This is a rare fish in Ireland. It has been reported that Artic char have been caught in Screeb fishery in Connemara . The Arctic char is closely related to both salmon and lake trout, and has many characteristics of both. The fish is highly variable in colour, depending on the time of year and the environmental conditions of the lake it lives in. Individual fish can weigh 20 lb (9.1 kg). Arctic char typically weigh between 2 and 10 pounds (1 and 4.5 kilograms). The flesh is fine flaked and medium firm. The colour is between light pink and deep red, and the taste is like something between trout and salmon. The char diet varies with the seasons. During late spring and summer Char feeds on insects found on the waters surface, salmon eggs, snails and other smaller crustaceans found on the lake bottom and smaller fish up to a third of the Char s size. During the autumn and winter months the Char feeds on zoo plankton and freshwater shrimps that are suspended in the lake and also occasionally feeds on smaller fish. Spawning takes place from September to November over rocky shoals in lakes with heavy wave action and in slower gravel-bottom pools in rivers. As with most salmonids, there are vast differences in coloration and body shape between sexually mature males and females. Males develop hooked jaws known as kypes and take on a brilliant red colour. Females remain fairly silver. Most males set up and guard territories and often spawn with several females. The female constructs the nest, or redd. A female char usually deposits from 3,000 to 5,000 eggs. Char do not die after spawning like Pacific salmon and often spawn several times throughout their lives, typically every second or third year. Young char emerge from the gravel in spring and stay in the river from 5 to 7 months or until they are about 6 to8 inches (15 to20 cm) in length.
