Dollaghan are a variety of
brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') native to
Lough Neagh
Lough Neagh ( ; ) is a freshwater lake in Northern Ireland and is the largest lake on the island of Ireland and in the British Isles. It has a surface area of and is about long and wide. According to Northern Ireland Water, it supplies 4 ...
,
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...
, and many of its tributaries. They are a
potamodromous migratory trout spending much of the year in the lough, returning to the rivers in autumn to
spawn. Dollaghan are much sought after by anglers in
County Antrim
County Antrim (named after the town of Antrim, County Antrim, Antrim, ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, located within the historic Provinces of Ireland, province of Ulster. Adjoined to the north-east shore of Lough Neagh, the c ...
,
County Tyrone
County Tyrone (; ) is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the nine counties of Ulster and one of the thirty-two traditional counties of Ireland. Its county town is Omagh.
Adjoined to the south-west shore of Lough Neagh, the cou ...
and
County Londonderry
County Londonderry (Ulster Scots dialects, Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry (), is one of the six Counties of Northern Ireland, counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty-two Counties of Ireland, count ...
due to their greater size in comparison to the non-migratory trout found in streams such as the
Ballinderry River,
Six Mile Water
The Six Mile Water is a river in southern County Antrim, Northern Ireland. It is an indirect tributary of the River Bann, via Lough Neagh.
Name
The river was historically called the ''Ollarbha'' and is known in Irish language, Irish as ''Abhainn ...
,
Moyola River and
River Main. They are often caught in the dark using methods very similar to that of fishing for sea trout, where it is surmised their name comes from an old Irish word for 'ghost'.. Many anglers regard them as an elusive species and call them 'sea trout of Lough Neagh'. Their weight varies greatly - from small fish of around 1/2 lb to large specimens of around 20 lb. There are three other strains of brown trout in Ireland:
Gillaroo
The gillaroo (''Salmo stomachicus''; historically included in ) is a species of trout which eats primarily snails and is only proven to inhabit Lough Melvin in Ireland.
The name gillaroo is derived from the irish language, Irish for "red fell ...
,
Sonaghen and
Ferox. The Dollaghan is thought to have evolved from sea trout which were land locked many years ago.
References
BBC Nature
Freshwater fish of Ireland
Salmo
{{Salmoniformes-stub