Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 54, No. 333, July 1843Various
General
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine — Volume 54, No. 333, July 1843
Various
England -- Periodicals; Scotland -- Periodicals
We are not entirely of Mr Scrope's opinion, that some salmon fry are
descending to the sea during every month of the year; at least, we do
not conceive that this forms a part of their regular rotation. But the
nature of the somewhat anomalous individuals alluded to by Mr Yarrell,
may be better understood from the following considerations. Although it
is an undoubted fact that the great portion of parr descend together to
the sea, as smolts, in May, by which time they have entered into their
third year, yet it is also certain that a few, owing to some peculiarity
in their natural constitution, do not migrate at that time, but continue
in the rivers all summer. As these have not obeyed the normal or
ordinary law which regulates the movements of their kind, they make
irregular migrations to the sea during the winter floods, and ascend the
rivers during the spring months, some time before the descent of the
two-year-olds. We have killed parr of this description, measuring eight
and nine inches, in the rivers in October, and we doubt not these form
eventually the small, thin, rather ill-conditioned grilse which are
occasionally taken in our rivers during early spring. But it is
midsummer before the regularly migrating smolts reappear as grilse.
However, certain points in relation to this branch of our subject may
still be regarded as "open questions," on which the Cabinet has not made
up its mind, and may agree to differ. Mr Scrope is certainly right in
his belief, that, whatever be the range of time occupied by the descent
of smolts towards the sea, they are not usually seen descending with
their silvery coating on except in spring; although our Sutherland
correspondent, to whom we have so frequently referred, is not of that
opinion. It may be, that those which do not join the general throng,
migrate in a more sneaking sort of way during summer. They are
non-intrusionists, who have at first refused to sign the terms of the
Convocation; but finding themselves eventually rather out of their
element, on the wrong side of the cruive dyke, and not wishing to fall
as fry into the cook's hands, have sea-ceded some time after the
disruption of their General Assembly.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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