THE GRAYLING. 



119 



Switzerland, the Tyrol, Prussia, and Sweden. Fine specimens reach a length of two feet. There 

 are several other species found in the lakes of Central Europe and Sweden, but all have the same 

 truncation of the snout ; other species are confined to the Siberian rivers ; several are found only in 

 Lake Superior and other lakes of Northern and Arctic America. 



Another group of species has the snout vertically truncated, and of these the Coregonus 

 clupeoides is known only from the lakes of Great Britain. It grows occasionally to a length of 

 sixteen inches, and feeds on minute fresh-water Crustacea, larvae of insects, water-beetles, and 

 small red worms. In Loch Lomond, where they are plentiful, and caught with the drag net, they 

 are known as Fresh- water Herrings, or Powans. They are greatly valued for food, and are in the best 

 condition in August and September. The Coregonus albula, which is found in the north of Europe, 

 has the lower jaw longer than the skull. Another British species, found in Dumfriesshire, is known 

 as the Yendace (Coregonus vandesius). It has the dorsal and ventral fins long, and the tail deeply 

 forked. These fish swim in great shoals, and retire into deep water in warm weather. They 

 congregate in great numbers at spawning time, which is about the beginning of November. They 

 resemble the Smelt in flavour. The females are about eight inches long, while the males are about an 

 inch shorter. The colour of the back is brown, and the sides are tinged with yellow. 



The POLL AN (Coregonus pollan) is an Irish species of this genus, remarkable for the shortness of 

 the head and depth of the body. It has the aspect of a fresh-water Herring, and, like the Herring, 

 is gregarious. It reaches a length of ten or eleven inches. Coregonus lucidus, from Great Bear Lake, 

 is known as the Herring Salmon ; Coregontis clupeiformis, found in Lakes Erie and Ontario, is locally 

 known as the Fresh-water Herring, and sometimes as the Shad Salmon. 



The GRAYLING (ThymaUut vulyaris) is found in the fresh waters of Central and Northern Europe, 

 nd is well known in various parts of England and Wales. Large specimens may weigh from four to 



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GRAYLING. 



five pounds. It is in the best condition in October and November, flourishes best in rivers with 

 a rocky or clear bottom, and is unable to exist for long in muddy ponds. It feeds on various flies, 

 which are imitated by anglers, and eats the smaller fresh-water mollusca, such as Neritinae and Physa?. 

 When freshly taken from the water it has an odour like thyme. It reaches a length of ten inches. 

 It is marked on the sides with dusty longitudinal bars ; the general colour is a yellowish-brown, but 

 the scales reflect many colours in different lights. Towards spawning time the pectoral fins become 



