7.Biological

SOMETHING ABOUT THE QUARRY

THE SMALL MOUTHED BLACK BASS (Micropterus dolomieu) KNOW FISH

I T is good luck to be on the good side of the man I that knows Fish,”said Walton. My purpose here is to tell something of the natural history of the fishes anglers woo so ardently. Later I will deal more specifically with the habits of the basses and trouts and their relation to that ever-interesting problem, “Fishermen's Luck."

HISTORICAL

The biological history of the black basses is covered so ably and scientifically by Dr. Henshall, in his “Book of the Black Bass,”that I will touch the subject only in a general way.

Louden, in his “The Small Mouthed Black Bass,”states that the early Jesuit missionaries used the word “achigan”as early as 1655 to designate the small mouthed black bass. The word corresponds with the French word “bas “meaning stocking and certainly these hardy fishers of men must have included “our “fish in their Friday menus. Robert Roosevelt found 101 the Chippewas of the Lake Superior Country still using the name “achigan “in the eighties.

The first small mouthed black bass recognized by science was a specimen described by Lacepede in 1801. It happened to be a mutilated specimen and as a result received the unfortunate generic name "microp-terus,”meaning small fin.

The small mouthed black bass is often called “red eye “by many anglers.

RANGE

The original range of the small mouthed black bass was probably restricted to the Great Lakes region, the northern parts of the Mississippi and Ohio valleys and perhaps the headwaters of certain Allegheny streams. Frank Forester in his “Fish and Fishing “says that the black bass was found in the basin of the St. Lawrence and the Great Lakes and was distributed in New York via the Erie Canal which was opened in 1825. We know that the small mouthed black bass was introduced into the Potomac in the early fifties and in other Eastern rivers soon after. Since then his range has been greatly extended by transplanting in most of the cold water streams of northern U. S. and Canada and in several European countries.

DESCRIPTION

The small mouthed black bass is too well known to warrant much of a description here.

The coloration of the small mouthed black bass varies considerably in different waters and even in individual specimens. Generally the back of this fish is dark, sometimes black; his sides of some shade of green and his belly cream colored or dull white. Young specimens are usually marked with dark patches or bars placed vertically, seldom horizontally, on the body. Three dark streaks cross the cheeks but as the fish grows older all marking may become faint or be lost entirely.

Habitat

The small mouthed black bass is essentially a fish of cold, moving, clear water and for this reason is most often found in swift streams or in large bodies of water where there are currents and sand and gravel bars or rocky ledges. For this reason waters like the Georgian Bay and many of our Northern lakes and streams are ideal for this fish. Sir Dolomieu does not thrive in warm, still, shallow, weedy waters.

Food

One look at the mouth of the black bass tells its own story. His small brush-like teeth proclaim to all observers that his favorite foods are craw-fish, insects, helgramites and other larvae. He will also feed on minnows but is not as piscivorous as is generally believed although he can, and in some waters must, live almost entirely on small fishes. He is an enterprising feeder, not always content to wait for something to “turn up."

BREEDING AND GROWTH

The black basses belong to the Centrachidae or fresh water sunfish family and breed in the Spring. The small mouthed commences as early as April in some waters and as late as July in the far North. The spawning time depends mainly on the condition of the water, the fish showing little interest in raising a family until the temperature of the water reaches 50 degrees F. They spawn earliest in shallow waters.

The small mouthed black bass prefers to make his nest on sand, gravel or rocky ledges, the male fish doing all the nest building. Sometimes he will merely scoop out a depression in the sand and occasionally one will roll pebbles into a cluster and carefully polish each one although generally they are not as good housekeepers as their smaller cousins, the common sunfish.

When the nest is completed the fish sallies forth like a knight of old seeking ye laydie faire. When he finds her he exerts himself to make a favorable impression meanwhile driving the trying-to-appear-reluctant charmer into the nest. Here he ascertains whether or not she is ripe. If not he angrily drives her away and seeks a more suitable mate. If she is ready to expel the eggs he induces her to do so and fertilizes them as they are ejected. Upon completing this function the female's interest in the family ceases forthwith and the male proceeds to guard the precious eggs, hovering over them diligently, fanning with fins and tail to keep the water circulating over them and to prevent sediment settling. During this time he shows remarkable bravery in defending his charges and will drive away any fish regardless of size.

The eggs hatch, on an average, in twelve days depending on the temperature of the water. The fry, which are almost invisible the first few days, hover over the nest for from forty-eight to sixty hours rising and falling as the surface water warms and cools. Later the proud father leads his numerous flock to the weed beds and leaves them to fend for themselves. Here begins an existence that cannot help but breed brave, strong, lusty fishes. They are not only pursued by enemies of all sorts but soon develop a fierce cannibalism and prey upon one another. Needless to say, those that survive are extremely fit and it is this cruel, fierce youth that produces the doughty warriors that we all love to engage in battle.

The young fishes feed upon the minute organisms found in all suitable bass waters, chief of which are daphnia, cyclops and other Crustacea and larvae. The little fellows that survive attain the fingerling stage, three to six inches, by Autumn and are almost a pound in weight the following year. Thereafter they are said to gain a pound a year but I believe this estimate to be excessive. They continue growing until they reach the average maximum which is between five and six pounds. Under very favorable conditions they will exceed this weight but not as often as anglers suppose. In one lake in New York a number of specimens have been caught weighing up to 10 pounds. In the fishing contest conducted annually by Field and Stream an entry was made in 1918 that was claimed to have tipped the scales at the colossal weight of sixteen pounds but the entry was disqualified for lack of suitable evidence. The first prize went to a specimen weighing 93/4 pounds which is a large small mouthed bass. The average weight of the prize winners in this contest for the past eight years was approximately 71/4 pounds.

One of the reasons why the small mouthed bass does not attain greater size is due to its habit of spending the winters in a state of semi-hibernation, when it does little or no feeding.

EDIBILITY

As one would expect of a fish living in cold, clear water and feeding, by choice on Crustacea and similar foods, the small mouthed bass is an excellent table fish. His flesh is firm, white, netted with fine, dark veins, flaky and of a fine flavor and succulence. It is not as oily as that of the trout and can be eaten oftener without surfeit. In short, the small mouthed black bass ranks with the very best of all food fishes.

CULTURAL DIFFICULTIES

It is unfortunate that the female bass cannot be stripped and the eggs hatched artificially like those of the trout. The eggs of the bass are gelatinous and almost impossible to fertilize artificially and the best the fish culturist can do is to construct breeding ponds and permit the fish to breed under favorable conditions and raise the fry with as much freedom from their natural enemies, including their cannibalistic tendencies, as possible.

It is not unusual for a female bass to spawn two or more times in a season and as many as seven thousand eggs to the pound of parent fish have been counted.

If a stream has suitable spawning beds, and they can be constructed if they do not exist naturally, the fish will maintain themselves providing the fishing is confined to legitimate hook and line. It is netting, dynamiting, and other, illegal methods that have depopulated so many of our good bass streams of yesteryear.

Gameness

As to the gameness of the black bass there is little to add to Dr. Henshall's famous summary: “He is plucky, game, brave and unyielding to the last when hooked. He has the arrowy rush and vigor of the trout, the untiring strength and bold leap of the salmon, while he has a system of fighting tactics peculiarly his own. He will rise to the artificial fly as readily as the salmon or the brook trout under the same conditions and will take the live minnow, or other live bait, under any and all circumstances favorable to the taking of any fish. I consider him, inch for inch, and pound for pound, the gamest fish that

Trout fishermen have often disagreed with the above which they have a right to do.

Biologically, the black bass is a fish superior to any of the salmon tribe which are of a more primitive type as shown by their abdominal ventrals, their soft rayed fins and cycloid scales, the bass with his thoracic ventrals, ctenoid scales and spines in his fins, being more advanced. His breeding habits and the care he takes of his young add to his biological superiority. Without much exaggeration, one could say that the trouts and salmon are herrings with college educations while the bass is to the manner born. All this, however, is cold science and belittles a noble race of fishes  fishes all real anglers love if they know them.

The fighting tactics of the small mouthed bass are characteristic. He seldom sulks but keeps on the move when hooked. Nearly always he leaps at least once and usually again and again. His leap is different from that of the brown trout (fario) or the rainbow trout (irideus), the brook trout never leaping on a slack line except on the covers of magazines. These two trouts merely break water and turn over but the bass “stands on his tail”and, having no neck with which to shake his head, he shakes his whole body  a strategic move that often, very often, ends in disaster to the angler's tackle. Failing to shake out the hook by leaping and shaking, he is quick to take advantage of any near-by snag, around which he will quickly wrap the line or leader or saw it off on any jagged rock or debris he can find. Another of his tricks is to rush straight at the boat or angler thus getting slack for another leap or for tangling the terminal tackle. As- an old river man expressed it:

“Other fish are smart but a river bass is plumb intellectual ! “Everything considered, the fight of the bass is the “thrillingest”of any fish I have ever hooked.

If Walton had known the black bass I venture the guess that he would have pronounced him a brave and noble fish.

LARGE AND SMALL MOUTHED BASSES COMPARED

Inexperienced anglers often have trouble distinguishing between the large and small mouthed basses although the differences are distinct. The small mouthed species is generally darker colored and, of course, has a smaller mouth, and by comparing the two in the illustration (which is from the “Manual of Fish Culture “of the U. S. Department of Fisheries and correct) one can see that the small mouthed is trimmer in build and the maxillary  the thin, tough, mustache-like plate on the upper lip  extends only to the eye in the small mouthed and to behind the eye in the large mouthed. The U. S. Fisheries Department gives the following comparison:

Large-mouthed Black Bass

“Body comparatively long, the depth about one-third the length; back little elevated; head large, 3 to 31/2 in body; eye 5 to 6 in head; mouth very large, the maxillary in adults extending beyond eye, smaller in young. Ten rows of scales on the cheeks; body scales large, about 68 in the lateral line, and 7 above and 16 below the line. Dorsal fin low, deeply notched, larger than anal, with 10 spines and 12 or 13 soft rays; anal with 3 spines and 10 or 11 rays. Color above dark-green, sides greenish-silvery, belly white; young with a blackish band along sides from opercle to tail, the band breaking up and growing paler with age; caudal fin pale at base, white on edge and black between; older specimens almost uniformly dull greenish; three dark oblique stripes across opercle and cheek; dark blotch on opercle.

Small-mouthed Black Bass

Similar in form to large-mouth bass. Mouth smaller, the maxillary terminating in front of posterior edge of eye, except in very old specimens. About 17 rows of small scales on the cheeks; body scales small, 11-74-17. Dorsal fin less deeply notched than in other species, with 10 spines and 13 to 15 rays; anal with 3 spines and 12 or 13 rays. General color dull golden-green, belly white; young with dark spots along sides tending to form irregular vertical bars, but never a lateral band; caudal fin yellowish at base, white at tip, with dark intervening area; dorsal with bronze spots and dusky edge; three radiating bronze stripes extending backward from eye; dusky spot on point of opercle”

If the angler will keep in mind the extent of the maxillary and the number of scales on the cheeks he will experience little difficulty in identifying his catch.

LARGE MOUTHED BLACK BASS (Micropterus salraoides)

Historical

Although the large mouthed black bass was probably known to the early Spanish explorers of the southeastern United States, they made no mention of it that I can find. The French icthyologist Lacepede was also the first to recognize this fish scientifically, his specimen being sent from South Carolina in 1802. He gave it the specific name salmoides or “salmon-like."

RANGE

The range of the large mouthed black bass is much greater than that of the small mouthed. His natural distribution extended from Canada to Florida and Mexico and he has been successfully transplanted into every state of the Union as well as abroad. Because of his extended range, the large mouthed black bass has many absurd vernacular names. In the South the term “trout “is applied to this fish and is in general use, and in Wisconsin he is called “green bass"; “Oswego bass “is also a common name throughout the North. Other names are: straw bass, slough bass, moss bass, marsh bass, chubb, green trout, bronze backer. Equally unscientific is it to refer to the small mouthed bass as the black bass, thus suggesting that the large mouthed species is something else  salmoides is as much a black bass as is dolomieu.

DESCRIPTION

In color the large mouthed black bass shows a greater variation being inclined to have a yellow or brassy tint. Color however does not signify much in fishes especially as regards the black basses. Character of water, bottom or cover, food and other local peculiarities govern the color of fishes as well as the moods of the individual fish. Discomfort, pain, fear, anger or other emotions can quickly change a fish's color. Keepers of aquariums soon learn to recognize a fish's condition by its color. I once caught a large mouthed black bass weighing a little over five pounds that was the color of polished brass. He is still living in the breeding ponds at Bass Lake, Ind., but has lost most of his glorious tint.

HABITAT

The large mouthed black bass is not as aristocratic as the small mouthed and will do well in still, weedy waters or in slow, sedge-bordered rivers although he is often found in the same lake or stream as the small mouthed. Under such conditions you will usually find him in the weedier portion, which he prefers.

FOOD

The teeth of the large mouthed bass are the same as those of the small mouthed and his feeding habits are similar but not quite as dainty. He adds to his diet such food as is naturally found in his habitat, such as snakes, warm water minnows and young fishes, not even passing by young muskrats, or half-grown water birds. Frogs are also included in his diet by most anglers, probably because they make excellent bass bait, and he will eat them when he gets the chance, which is not often. His habitat does not generally compel him to be as active as the small mouthed which inclines him toward sluggishness.

BREEDING AND GROWTH

The breeding habits of the large mouthed bass do not differ materially from those of the small mouthed except that he will take advantage of his habitat and build his nest on the roots of a water plant. Being larger, as a rule, the females lay more eggs, have larger broods, and nesting in warm water, the eggs hatch sooner and the fry grow faster. Another advantage is that the fry do not develop cannibalism until they reach the fingerling stage.

Large mouthed bass average more in weight than the small mouthed of equal age but in Northern waters their maximum weight is but little more. In the South, where the winters are mild and food abundant, the fish do not hibernate and feed the year around and attain great weights. Dr. Henshall has taken these Southern bass up to fourteen pounds on a fly and up to twenty pounds on bait. I have seen a mounted specimen that is said to have weighed twenty-two pounds and he looked it. These extra large fish, however, are nowhere abundant but many are caught in Southern waters up to ten pounds.

The average weights of the prize winners since 1912 of the different classes in the Field and Stream annual contests are as follows: Southern, 13 ¾ pounds; northern, 9 ¼ pounds.

GAMENESS

A great many anglers are of the opinion that the small mouthed bass is the gamer fish. Authorities say not but in the light of my own experience I agree with the lay majority and cast my vote in favor of dolomieu. Dr. Henshall and others tell us that when taken from the same waters there is little difference in their fighting abilities, the natural speed of the small mouthed being off-set by the greater weight and strength of salmoides. My experience is that these fish are seldom taken in the same waters. They are often found in the same lake or river but it is usually possible for the fish to gratify their individual preferences and the large mouthed bass is usually found in the weeds; the small mouthed on the bars or ledges or where there are currents. When the two fishes actually are taken from the same water there is little difference in their fighting and no one can tell which fish he has hooked.

I have taken large mouthed bass in weedy, shallow waters when the fight was decidedly disappointing but under favorable circumstances the large mouthed bass is a game fish of the first class. He also has the reputation of rising more willingly to the fly, which is much in his favor.

I would rather catch small mouthed bass but I consider the large mouthed the more valuable fish because of his greater adaptability.

Edibility

When taken from cold clear water the large mouthed black bass is a fine food fish. When from weedy waters, especially in mid-summer, he is apt to have a slighty “muddy “flavor which can best be remedied by skinning the fish.

ROCK BASS (Ambloplites rupestris)

I include this little cousin of the black basses merely because he is so often found in good bass streams, being something of a nuisance when the bass are rising well but welcome enough when the larger, better fish register indifference to our masterful casting!

In appearance the rock bass is a sort of connecting link between the common sunfishes and the black bass. His color tends towards mottled, olive green and he has a large mouth and a large red eye. He is often called “goggle-eye.”In size he seldom exceeds a pound, more often half that weight, but is a willing riser to the fly, strikes viciously and, for a short time at least, puts up a good fight for his ounces.

The rock bass frequents the same places as his larger cousin, lives on the same food and his breeding habits are similar. They often travel in small schools and are very fond of underwater rock piles, stone abutments and such places where they find food and cover. When taken from cold water they are good pan fishes and for this reason are great favorites with young anglers.

The other sunfishes  crappies, blue gills, pumpkin seeds, etc., all rise to the fly under favorable conditions, ranking as game fishes about the same as the rock bass. One also hooks pike, pickerel and pike-perch when fly fishing for bass.

THE BROOK TROUT (Salvelinus fontinalis)

HISTORICAL

To every angler living east of the Rockies the word “trout”signifies the eastern brook trout  the little charr of the fountains. This is the trout of song and story so far as America is concerned and he deserves all the praise and admiration he has received.

The first settlers of New England were quick to discover the “troute “in the brooks but the scientific history of the fish is disappointing. Dr. Bethune, writing in 1847, said: “The history of the trout and salmon is as yet very obscure, especially in this country. Dr. De Kay describes but three species of salmon and two of trout.”Even to this day there is disagreement as to the exact scientific status of certain species and subspecies. This confusion is not surprising to any one acquainted with the variations met with in the salmon family.

RANGE

"The Manual of Fish Culture”of the United States Department of Fisheries says: “The natural range of the brook trout in the United States is from Maine to Georgia and westward through the Great Lakes region to Minnesota, and in Canada from Labrador to the Saskatchewan. Owing to its hardy nature and ability to adapt itself to new surroundings it may be successfully transplanted into streams and has been extensively introduced into waters in which it is not native; in Michigan, Wisconsin and Minnesota, many of the waters of the Rocky Mountains and the Pacific coast, the eastern states and the creeks and rivers of the Alleghany range of mountains."

DESCRIPTION

No artist can paint nor writer describe adequately the beauties of a freshly caught brook trout. As the old fashioned advertisements say, he “must be seen to be appreciated."

In form the brook trout up to two or three pounds is the ideal fish  trim and neat. Larger specimens become aldermanic, with cruel looking, undershot jaws.

The eye is placed high in the head as one would expect of a fish that might be called “insectivorous."

In coloration the brook trout is truly a thing of beauty. A recently caught male fish of fifteen ounces lies before me as I write. Looking down on the back it appears to be purplish in color, the lighter vermicula-tions or worm marks mottling the back almost like the so-called mackerel sky; the dorsal fin is similarly marked. The sides, in the middle, are covered with spots much lighter than the green-gray ground color. Many of these spots  seemingly haphazardly  are themselves decorated with tiny dots of brilliant red, most of these red spots being below the distinct median line and none of them behind the anterior end of the anal fin. The tail fin is mottled red, bordered with black. The belly is light colored with just a suggestion of pink and azure, the tiny scales giving it a silken sheen, most beautiful to behold. The lower fins are red, slightly flecked with dark spots and with a black and white edging.

Male fishes always carry more red than females and are most gorgeously colored during the breeding season. The environment has much to do with coloration. I have taken fish above a dam in dead water with muck bottom that were velvety black on the back and much darker throughout; below the same dam, where the bottom is sand and gravel, I have taken fish so much lighter and brilliant that a novice would be tempted to believe them of a different species; from a deep lake I have taken brook trout that were almost azure, dusted with bronze flecks, and sea run trout are silvery white.

HABITAT

The beauties of the brook trout and its habitat have much to do with the enthusiasm of anglers who go a-trouting. As Camp points out we always associate the brook trout with white tailed deer, the partridge and the gray squirrel. Cone bearing trees, cold purling water, some distance removed from civilization, are the true settings of trout and trouting, for the brook trout is essentially a fish of the silent places.

FOOD

As any observer would surmise by looking at a trout's teeth he is carnivorous. Crustacea, snails and other molluscs, insects and their larvae and small fishes make up the main diet of the trout although when they reach the “whopper”stage they become gross feeders and will not hesitate to snap up a small snake, water bird or even their own kind.

BREEDING AND GROWTH

The brook trout is a fall spawner, for which reason the legal season in most states closes in September or October. Contrary to general belief the brook trout does not require cold water. Providing the water is sufficiently aerated, trout will breed and thrive if it goes as high as 70 or even 80 degrees F. Ideal conditions, however, call for cold water, well aerated, with shallow spots with gravel bottom, or feeder creeks containing such places, where the fish can run up to spawn.

Spawning commences as early as August in the Lake Superior region and from the middle of October to November in mid west and New England waters. The spawning period lasts seven or eight weeks, the fish slowly working up stream, or up into the small tributaries, where the female scoops out a nest and deposits her eggs. The male  now a gaily garbed Romeo  does his "showing off”for the lady's edification and fertilizes the eggs when they are ejected; then the female covers them with gravel and leaves them. A yearling fish yields only about 200 eggs  something to be remembered by the man who is tempted to keep the little ones.

The hatching period depends on the temperature of the water. The fish culturist prefers water of from 45 to 50 degrees F. in which the fish hatch in from 45 to 60 days, but in a natural state the hatching usually takes closer to 100 days; sometimes as long as 220 days.

Growth of the fry is governed somewhat by the amount of available food and the water conditions. Ordinarily a trout weighs an ounce or less during the first year after which the growth is more rapid; a two year old fish weighs eight to ten ounces and a pound trout is usually three years old.

In waters that are much fished, especially small streams, a pound trout is considered a large one. In Maine, brook trout have been taken up to ten pounds and Frank Forrester (1848) tells of one brought into the Soo by an Indian that weighed 11 pounds. In his "Sportsmen's Gazetteer”(1877) Hallock mentions a brook trout of 17 pounds but unfortunately he gives no particulars. The present record for the Nipigon waters, and perhaps of any waters, is a specimen of 14% pounds caught in 1916 by Dr. Cook of Fort William, Ont.

EDIBILITY

One who has never tasted a brook trout fresh from the water and cooked over a fire on the streamside is not competent to pass on the edible qualities of this fish. Take small trout, cook with bacon in the open so that the flavor of the wood fire can be tasted  as the paper from our home town puts it: “nuf ced! "

GAMENESS

Beyond any possibility of doubt the brook trout deserves a place in the front ranks as a game fish. No angler ever sees one flash from an overhanging bank and seize the fraudulent feather without being thrilled, for the brook trout is the very embodiment of speed and natural grace. Once he is hooked he fights with unequaled determination and strength but he has one fault: he does not leap on a slack line. For this reason I am tempted to place him just a shade below the rainbow trout and small mouthed bass as a game fish, knowing that a great many anglers of more experience than I have had, will not agree with me. Anyway he is a grand fish worthy of all the enthusiasm he arouses in the hearts of his admirers.

HISTORICAL (Salmo irideus)

THE RAINBOW TROUT

When the first Americans went to California they found there an abundance of speckled fishes which they instantly classified as trout as they did all speckled fishes. The rainbow family of salmon trout is divided into one species and five sub-species, and as you shall see later, it is one of these sub-species that we are mostly interested in.

The typical species is a common fish in the mountain streams of California. The five sub-species embrace the following: the brook trout of western Oregon (masoni); the Kern River trout (gilberti); the noshee trout (stonei); the golden trout of Mt. Whitney (aqua-bonita); and, finally, the McCloud River trout (shasta) which is the variety that has been transplanted so successfully in the waters throughout the United States. This is the fish that most anglers have in mind when they refer to the rainbow trout.

The Shasta rainbow trout has been transplanted into several western states; Michigan, Wisconsin, Minnesot; throughout the east and the Alleghanies; in the Ozarks and in several Rocky Mountain states and in almost every instance the new habitat has improved the fish, piscatorially at least. Anglers who have taken this fish in Michigan and the Ozarks, as well as in its native waters, say that the transplanted fish are far superior to the westerners, while strange to say, the eastern brook trout, when transplanted into western waters are said to be disappointing.

The great value of the rainbow trout is his ability to thrive in streams which lumbering operations have made unsuitable for the wilderness loving brook trout. The rainbow does well in warmer, less highly aerated waters than will fontinalis.

DESCRIPTION

The rainbow trout is heavier and stockier than fontinalis; his mouth is noticeably smaller and his tail slightly forked. The rainbow's back is bluish; sides are silvery and belly white. The spots are black and cover the back, fins and tail, the spots varying with the different sub-species. A red or rosy band extends along the sides. While not as beautiful as the brook trout the rainbow is a handsome fish.

HABITAT

In his native waters the rainbow lives in swift, cold water but transplanting has shown that he will thrive in fairly warm, deep and “dead “water although in most rivers he will show a marked preference for the rapids.

FOOD

Like all trout the rainbow feeds on insects, larvae, molluscs and small fishes although he has the reputation of liking fish less than other trout, with which theory we do not agree.

BREEDING AND GROWTH

The spawning season varies a great deal with locality and conditions. In California the breeding season is said to be from February to May; in Colorado from May to July; in the middle west and the east, usually in February and March. Salmon-like they lay their eggs in the gravel and leave them to shift for themselves.

Growth is naturally quicker where food is plentiful. In certain parts of the west where feed is scarce they do not exceed a fraction of a pound in weight. In the Ozarks and parts of the west they have been known to attain to twenty-six pounds; in mid western waters they sometimes reach ten pounds which is about their limit in California. A three year old fish will weigh between one and two pounds.

EDIBILITY

The rainbow trout is a good table fish but not equal to the brook trout in this respect. They have a tendency to get “soft “quickly so they should be the first put on the table when mixed varieties are taken.

GAMENESS

Irideus is a most brilliant fighter. He rises obligingly to flies; he is lightning fast; makes long runs and leaps like an acrobat. He is quite the equal of the small mouthed bass: he jumps better and takes flies more willingly but does not fight as doggedly.

THE BROWN TROUT (Salmo fario)

HISTORICAL

This is a fish of ancient lineage  the “troute “that Dame Berners, Izaak Walton and other British writers laud so highly. This fish is found in the British Isles and throughout continental Europe and was transplanted to American waters in 1882-3. The eggs were presented to Fred Mather by Baron Von Behr, a German fish culturist, and for that reason fario was once known as Von Behr or German brown trout in this country. This fish has now been extensively transplanted in American waters east of the Rockies.

DESCRIPTION

I consider fario a handsome fish, especially when taken from deep, shaded places. His velvety, dark skin then offers a pleasing contrast to his rich, red spots. In form the brown trout is slimmer than fon-tinalis and his tail is squarer. In color his back is dark, spotted with black; the dorsal fin has both black and red spots, the adipose fin being decorated with three bright red spots, while the lower fins are orange, The sides are yellow and the belly dull white.

Since the rainbow and brown trout are so extensively planted it might be well to point out the distinguishing features of each fish so that the young angler may know what he has caught:

Brook Trout  vermiculations or worm-like markings on back; scales almost invisible; mouth large, jaw extending back of eye; single patch of teeth on vomer or roof bone of mouth.

Brown Trout  no vermiculations on back; scales visible; mouth slightly smaller than brook trout; one or two rows of teeth on front and rear parts of vomer; more yellow in coloration; spots red but larger than those of fontinalis and seldom found below median line; tail square.

Rainbow Trout  no vermiculations; mouth very small; scales large; red patch or band on sides; same tooth formation on vomer as in brown trout; spots black and irregular, distributed over body and fins.

HABITAT

Like the rainbow trout, fario has shown himself suited to waters of higher temperature and less aeration than fontinalis likes. Highly carnivorous and not recommended as a stocking fish for waters where the brook trout is holding his own.

FOOD

The brown trout feeds on practically the same food as our native trouts but is more piscivorous.

BREEDING AND GROWTH

Fario is a spring spawner and his greatest value is his ability to grow fast. In England they grow but four ounces or so a year; in this country they will gain nearly a pound a year under favorable conditions. Dr. Henshall tells of two fish that weighed six pounds each at four years of age. They have been taken in this country up to sixteen pounds. In five years of the Field and Stream fishing contest the largest brown trout entry was nine pounds, one ounce or just one ounce larger than the largest brook trout. Brown trout, however, average larger in size than our native charr.

EDIBILITY

The brown trout is an excellent table fish, being the equal of the rainbow trout in this respect but not as good as fontinalis. Large specimens are inclined to be “beefy."

Gameness

There is a diversity of opinion as to the qualities of the brown trout in American waters. “The brown trout is without doubt the least attractive of all the trouts in America,”says Charles Southard, and Wm. C. Harris said: “It has no angling qualities that render its presence desirable in our trout streams.”On the other hand O. Warren Smith says: “There is no question in my mind that the introduced fish [meaning both rainbows and browns] are in all game points the peer of the native brook trout.”Samuel Camp states: “Purely as a sporting proposition the brown trout is a decided success; in other words he puts up a good fight."

I consider the brown trout a fine fish. He is a good fighter; a high leaper and he rises more willingly to flies than any other trout; he thrives in waters not suitable for other trouts; he is handsome and good to eat. What more can we ask of a fish?

OTHER TROUT

Our western states have a confusing variety of trout. Local names bewilder the “tenderfoot from the effete east”but for the sake of convenience most of these fishes have been placed in three distinct series.

Besides the rainbow and its five sub-species there is the cut throat trout (Salmo clarkii) and 12 subspecies and the steel head trout (Salmo gairdneri) and three sub-species. These fishes are all salmon trout, the only charr native to the Rocky Mountain waters being the bull trout.

The Colorado trout known generally as the cut throat, mountain trout or black spotted trout is the fish most sought by tourists and natives in the western mountains. Concerning this fish Shields said: “The habits as well as color and shape of the Rocky Mountain trout vary in different waters but in all cases are different from those of the eastern brook trout. The latter loves to hide under a log, a drift or a rock while the former seeks an open riffle or rapid for his feeding or lounging ground and when alarmed takes refuge in some deep or open pool, but rarely or never under a rock or log. Fontinalis is a lover of dark, shady nooks while clarkii always prefers the sunniest parts of lake or stream. The eastern trout feeds well into the night while his mountain cousin suspends operations promptly at sunset.

“As to game qualities the western trout is every inch the peer of his eastern congener."

Other writers disagree as to the relative gameness of the mountain trout as compared with fontinalis but they all accord the mountain fish unstinted praise.

The cut throat trout gets his name from a blood-red, gash-like marking on the throat and he is always heavily spotted with round, black spots. These spots are heavier on the upper part of sides and on the tail and dorsal fins.

This trout spawns in the spring and in some of the sub-species reaches a weight of nine pounds in fresh water and up to twenty-five pounds when sea run, at which time the market fishermen call them “salmon trout."

The steel head was once considered the same fish as the cut throat and many western anglers still maintain that the rainbow and the steel-head are identical except for local variations, showing that all of these western fishes greatly resemble each other in a general way at least.

The steel head trout is looked upon as a good game fish in the west, rising well to flies in the streams and putting up a good fight, mostly in the air like the rainbow. At the mouths of rivers very large specimens are taken with live bait.

The Dolly Varden or bull trout (Salvelinus malma) is the only charr native to the west. It is a stockier fish than the brook trout and can be told by its larger red spots on the sides, those on the back being very small and faint and vermiculations are not present. This trout rises most freely to flies, in both lakes and rivers, and is considered a good fighter.

In addition to the foregoing there are a number of other species or trout found in American waters. We have, all told, twenty-seven forms of salmon trout and fifteen charrs, only five of them being imported. Some are only of local interest or do not respond to the fly fishers' efforts but all together they represent a collection of fishes that no other continent can equal.

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