TELEOSTEI 209 



made aware of the capture of many Sea Trout in Otago Harbour by 

 fishermen during the year." And again in 1885, it is stated: " Salmon 

 trout have not been found during the past year in any river, and their 

 occurrence in salt-water is not so common as in former years. It is 

 to be feared, therefore, it has been netted out, as a species" (a very 

 improbable suggestion it seems to me). 



In 1 88 1 a trout was taken in Nelson Harbour, and was submitted 

 to Dr Hector, who identified it as a true salmon trout (5. trutta). 

 This fish was taken near the mouth of the Maitai River, and proved 

 to be a female, 25 inches in length, which had just spawned. 



In 1884 the Wairarapa Society received three trays of ova from 

 the Government, and from these they obtained 2300 fry. Of these 

 500 were put in the Ruamahanga, and 700 into tributary streams, 

 500 in the Hutt River, and 350 in the Makakahi at Eketahuna. The 

 remainder were retained in the ponds. I do not know where these 

 ova came from, or whether any other ova were imported at the same 

 time. 



In the same year the Wellington Society received 900 ova, which 

 were imported from Scotland for the Otago Society, and placed 750 

 fry in the Makora River. In 1888 there is a statement in the annual 

 report as follows: "Our young Salmon trout have jrielded us 2500 

 fine healthy fry, and these are, we believe, the first taken from the 

 fish and hatched out artificially." If this means the first salmon trout 

 reared in New Zealand from imported fish, then it only emphasises 

 the want of knowledge and co-operation which existed between the 

 different societies, for the Southland Society claimed to have done 

 this 14 years earlier. 



A very sharp correspondence took place in Canterbury in 1895 

 as to whether there were any sea trout in New Zealand. I mention it 

 here, because many people still claim that there are none and never 

 have been any, and consider that the question was settled in the 

 negative by this controversy. It was initiated by a Mr W. H. Spack- 

 man who wrote to the Christchurch Press on 22nd June, as follows : 



I find it stated that 7000 salmon trout were liberated in the Waimakariri, 

 and 1000 sold. Can the Garden Committee tell me whence these were 

 obtained ? Are they from ova direct from England, or were they from fish 

 in the Gardens; and if so, had these so-called Salmon trout ever been to 

 sea before spawning? I think this matter should be cleared, as I was not 

 aware there were any real salmon trout in the colony. 



This drew forth a letter from Mr S. C. Farr on ist July: 



Salmon trout were brought here by me from Dunedin, as a gift from the 

 Otago to the Canterbury Acclimatisation Society, about thirteen years 

 since (? 1882), and they bred in the Society's Gardens for several seasons 



T. N. Z. 14 



