| Spawning occurs in the spring, over sandy gravel, pebbles and rocks, usually in streams, but sometimes in shallows along lake shores (Ref. 27547). The larger members of an age group become sexually ripe earlier in the season than do smaller ones, and older fish earlier than young. Hence, the spawning season may extend over several weeks, or even months, with the newly ripe fish coming in as the spawned-out fish leave. Because of this correlation of spawning time with age and size, the average size of the fish tends to decrease as the run progresses (Ref. 27547). |