52 AN ANGLER'S RAMBLES 



home, however, close to the shore, where the water at high tide 

 was little more than knee-deep, the orange-fins rose at and seized 

 them with considerable avidity. 



As I have stated, even in August, after the general body of 

 the smolts had been ten weeks at sea, and a crop of finnocks 

 occupied the lowest stretch of the Nairn water, little change 

 could be detected in the external appearance of these loiterers. 

 It is probable, notwithstanding, that they were passing through a 

 process of transition, quite speedy enough to render them back 

 to the river in the finnock stage during the early part of the 

 year ; indeed, I feel inclined to think that they formed part of 

 the rearguard, or postponed relay, which furnished me with 

 sport in the spring of 1837. 



The observations made at Nairn on the orange-fin smolt, the 

 finnock, and the Salmo albus, or whitling, have satisfied me fully 

 on several points as to which differences of opinion still prevail. 

 I am convinced, first of all, that the orange-fin smolt is the pro- 

 duce of the Salmo albus, and that the finnock stage is the inter- 

 mediate one to the acquisition of its adult or fully-developed 

 conformation. It may be mentioned that the fishermen in the 

 locality above-named recognise two varieties of the sea- trout, 

 independent of the eriox, which is a rare visitor, comparatively 

 speaking, on the coast-line of the Moray Firth. In one of these 

 the maculae are larger, better defined, and more compactly set 

 than in the other; the ground also, on which they figure, is 

 decidedly darker. There is no further room, however, for estab- 

 lishing a specific difference betwixt the two sorts, unless we 

 take into account the edible qualities, which are in favour of the 

 dark-spotted variety, seeing that both herd and shoal together, 

 and are uniform in their habits. 



I am also convinced that the northern sea-trout does not 

 travel to any great distance from the mouth of the river where 

 it is bred ; or, in other words, that its marine life is spent within 



