THE OREGON SPORTSMAN 



uncertain naturalists call the fifth member of the family. There is but 

 one other to consider — and if you cannot distinguish Dolly Varden from 

 the others after your first opportunity for comparison, give yourself no 

 further trouble to get acquainted with any of our trout. Your case is 

 hopeless. 



The mouth is relatively bigger, and cut farther back than any but 

 the Dolly Varden. You'll see by opening the lower jaw without stretching 

 abnormally that the angle of the opening extends a bit behind the center 

 of the eye pupil. In the Steelhead-Eainbow tribe the mouth angle at the 

 same distension reaches only to the front line of pupil. 



Books descriptive of our trout say nothing about a very distinctive 

 feature of the Clark trout, but which seems to be an "easy mark." Ob- 

 serve his eye! It is smaller than the Eainbow's. It protrudes from the 

 socket very prominently. The dark olive color of the upper part of the 

 head extends over the iris almost to the edge of the pupil, and then a very 

 narrow golden band lies at the inner edge of the iris. Even the spots 

 peculiar to the skin of the head are present on the outer margin of the iris. 



In marked contrast, the eyes of Rainbow, Steelhead and Dolly Varden 

 are large, staring, and the iris of a pale yellow in a wide circle unmarked 

 by spots and shading. The full, prominent eye of the Clark trout is mobile 

 — more so than in other species. Trout cannot roll their eyes in their 

 orbits, as we do, but the eye is built up beneath by a muscular cushion, 

 and this swings the eye as if set in a "universal joint." Perhaps you 

 have noticed that the pupils are never exactly round in the eyes of trouu, 

 but balloon or pear-shaped. 



The tail of the Cutthroat is rounded at the tip of each lobe and roundly 

 indented in the middle of the margin. Steelhead and Rainbow are very 

 different (in adult fish) and both are frequently called "square-tailed" 

 because of the straight line of the tail end. 



Another reliable but troublesome anatomical test of the Clark trout 

 is the number of scales in a continuous row from head to tail. This trout 

 has about 170. The Rainbow and Steelhead have about 135 in a row. 



COLOR AND MARKS. 



These vary greatly, and correspond so closely at certain times, and in 

 certain conditions, to the colors and markings of Rainbow and Steelhead 

 that you cannot depend on these tokens. Taken in quiet, deep pools, much 

 shaded, all trout are much darker in general color and spots. From such 

 waters you may look for deep olive or brownish general color above and 

 very little white on the belly; the dusky color reaching almost entirely 

 around the fish. The fins also are darker and spots very numerous, large 

 and black. Cheeks are deep olive and purple. 



But fish of this species taken in rapid, shallow streams, with light, 

 gravelly or rocky bottom are amber in color with a greenish reflection, and 



Pag-e seven 



