SPAWNING OF PIKE. 2J 



good sport. Grayling often attain a large size ; they 

 are frequently taken from two to four pounds in the 

 rivers most noted for them, which are as follows : 

 the Avon, Itchen, and Test, in Hampshire ; the 

 Dove, Wye, and Derwent, in the Midlands ; the Aire 

 and Swale, in Yorkshire, and the Lugg and Teme. 

 This fish has recently been turned into the Clyde 

 and Tweed, where it appears to flourish. 



PlKE frequent the more shallow portions of the 

 water when they are in quest of food, as also for 

 spawning purposes. The smaller fish naturally 

 throng to the thinner waters for better security, and 

 the larger fish of prey lurk in their vicinity, as the 

 vicious dog-fish do near the herring shoals, upon the 

 shelving strand. Pike also love to be concealed in 

 weed beds, amongst the friendly shades of water 

 plants, from which they pounce upon their unsuspect- 

 ing prey. In rivers and running water, like trout, 

 they generally take up an advantageous position 

 before a jutting portion of the river's bank, or in a 

 deep curl of water at a sudden bend. These places 

 are favourite haunts, and are sure to be tenanted by 

 either large or small fish. In both winter and sum- 

 mer the pike is a solitary and unsocial fish. They 

 spawn in the spring, April and May being the usual 

 months, but the spawning period varies with the 

 locality to a certain extent. As pairing time ap- 

 proaches they repair to creeks, side-ditches, back- 

 waters, etc., and in the case of lakes and ponds to 

 the seclusion afforded by weed and reed beds. In 

 the fall of the year the wanderers congregate in a 



