72 THE NATURAL HISTORY AND HABITS 



tirely clear of them, for they breed in burns and 

 small rivulets, where they are seldom disturbed ; and 

 although numbers of their fry may be eaten up in 

 lochs and pools by the larger species, yet immense 

 numbers of them escape and arrive at maturity. To 

 be sure, large quantities of them could be caught 

 with nets made for the purpose, for at the latter end 

 of the breeding season they congregate in the deep 

 pools, from whence they could be dragged with the 

 net, and by repeating that process weekly or oftener, 

 a great many of them could be got out of the river. 



I would also as much as possible encourage otters 

 in a salmon river, where, from destroying such quan- 

 tities of trout, it will be found most useful and of 

 the greatest benefit. The otter has been long mis- 

 represented, and counted among the enemies of the 

 salmon, but when the whole case is rightly consi- 

 dered, in truth it is one of their best friends. The 

 otter has undoubtedly been known at rare times to 

 catch and kill a salmon, but these are rare times 

 indeed, for he will never attempt the unlikely game 

 of salmon while trout can be got in the river, or 

 even eels in their season. When frosts shut up the 

 lochs and also the pools of the river, the otter 

 may catch a salmon by pouncing upon it in some 

 open stream, but that is the only time we find one 

 killed by it. The otter fishes for sport often when 

 food is not required, and when he falls in with a 

 well-stocked pool, he leaves dozens of trout on the 

 bank unbroken, which he never returns to eat; for 

 when the river is open there is no difficulty of pro- 

 curing plenty more, and at a cheap rate. And on 

 the whole, when all circumstances are taken into 

 consideration, in place of the otter being ranked 

 among the salmon enemies, we must give him the 



