Trotit Breeding. 33 



middle. Suddenly she would start, turn on her side 

 and whip the gravel with her tail until her exertions 

 moved her forward of the nest, and in this way a clean 

 spot was made a foot in diameter and about five inches 

 deep. After each sweeping of the gravel, and at other 

 times, her mate would move forward and rub his side 

 against her nose, all the time quivering with excitement. 

 After several days of nest-making, the moment came — 

 she bent her body into the nest and seemed to rub for- 

 ward on the gravel, and discharged some eggs. He 

 was at her side and fertilized them at the moment. I 

 could plainly see the milt. Young trout got the scent 

 of the eggs and crowded up to feast on them, but the 

 old fellow was on guard, while she whipped some^gravel 

 over her treasures. Some two hours later the same pair 

 repeated the performance and deposited more eggs, but 

 I watched them the next morning without seeing more 

 spawning and do not know whether she laid all her eggs 

 in two batches or not. The nest was covered up and 

 the fish remained about it for two or three days. 



When this takes place in a stream, the eggs are im- 

 perfectly covered. The mother cannot see that some 

 eggs are fanned away by the action of her tail. 

 Another pair of trout may come and choose the same' 

 spot for a nest and whip the eggs out, to be devoured 

 by the yearling trout, chubs, dace or other fishes, for the 

 spawning season is from October to March. A freshet 

 may come and smother the eggs with sediment ; ducks, 

 eels and rats will dig in the gravel for them, and fungus 

 from a few dead eggs may kill the lot. Nature pro- 

 vides for this loss by giving the trout many eggs, not as 

 many as most fishes have, but enough to keep up the 

 stock under favorable circumstances, so that if each pair 

 succeed in having a pair reach maturity it is all that na- 



