BROOK TROUT 



and violet which it wears, the mellow diffusion of 

 which from gills to base of caudal at once suggests 

 the descriptive phrase so often heard among anglers, 

 " the bloom of the trout." Nor is our admiration les- 

 sened as we examine his clipper-built form, the bright 

 vermilion dotlets with their dark -blue areola, the 

 strength and symmetry of his paired fins, and the broad 

 sweep of his truncate tail, and when we have him 

 hard and fast upon a barbed hook and a springing 

 rod, we cannot fail to appreciate his knightly qualities, 

 his sturdy resistance, and keen intelligence in his ef- 

 forts to escape from the steel. 



Premising that an angler will recognize on sight 

 this brook beauty, aptly and poetically known as " the 

 pride of the rills " wherever he is taken on a light rod 

 and a dancing fly, we will now look into his home life 

 and take note of his habits, habitat, and idiosyncrasies, 

 for he is not without a few odd traits and actions. 



Fontinalis — "living in springs" — is without doubt 

 the most amply descriptive, specific name that ichthy- 

 ologists have ever bestowed upon a fish, for take a 

 trout from its native and highly aerated home and it 

 will die if placed in water of a higher temperature ; 

 put him in a large aquarium tank and ice it as you 

 may, and his life is only a question of a few months ; 

 the solstice season ends it. At the New York Aqua- 

 rium, where every appliance for the preservation of fish- 

 life is at hand and intelligently used, the brook trout 

 can seldom be kept from season to season. 



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