FRESH-WATER TROUT— ITS FOOD AND MODES OP CAPTUR:^. 207 



Early in 1885, Sir M. Gordon hooked a female trout 3 lb. 9 oz. in the Test, 

 another, a male 3 lb. 11 oz. followed it, and both were secured in a landing 

 net, the free trout never left its companion (Land and Wafer, Juno 6th, 1885). 

 At the end of May, 1885, a trout 1 lb. 5 oz. was followed in all its twists and turns 

 by a roach that was probably a few ounces heavier than itself, but it scuttled 

 away at the sight of the landing net. It has been questioned whether this was 

 sympathy or curiosity ? 



" As to the time when fish feed most and least respectively, the returns show 

 that they feed most in April, May, and June, and least in December and January, 

 although they have been known to feed greedily in these months." — Fourth 

 Ann. Report Scotch Fish. Imp. Assoc. 1882. 



Parfitt found river molluscs, as Valvata picinalis, Planorbis margiualis, Pht/sa 

 fontinalis, and Limnea peregra in the stomachs of some taken in May, in Po wderliam 

 Park, Devonshire : but food varies"] with streams, &o. Respecting Loch trout, 

 " Tlio examination of the contents of the stomachs of the trout taken from it (Loch 

 North-Maben district), showed that they fed largely on Gammarus pulcx" 

 (Gordon, I. c, p. O-i, Scottish Naturalist). In Sutherlandshire, I found loch 

 trout fed largely on Limnea, Gammarus, &c. Mr. George Sim, A.L.S., examined 

 the contents of the stomachs of fifty-two fresh- water trout taken in Aberdeenshire 

 and Kincardineshire during March and the first half of April, 1887 : twenty-eight 

 had the remains of caddis or May-flies, fourteen of beetles, eight of small stones, 

 five bits of straw or grass, four of water shrimps, Gammarus pulex, four of insects 

 and flies, one of Gyclas Jlavescens, one of a leech Piscicola geometra, one of a snail, 

 Limnea peregra, one of a caterpillar, one of a small fish, one of a fresh- water limpet 

 Ancylus fluviatilis, while three were destitute of food. 



In 1886, 1 had several opportunities of examining the food* consumed by trout 

 in the Windrush, and found that during April and May they mostly fed upon 

 Limnea, the caddis worm, and the larvas of Ephemeridaj, a few beetles, and one 

 had a bull-head, Oottus gohio, in its stomach. In June they appeared to restrict 

 themselves to May-flies, with which they were gorged. 



Modes of capture. — These may be cither netting, spearing, tickling, poisonino-, 

 angling, or other methods which do not come within the scope of this work. 

 For the plans of netting these fish are in many respects similar to those referred 

 to under the head of Salmon (pp. 135-11-1). Spearing is not now permissible, 

 although it used to bo employed by torchlight. Tickling for these fish in small 

 streams is occasionally employed with success. The use of the otter is illeo-al, 

 but in Ireland cross-lino fishing f is licensed. The angler has several modes 

 of procedure at his command ; if the fish are large, spinning bait may be 

 employed ; or ground fishing with worms, or fly-fishing either with the real or 

 imitation insect. Different rivers, seasons, and even periods of the day have 

 their peculiar varieties of winged insects acceptable to these fish ; as a rule if the 

 water is clear and low, and wind is absent, small ones are most suited : if clearino- 

 after a flood, or full but not discoloured, the fly-fisher has mox'e chance of sport, 



* Marston, Fishint) Gazette, January 9th, 188G, p. 2.3, observed that " trout get fat on grayling 

 ova and fry, but grayling do not feed on trout ova or fry. They would eat the ova it they could 

 get it, but they stop in the main stream, while the trout goes up the brooks to spawn." 



f F. Hearue, Land and Water, June, 1885, observed respecting the river Moy (Ballina) and 

 Lough Conn that : — " In one of my notes to Land and Water some time ago, I said there wore 

 bailiffs, with boats and crews, appointed to put down illegal fishing with otters on Lough Conn. 

 That has been done, but what was never dreamt of, or ever known to be used before on the 

 Lough, has taken the place of the otter, that is, cross-line fishing. There are five cross lines 

 fishing the Lough. Two go from " Cloghan's " shore, two at Pontoon (from Glass Island), and 

 one at the lower end of the Lough, on that splendid salmon and trout ground called the Strand, 

 near the mouth of the Deel river. I only wish that cross line fishing was made illegal, as I am 

 sure that five more cross lines will be added to the number already on the Lough next fishing 

 season. This day I asked the owner of one of the cross lines, who was selling his fish in town, 

 what was his best day on the Lough. I tremble to give his answer — 97 good trout and two 

 salmon. I met the owner or part-owner of another cross Une, who was also selling fish in town. 

 He told me he got 32s for the trout he had, and sold them at Gd per lb., and killed them all one 

 day, with a salmon to boot. Good-bye to angUng with rod and line on Lough Conn. It's done, 

 at least for some time." 



