330 GAME FISH OF NORTH AMERICA. 



tongue with a single row of teeth on each side ; vomer with one 

 row. Dorsal fin nearly equi-distant. 



Color. — Dusky brownish grey ; chin and under parts light ash 

 or cream color. Back and sides speckled with numerous irregu- 

 larly shaped spots of lighter grey, brown, or soiled white. Lower 

 fins faint yellow. Resembles siskowet, but has more pointed chin 

 and snout, more deeply forked tail and larger head. 



Habitat. — Lake Superior, Lake Michigan, Lake Huron, and 

 probably in all the great lakes which lie between the United States 

 and the Arctic Sea. 



Prof. Milner says that " this fish may be readily taken with the 

 hook baited with a piece of fish, but as they are ravenous feeders, 

 almost any kind of bait will serve the angler's purpose, who will 

 however, derive little sport from their capture, as they are exces- 

 sively dull and sluggish." Professional fishermen capture them 

 with lay-out lines and nets. Herbert says, " A coarse, heavy, stiff 

 rod ; a long and powerful oiled hempen or fiaxen line, on a winch 

 with a heavy sinker, a cod hook baited with any kind of flesh, fish 

 or fowl, is the most successful, if not the most orthodox or scien- 

 tific mode of capturing him. His great size and immense strength 

 alone give him value as a fish of game ; but when hooked, he 

 pulls strongly and fights hard, though he is a boring, deep fighter, 

 and seldom, if ever, leaps out of the water like the true salmon 

 or the brook trout." 



Nevertheless, trolling for trout is a favorite pastime of the resi- 

 dents and tourists of northern Michigan. It is said that the 

 Mackinaw trout bites best when he is fullest. Large and solitary 

 specimens are frequently taken — sometimes with the gaff alone — 

 while swimming at the surface of the water. These are known as 

 " racers," and are always thin. The average weight is about five 

 pounds, but monsters weighing from sixty to one hundred are 

 heard of. The largest that ever came under the writer's observa- 

 tion, weighed fifty-three pounds seven ounces, and was caught 

 near Elk Rapids, or Traverse Bay. The spawning season begins 

 in October and ends early in November. But very little seems to be 

 known of their habits at this season. Rocky bottoms are usually, 

 but not always, preferred. A clay bottom near St. Joseph, Mich., 

 is said to be frequented by trout for this purpose. 



