162 



MUSEUM OP ANIMATED NATURE. 



'Pilchard. 



migratory Salmonids are even now probably ac- 

 curately known only to a few persons ; their great 

 similarity, when very small, has so frequently de- 

 ceived even those who have lived the greater part 

 of their lives on the Salmon river banks, that the fry 

 marked by them in their experiments have been 

 retaken as Grilse, Bull-trout, Salmon-trout, and 

 river-trout." 



The species of the genus Salmo, described as 

 British by Mr. Yarrcll, are— the Salmon (S.salar), 

 the Bull-Trout (S. eriox), the Salmon-Trout (S. 

 irutta), the Parr or Samlet (S. salmulas), the Com- 

 mon Trout (S. fario), the Great Grey Trout (S. ferox), 

 athe Northern CJliarr (S. umbla). and the Welsh 

 ■Charr (S. savelinus). The other Salmonidae are the 

 Smelt (Qjmerus e5i>eilanus), the Grayling (Thymal- 

 lus vulgaris), the Gwvniad (Coregonus fera ?), the 

 Vendace (Coregonus, Willughbii), and the Argentine 

 (Scopelus, Humboldtii). 



Fig. 2-M51 represents a Salmon Fishery on the 

 Si>strai)d fiord (or loch), in Norway. 



The Norwegian salmon, which are large and of 

 excellent quality, are caught in various ways. One 

 of their methods deserves a description, and seems 

 to be very etfeclive. In descending one of the 

 longest and most picturesque of the fiords (Siis- 

 trand fiord), Mr. Twining's attention was caught by 

 a number of small barrels floating on the surface of 

 the water. "These barrels," he says, "at a short 

 distance from each other, were secured each by a 

 thin rope or cord, and all these cords were joined to- 

 gether at the end of a high scaffold that projected 

 over the fiord : it was a sort of platform, long and 

 narrow, one end of which rested on the bank, while 

 the other, at a slight angle of elevation, was sup- 

 ported l)y long poles on the edge of a rock that ad- 

 vanced into the water. It was not long before I saw 

 the head and arm of a man, whose body was con- 

 ■cealed behind a sort of screen, made of planks, at 

 the end of the platform. Although he did not make 

 the least motion, he appeared very much occupied, 

 and was evidently not perched on that frail obser- 

 vatory for motives of mere curiosity. My boatman 

 explained the enigma by telling me that he was fish- 

 ing for salmon. A large net is suspended horizontally 

 under the barrels, and the extreme transparency of 

 the wafer of the fiord permits the fisherman to see 

 all the fish that swim in it. When a shoal of sal- 

 mon passes over his net, he itipidly draws up in one 

 clue all the cords attached to the different barrels : 

 the barrels thus close together at one point, — the 

 net is shut, and all the fish in it are taken. Al- 

 though the fiords abound with fish, as do also 

 the mountain-streams that discharge themselves 

 into them, it appears that these men often lie in 

 ambush the best part of a day without taking any- 

 thing,— but one fortunate capture is an ample re- 

 ward."* 



On the rivers and streams there is a very simple 

 method of taking salmon in large quantities. They 

 either make artificial embankments, or avail them- 

 selves of ledg-es of rocks that divide the stream into 

 several narrow channels. On each of these chan- 

 nels they place two sluices, the one above and the 

 other below, in such a manner that they can be 

 opened and shut at pleasure. The fish, having 

 once entered these locks, are prevented from pro- 

 ceeding or returning, and, the water being let off, 

 they are taken by the hand without any trouble. 

 The method is also common in Sweden, where, on 

 the river Deje, they often thus take from five to 

 eight hundred salmon in a single day. The greater 

 part of the salmon caught in the fiords are salted 

 and exported, but many of the fish are sold fresh 

 in the neighbouring country at the rate of about 

 an English penny the pound. Angling seems too 

 slow an operation for the Norwegians ; but several 

 English gentlemen, who of late years have been 

 attracted by the romantic beauty of the country 

 and the love of fishing, have found excellent sport 

 in that way, particularly on the fiord where Dron- 

 theim is situated, and in the streams leading to it, 

 which abound with salmon, salmon-trout, and other 

 species. 



Before proceeding to the next family, we venture 

 to introduce the portraiture of a fisherman of the 

 olden time, one famous for his skill in the gentle 

 craft, right eloquent in the commendation of the 

 art which he loved so well, and happy in the eluci- 

 dation of its details. It is the portraiture of " one 

 well known and as well beloved of all good men," — 

 of no less a personage than honest Izaak Walton 

 himself, " the father of angling," dressed as he was 

 wont when he left the noise and bustle of London, 

 and betook himself to the banks of the Lea, amidst 

 the tranquil scenery of the fresh green fields, there 

 to watch his trembling quill, and listen the while to 

 the milkmaid's artless song, or muse upon the beau- 

 ties of nature, keenly alive to her ever-varying 

 charms. (See page 165, Fig. 2462.) 



It was in 16.o3 that he published ' The Complete 

 Angler, or Contemplative Man's Recreation,' a work 



• • Voyije en Norwege et en Su!de,' p« Henri Twining. 



which, to use the words of Sir Nicholas Harris, 

 " whether considered as a treatise on the art of 

 angling, or as a beautiful pastoral, abounding in 

 exquisite descriptions of rural scenery, in sentiments 

 of the purest morality, and in an unaffected love of 

 the Creator and his works, has long been ranked 

 among the most popular compositions in our lan- 

 guage." Izaak Walton was born at Stafibrd, on the 

 9th of August, 1593, and died at Winchester on the 

 15th of December, 1683. His remains lie in Win- 

 chester Cathedral. 



Family CLUPEIDJE (PILCHARDS, HER- 

 RINGS, &c.). 



2463. — Tub Pilchabd 



(Gupea Pikliardus). Gipsey Herring, in Scot- 

 land. 



In the genus Clupca the body is compressed, 

 the scales are large, thin, and deciduous, the teeth 

 minute or wanting. The dorsal fin is single ; the 

 line of the abdomen fornis a sharp keel-like edge, 

 ! which in some species is serrated. Branchiostegous 

 rays eight. 



The pilchard bears a strong resemblance to the 

 herring, but, instead of being found on every part 

 of the coasts of Britain, like that fish, its geo- 

 graphical distribution is exceedingly limited, and in 

 this country it is only found in any great numbers 

 on the shores of Devon and Cornwall, chiefly from 

 Dartmouth to Padstow, round the Land's End. It 

 requires a warmer and more genial latitude than 

 the herring, and, though occasionally taken at Yar- 

 mouth, and as far north as Dublin and Belfast, yet 

 these are only individuals separated by accident from 

 the great shoal. 



Pilchards frequent the French coasts, as well 

 as those of Spam, but not in great numlaers ; the 

 French fish for them in the Bay of Biscay, attract- 

 ing them to their nets by throwing overboard large 

 quantities of the salted row of fishes, of which they 

 are very fond. On the southern coast of Ireland 

 large shoals sometimes make their appearance, and 

 about seventy years ago a tolerably productive 

 fishery was there carried on. 



The south-western coast of England, stretching 

 further south than any other part of the United 

 Kingdom, is, however, their most favoured haunt ; 

 and individuals are there to be found at all seasons 

 of the year. If the causes which regulate their 

 movements were perfectly understood, there can 

 be no doubt but that their habits would be found 

 directed by as wonderful a degree of instinct as 

 that which governs other portions of the unreason- 

 ing creation, with whose history we are better ac- 

 quainted. Mr. Yarrell, in his interesting account 

 of the pilchard (vol. ii. p. 96), says — " In January 

 they keep near the bottom, and are chiefly seen in 

 the stomachs of ravenous fishes ; in March they 

 sometimes assemble in schulls (shoals), and thou- 

 sands of hogsheads have in some years been taken 

 in scans, but this union is only partial and not per- 

 manent ; and it is not until July that they regularly 

 and permanently congregate so as to be sought 

 after by the fishermen." The pilchard sometimes 

 spawns in May, but the usual season is October. 

 Pennant stated that their vvinter retreat was the 

 same as the herring, and that the same impulses 

 brought them from thence to our shores ; but it is 

 now clear that their migration consists merely of a 

 change from the deep sea to the shore, and again 

 from the shore to the deep adjacent sea. Their 

 course generally appears to be from the west, but, 

 like the herring, the pilchard is very uncertain in 

 its movements. Dr. Forbes* says, — " Both the 

 period of their arrival and departure, and also the 

 course they take, are uncertain, and have varied 

 gi-eatly in different years. Fifty or sixty years 

 since they remained on the coasts till Christmas, 

 and the fishermen were engaged in their capture 

 five or six months, but now the season does not last 

 more than two or three months. Some years ago, 

 indeed, they either did not appear at all on the 

 Cornish coast, or only for a few weeks, or even 

 days. In former years they also appeared first on 

 the r^orthern coasts of Cornwall, towards the east, 

 from whence they proceeded westward round the 

 Land's End, and then eastward along the southern 

 coasts. Lately, however, they have on some oc- 

 casions scarcely touched on the northern coasts, 

 but have made their first appearance on the eastern 

 parts of the south coast." The pilchard measures 

 from nine to eleven inches in length ; it contains 

 more oleaginous matter than the herring ; the body 

 is thicker and rounder, and less compressed; the 

 under jaw shorter ; the scales larger, and forming a 

 closer texture than those of the herring, which drop 

 off and are smaller and thinner; the line of the 

 abdomen smooth. The upper part of the pilchard 

 is a bluish green ; the belly a silvery white ; head 

 golden-coloured yellow; tail dusky. The pilchard 

 has no teeth, in which respect ,it differs from the 



• ' Mcdic>l Topography of the Land's End, 1833. 



herring. The dorsal or back fin of the pilchard 

 being placed in the centre of gravity, the body will 

 rest in an exact horizontal position if taken up by 

 this part, whereas in the herring, the dorsal fin being 

 more backwards than the centre, the fish on being 

 taken up by it will not remain equipoised, but the 

 head drops downwards. 



The stations of the pilchard fishery are St. Ives, 

 on the northern coast of Cornwall ; Mount's Bay, 

 on the southern coast ; thence eastward at St. 

 Mawes, at Mevagissey, and to the coasts of Devon. 

 There are two modes of fishing, one with scans and 

 the other with drift-nets. The former requires a 

 considerable capital : about eighteen men are em- 

 ployed in conducting the operations of a single 

 " concern," and three boats are necessary ; while 

 the drift-nets are managed by from four to six men 

 in a single boat. The sean-fishery is carried on 

 near the shore, the dfiff-fishery further at sea; and 

 while the former supplies the foreign demand, the 

 latter is chiefly engaged in providing for the imme 

 diate consumption of the home market, as from the 

 manner in which the fish are taken they are not 

 s(i well adapted for curing as those caught by the 

 scans. 



The nets used in the sean-fishery are, a stop-sean, 

 with lead weights at the bottom, and corks at the 

 top to keep it floating, which costs between 300/. 

 and 400/., being about a quarter of a mile in length 

 and neariy 100 feet in depth ; and atuck-sean, which 

 is made with a hollow in the middle, is one-half the 

 size in length, and eighteen feet deeper than the 

 larger net : it costs about 100/. Two boats, of about 

 fifteen tons each, are used, in one of which the stop- 

 sean is carried ; the other, which carries the tuck- 

 sean, is required to assist in enclosing the fish, and is 

 called the "volyer," supposed to be a corruption of 

 " follower ;" the smaller boat, of from two to four 

 tons' burthen, is used to carry the men to and from 

 the shore, besides being useful when the men are 

 engaged with the nets; it is called a "lurker," and 

 the crew consists of the master-seaner with three of 

 the men, while the remainder are equally divided 

 between the other two boats. The most favourable 

 place for the sean-fishing is a fine sandy bay. The 

 fishermen commence their labours towards evening, 

 proceeding at that time to the place which the fish 

 may be expected to visit, and there they cast an- 

 chor. Should a shoal make its appearance, the 

 master-seaner and his men are instantly on the alert, 

 in order to ascertain the extent of the shoal, and 

 the nature of the ground over which it is passing. 

 As soon as the shoal is within the depth of the 

 scan, the boat containing it is rowed round, and 

 when they have reached the proper place the three 

 men whose business it is to attend to the net heave 

 it out with the greatest despatch. This great body 

 of net, rope, corks, and lead, is thrown into the 

 sea in less than five minutes. During the whole 

 of these proceedings the movements of the fisher- 

 men are directed by signs from the master-seaner 

 in the lurker, as the pilchard is easily alarmed. 

 We learn from Mr. Y'arrell's work that " The scan 

 at first forms a curved line across the course of the 

 fish ; and while the two larger boats are employed 

 in warping the ends together, the lurker's station is 

 in the openings, where, by dashing the water, the 

 fish are kept away from the only place of escape. 

 When the scan is closed and the ends are laid to- 

 gether, if the body of the fish be great, and the 

 sea or tide strong, the net is secured by heavy grap- 

 nels, which are attached to the head-roiies bv haw- 

 sers. When the evening has closed in, and tfie tide 

 is low, they proceed to take up the fish. For this 

 purpose, leaving the stop-sean as before, the volyer 

 passes within it, and lays the tuck-sean round it on 

 the inner side ; it is then drawn together so as gra- 

 dually to contract the limits of the fish, and raise 

 them from the bottom. When disturbed they be- 

 come exceedingly agitated ; and so great is the 

 force derived from their numbers and fear, that the 

 utmost caution is used lest the net should either 

 sink or be burst. When the tucksean is thus gr.i- 

 dually contracting, and the boats surround it, stones 

 suspended from ropes, called minnies, are re- 

 peatedly plunged into the water at that part where 

 escape alone is practicable, until the fish then to 

 be taken are supported in the hollow or bunt of the 

 scan." 



It is stated that it is not more diflicult to take a 

 thousand hogsheads of fish than to take a single 

 hogshead ; and as the movements of a large body 

 are slower than a smaller, the difiiculty is probably 

 less. Instances have occurred in which two thou- 

 sand hogsheads, or about five million fish, have 

 been caught at once : but when a very large num- 

 ber are caught, only so many are taken out of the 

 net at one time as the boats can conveniently carry, 

 and a week or ten days may elapse before the whole 

 are secured. By this arrangement the processof 

 salting or curing is properly performed ; whereas, 

 if the whole were compelled to be brought on shore 

 at once, many would be spoiled, from the impos- 



