A SUTHERLAND LOCH 187 



burn trout, taken from a very high rocky burn 

 up in the hills, in two years became indistin- 

 guishable from Salmo ferox. The first year 

 they grew to about i Ib. or i^ lb., took on a 

 bright silvery sheen of scales, were deep and 

 high-shouldered, lusty and powerful, more re- 

 sembling Loch Leven trout than any others. 

 This was when their feeding and condition were 

 at their best ; but as food decreased and they 

 rapidly increased in number, spawning in im- 

 mense quantities, and with no enemies, the 

 larger fish began to prey upon the smaller, 

 grew big teeth, swam deep and lost colour, 

 grew large fins and a big head, and became 

 Salmo ferox so-called. In two years more 

 the food supply became exhausted, and now 

 (1884) the chain of lochs holds nothing but 

 huge lanky kelty-looking fish and swarms of 

 diminutive "black-nebs," neither of the sorts 

 deserving of the Anglers' notice.' 



In the large lakes of the Continent a trout is 

 found growing to a great size sometimes termed 

 Salmo lacustris\ and Berkenhout (1795) sup- 

 poses, probably with truth, that our * Great lake 

 Trout' is identical with it. Jardine and Selby, 

 with the tendency to subdivision of species so 

 prevalent in their day, gave to it the specific 

 name of S. ferox ; but Moreau observes that 



