throats that have gone to the sea, grown larger in the 

 larger body of water a natural condition of all fishes 

 and changed in color and appearance. That while 

 they are yet in the lower Columbia and only recently 

 from the salt water, they still maintain a sufficient dif- 

 ference to be easily distinguished from the cutthroat; 

 but by the time that they have reached the "Snake river 

 and other waters east of the Cascade range," their long 

 residence in the fresh water has again restored them 

 to their former appearance. The same changes are 

 found with the rainbow and the steelhead of farther 

 south. All trout are anadromous to greater or less 

 extent, unless actually landlocked or living in streams 

 so distant from the sea that they would be compelled 

 to pass through long stretches of warm and sluggish 

 water to reach it. The small trout of the coast streams 

 are compelled to go to the ocean quite early in the 

 season by the falling of the water to such an extent 

 that in many cases the streams go dry before the be- 

 ginning of the winter rains, and in the larger body of 

 water they rapidly increase in size. The steelhead of 

 the Columbia river always retains the cutthroat sing- 

 manual, to greater or less extent, while the steelhead 

 of the lower coast has no red on the jaw. The claim 

 that the smaller head of the steelhead is a distinguish- 

 ing mark, fails in effect, for it is an undisputable fact 

 that the older and larger the trout the smaller becomes 

 the relative size of the head. The other claim that the 

 larger scales of the rainbow is a distinguishing feature 

 from the steelhead is not founded on facts. For while 

 the scales of the rainbow counted along the lateral line 

 vary from as low as 120 in the coast streams, they 

 run as high as 150 in the same streams, as high as 160 

 in the McCloud and 185 in the Kern. The average being 

 135 in the smaller coast streams, 150 in the Sacramento 

 basin, and 170 in the Kern. The steelhead's scales run 

 from 130 to 155. An average of 145; or exactly an aver- 

 age of those of the coast streams and the Sacramento. 

 Were it possible for the Kern river trout to enter the 

 ocean no doubt we would find steelhead running as high 

 as 185 to the section. 



Whatever may be the origin of the large sea-running 

 trout called steelheads, the fact remains that it is a 

 grand fish both in size and fighting qualities. In the 

 ocean it eagerly takes the spoon and fights with a 

 vigor not even surpassed by the rainbow of the streams. 

 After a short sojourn in the fresh waters it rises to a 

 fly just as readily. 



Since the above was written Dr. Jordan has made the 

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