HOW THE TROUT CAME TO CALIFORNIA. 285 



For all we know it is constantly receiving acces- 

 sions from the small Steel-heads which do not find 

 their way to the sea. It is not always easy to tell 

 where Steel-head trout leaves off and Brook trout 

 begins. The Rainbow Trout occurs in the coast- 



o 



wise brooks all the way from Oregon to the Mexi- 

 can line. It abounds in Rio San Luis Rey, in San 

 Diego County, and I have heard of its occurrence 

 across the border in Mexico. In no two streams 

 does this Coast Range trout seem to be exactly the 

 same, and in all it is small, speckled, and vigorous. 

 In one stream of the Redwood country, Purisima 

 Creek, in San Mateo County, there is a high 

 waterfall where it drops into the sea. No trout 

 can climb this fall, and those who are above it have 

 been there for many generations. These Purisima 

 Trout, befitting their name, are the brightest in 

 color of all the trout of the mountains. When the 

 trout which have gone down over the Purisima 

 falls reappear in other streams, as they often do,- 

 we can still know them by the brightness of their 

 colors. 



Northward the Brook Trout, or Rainbow Trout, 

 grows more distinct from its relatives. Its colors 

 in Oregon and Washington are more marked, its 

 scales larger, its mouth smaller. About the mouth 

 of the Columbia it becomes the form known as 

 Salmo irideus masoni. Here no one could fail to 

 distinguish it from the Steel-head. The Steel-head, 

 Cut-throat, and Rainbow are all found here, 

 three different generations of trout, each with a 

 long history. Here each one is a distinct " spe- 

 cies," beyond all doubt or question. It is equally 



