282 FLY FISHING AND SPINNING 



It will not be amiss to recapitulate some of the evidence 

 on which these opinions are based, viz. : 



Salmon reared in tanks and artificially spawned do not 

 show the so-called " spawning marks/' 



Milt maybe noticed running from two years old male parr. 



Fish are caught in the nets during March, April, and May, 

 which are known as " half spent " fish. They are dis- 

 coloured, and their scales show the so-called " spawning 

 marks." The general explanation given for this condition 

 of these fish is that the spawning operations have been 

 interfered with by frost, ice, etc., etc. While such an 

 interference might occur especially in the upper and more 

 shallow portions of a river, innumerable other spawning 

 grounds would be encountered by the mating fish during 

 their down stream progress, and there would be many 

 opportunities for a resumption of the spawning efforts by 

 a pair of salmon after being thus disturbed, before they 

 reach the nets. It is much more natural to suppose that the 

 majority, if not all, of these half-spent fish are ones, which, 

 not being able to reach the spawning beds, or to find a mate, 

 have begun to discharge the ova with which they were cum- 

 bered, and that this process was still going on when they were 

 taken in the nets; that these fish would all be found with 

 the so-called "spawning marks," and on a re turn visit would 

 therefore be treated as fish which had previously spawned. 



Many spent fish, when migrating from river to sea, are 

 quite clear (i.e., not discoloured), and only to be distinguished 

 from clean fish by their lanky appearance. These fish are 

 probably salmon late run, which have discharged their ova 

 shortly after leaving the sea, and been captured before a 

 discoloured condition has occurred. 



Dr. Masterman states that a large number of grilse which 

 enter the river late in the season become kelts, but do not 

 become labelled with a definite spawning mark. 



