THE BULL-TROUT 249 



the scientific name Salmo camhricus to what is known as the 

 bull-trout on the Tyne of Northumberland, and throughout 

 Scotland, except on the Tweed, where it is called the sea-trout. 

 But then it appears to me, who have seldom seen it, that the 

 sewin of Wales, designated Salmo camhricus^ must be a totally 

 different fish in habits and appearance from the bull-trout, 

 with which I am very familiar. I propose, therefore, to say 

 nothing about the sewin, for the very good reason that it could 

 only be a repetition of the description of this fish by other 

 persons, and they are far from agreeing in their accounts. 

 Couch, for example, describes the sewin as having pale pink 

 spots and a deeply forked tail, features quite foreign to 

 Salmo eriox of Linnasus, in which the spots are all black, 

 and the tail is always, in adult specimens, nearly square at 

 the end. Mr. Houghton speaks of the excellent qualities of 

 its flesh, and says that it competes with the salmon-trout in 

 esteem as a sporting fish. In neither of these respects is the 

 bull-trout of northern rivers to be commended, for its flesh is 

 very far inferior to that of the salmon, and it comparatively 

 seldom takes a bait or fly except in the kelt stage. 



As to the English names of this fish, that of sea-trout is 

 perfectly applicable and correctly descriptive, but so long as 

 the specific distinction is maintained between Salmo eriox and 

 S. trutta^ there remains the objection that throughout Scotland, 

 except on the Tweed, the last-named fish is popularly known 

 as the sea-trout. The term " bull-trout," implying " big or 

 coarse trout," seems peculiarly appropriate to Salmo eriox, which 

 runs to a far larger size than any other of the family in Britain, 

 always excepting the salmon. Fig. 3. on Plate IX. shows a 

 bull-trout taken in the net below Perth in June, 1899, weighing 

 40 lb., and fish of this species are commonly taken in the 

 Tweed from 8 lb. to 15 lb. in weight. The size, therefore, 

 of the bull-trout entitles it to rank next the salmon, to which 

 fish it closely approximates in habits and appearance. 



Superficially, the two fish differ from each other in the 



