Dr Smith's Note of a Large Common Trout. 291 



38 inclies in length. The stomach was quite empty. The 

 fish was sent to me for exhibition from Mr Sanderson, taxi- 

 dermist. His assistant, Mr Keddie, informed me that, many 

 years ago when he was engaged fishing with the net in the 

 mouth or estuary of the river Eden, within the tidal range of 

 the sea, near St Andrews he caught numbers of sea-trout or 

 bull-trout (Sahno trutta). He also frequently caught speci- 

 mens of the common trout, the brown and yellow trout with red 

 and black spots and yellow fins, varying from 2 to 25 lbs. in 

 weight, about the species of which he could not be mistaken, 

 and he says that many of these fish had parasites attached 

 to them ; he therefore considers this trout may also migrate 

 to the sea, when it can get the opportunity to do so. 



Dr A. Giinther, in his " Catalogue of Fishes," divides the 

 common trout into two varieties — the Salmo fario, var. gai- 

 mardi, the northern Scandinavian or Scottish trout, and 

 Salmo fario, var. aitsonii, the more southern European, or 

 English trout. I am not able to say to which of these varie- 

 ties the fish now exhibited may belong, as I did not get an 

 examination made of it when fresh. 



Mr Keddie gave me notes of several large trout ; another 

 from the Tay, a common trout, the brown or yellow trout, 

 was taken in April 1875 ; it weighed 11 lbs., and measured 

 30 inches in length. Other trouts were the great lake trout, 

 Salmo ferox, killed in Loch Eannoch in June 1872; one 

 weighed 17 lbs., and measured in length 31 inches; one 

 weio'hed 15 lbs., length 32 inches. Another killed in August 

 weigjhed 11 lbs., leng^th 25 inches. Eemains of small trout 

 were found in the stomachs of several of these fish. The 

 varieties of weight as compared with the length show the 

 different states of condition of the fish. 



VII. Note of a Common Heron, Ardea cinerea, killed hy a 

 Water-rat. By John Alexander Smith, M.D. 



Dr Smith exhibited a specimen of the common heron, 

 which was found dead, on the 6th April 1878, by the side of 

 a small stream in the grounds of the Hirsel, near Coldstream, 

 in the position in which it is now preserved. Its neck and 



