ENEMIES OF TROUT.

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXVI, Issue 20156, 17 January 1929, Page 12

ENEMIES OF TROUT.

ASSAULT ON SHAGGERY. HEAPS OF FISH BONES. A party of five sportsmen, recently on a pig-shooting expendition to the upper reaches of the Selwyn River, Canterbury, noticed a larpe shag with what appeared to be a fish in its beak. 'J hey followed, and, after searching in what is known as the Narrow Gorge, discovered a shaggery. Three of the men, who were armed with shotguns, remained at the bottom of the cliff while the other two climbed to the top. There they found mound upon rnound of fish bones, as well as trout in all stages of decay. One or two were partly eaten and a few were quite whole.

Numerous nests were found and 60 eggs and as many fledglings were destroyed. Attention was then turned to the heaps of bones, that bad evidently been accumulating for years. Contrary to the belief held by some that shags prefer eels to trout, thcr* were no eel bones found in any of the heaps, which were thoroughly searched. For the most part the heaps were composed of trout bones. ' The men at the bottom of the cliff accounted for every shag that flew to and from the nests on the cliff and exterminated the lot. In future the irout in this stream will have a better chance of increasing. A Lvttelton sportsman, from whom this information was obtained, stated that not long ago he saw a black shag dive, and come to the surface holding in its beak a flounder fully 9in. long.