Gillaroo

Gillaroo
Conservation status
	; Vulnerable (IUCN 3.1)
Scientific classification
Domain:	Eukaryota
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Chordata
Class:	Actinopterygii
Order:	Salmoniformes
Family:	Salmonidae
Genus:	Salmo
Species:	S. stomachicus
Binomial name
	Salmo stomachicus; Günther, 1866
	Endemic to Lough Melvin

The gillaroo (Salmo stomachicus; historically included in Salmo trutta) is a species of trout which eats primarily snails and is only proven to inhabit Lough Melvin in Ireland.^[1]

The name gillaroo is derived from the Irish for "red fellow" (giolla rua); this is due to the fish's distinctive colouring. It has a bright, buttery golden colour in its flanks with bright crimson and vermilion spots. The gillaroo is characterised by these deep red spots and a "gizzard", which is used to aid the digestion of hard food items such as water snails.

Experiments carried out by Queen's University Belfast established that the Lough Melvin fish are different from brown trout found anywhere else in the world.^{[citation needed]} They feed almost exclusively on bottom living animals (snails, sedge fly larva and freshwater prawns) except during late summer. It is at this time that they come to surface to feed and may be caught on the dry fly. Other lakes reputed to contain the gillaroo are Loughs Neagh, Conn, Mask and Corrib. However the unique gene found in the Lough Melvin trout has not been found in some 200 trout populations in Ireland and Britain. It is therefore now recognised using its own original scientific name, rather than continued inclusion in the widespread Salmo trutta, with which it had been synonymised. In addition to the gillaroo, Lough Melvin is thought to harbour another two peculiar species of trout, apart from salmon and an endemic species of char.

However, Irish authorities do not distinguish the gillaroo as a separate species from brown trout.^[2]

Legend has it that St. Brigid was offered chicken to eat on a Friday as she walked through Garrison, County Fermanagh. Chicken being forbidden on Fridays for members of the Catholic faith, she was so enraged she threw the entire bird into the river, whereupon it changed into a fish; hence, the "gizzard".^{[citation needed]}

References

^ ^a ^b Freyhof, J. & Kottelat, M. (2008). "Salmo stomachicus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2008: e.T135592A4155531. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2008.RLTS.T135592A4155531.en. Retrieved 8 October 2024.
^ Brown trout Archived 19 December 2012 at the Wayback Machine. Inland Fisheries Ireland (13.4.2012)

v t e Trout and char of the world
Trout - Salmonidae
Trout of Europe and Atlantic basin Salmo	Adriatic trout Brown trout Fibreno trout Ferox trout Flathead trout Garda lake trout Gillaroo Isli trout Lake (lacustrine) trout Marble trout Mediterranean trout Ohrid trout Prespa trout River trout Sea trout Sevan trout Sonaghen
Trout of the Pacific basin Oncorhynchus	Apache trout Coastal cutthroat trout Cutthroat trout Gila trout Golden trout Mexican golden trout Rainbow trout Steelhead
True char Salvelinus	Arctic char Blunt-nosed Irish charr Brook trout Bull trout Cole's char Coomsaharn char Dolly Varden trout Haddy charr Kirikuchi char Lake char Lake trout Lough Melvin charr Orkney charr Silver trout Small-mouthed char Whitespotted char
Media related to Trout at Wikimedia Commons

Gillaroo

See also

References

Further reading