AMERICAN SALMON-TROUT FROM DIAMOND LAKE, NEW ZEALAND.
These fish were taken out of the water to be photographed, and then put back again.
Lastly, the Salmon Family is closed by the delicate Smelt, called in Scotland the Sparling, which is netted in vast numbers in the estuaries of suitable rivers. It never ascends beyond the highest point of the tide, where it deposits its spawn in the spring months. It is a gratifying tribute to the good work done of late years by the local authorities in purifying the Thames that, after a long absence, this valuable fish has reappeared in that river, which it now ascends in considerable numbers as high as Teddington Weir.
Photo by A. S. Rudland & Sons.
SMELT.
This fish is remarkable for its peculiar smell when freshly caught, which resembles that of the cucumber.
Much discussion has taken place recently with regard to the question whether salmon feed while in fresh-water. Not long ago it was announced that they suffered from a diseased condition of the stomach during this period, and were consequently quite unable to feed. Subsequently it was found that the supposed diseased condition of the stomach was due to the fishes not being perfectly fresh when they were examined. It is now known that although salmon do not feed freely in fresh-water, yet they take a certain amount of nutriment, such as an occasional shrimp, fly, or even small fish, while there.