THE POWAN 121 



ninety-two in a longitudinal series, usually nine or 

 ten, sometimes eight, between the lateral line and 

 the base of the pelvic fin, and twenty-two to twenty- 

 six round the caudal peduncle. 



Previous to the drainage of the Shannon in 

 1845-46 this fish was fairly abundant, but it is now 

 rare ; one from Lough Ree, 1 5 inches long, is said 

 to be the largest taken for years. Thompson says 

 the Shannon fishermen called the fish a " Cunn," 

 and believed that it migrated to the sea, merely 

 conjecturing this because they caught them in the 

 eel-nets at the time that the Eels were descending. 



Pollan have been reputed to inhabit Lough Corrib, 

 but if so they are very scarce ; one said to have 

 come from that lake, on rather doubtful authority, 

 is in every way similar to those from the Shannon. 

 In 1852 Mr. Ffennell is said to have exhibited 

 Pollan from Lough Neagh and from Killarney to 

 the Dublin Natural History Society, and to have 

 directed the attention of the meeting to the difference 

 in shape of the head and of the gill-covers in the 

 specimens from the two localities. This is the only 

 evidence forthcoming as to the occurrence of Pollan 

 in Killarney ; recently the lake has been tried by 

 Mr. Holt with suitable nets, but without any positive 

 result, so that it seems possible that in this case 

 Shad may have been mistaken for Pollan. 



The Powan {Coregonus clupeoides) inhabits Loch 

 Lomond, one of the largest and most picturesque 

 lakes in Scotland, and also the neighbouring Loch 

 Eck ; its native name seems to be a variation of 

 the word "pollan," and it is also known as the 

 Freshwater Herring, this latter title justifying the 



