86 MARVELS OF FISH LIFE 



for by the character of the food in Loughs Melvin and 

 Mask, where the gillaroo is to be found. This food 

 mainly consists of bivalves and molluscs, and as we 

 have already seen the trout acquire brilliant red spots 

 on a mollusc diet. It is stated that the stomach of the 

 gillaroo is thickened in order to crack the shells of his 

 indigestible food. 



The rainbow is a fish with which most people are 

 now familiar, and is a native of the Pacific Coast ol 

 America. Unlike the salmon and sea-trout at home, 

 the rainbow spawns in the spring instead of in the 

 autumn, and at the moment of writing — in the month 

 of May — they are spawning in the observation pond, as 

 will be described later. 



The char is a near relative of the trout, and in our 

 country is found mainly in the Lake District and in 

 the Lake of Windermere in particular, though chars are 

 also found in certain deep lakes in Scotland and Ireland. 

 I have tried to photograph this fish, but it is impossible 

 to do justice to its brilliant hues except on a colour 

 plate. 



Char keep to deep water, except in the autumn, 

 when they come on to the shallow banks or ascend 

 streams in order to spawn. At the breeding season the 

 char as seen in Windermere is a very brilliant fish. The 

 back, right down to the lateral line, is of a dark green 

 shade, and this gradually tones off into a rich crimson 

 colour on the under-parts, and on the green sides of the 

 fish are numerous well-marked red spots. The fins on 



