Словарь рыболовных терминов (Англо-Англо)
A B C D E F G H J K L M N O P Q R S T U W X Y Z

A

A-run steelhead
Summer steelhead crossing Bonneville Dam on or before August 25.

Abdomen
Belly or lower area of a fish, especially between the pelvic fins and anus.

Abdominal pelvics
Pelvic fins located on the abdomen far behind the pectoral fins; pelvic bones do not attach to pectoral girdle.

Absolute Recruitment
The number of fish which grow into the catchable size range in a unit of time (usually a year).

Abundance Index
Information obtained from samples or observations and used as a measure of the weight or number of fish which make up a stock.

Accessory pelvic appendage
A tapered fleshy lobe above the base of the pelvic fin.

Acclimate
The adaptation of an organism to environmental changes.

Acclimation pond
Concrete or earthen pond or a temporary structure used for rearing and imprinting juvenile fish in the water of a particular stream before their release into that stream.

Action of a lure:
The specific movement of a lure through the water

Action of a rod:
Its dynamic response to load and force, described as stiff action, parabolic action, etc.

Adaptation
Changes in an organism's structure or habits that allow it to adjust to its surroundings.

Adfluvial
Possessing a life history trait of migrating between lakes or rivers and streams.

Adipose fin
A small fleshy fin with no rays, located between the dorsal and caudal fins.

Adult equivalent population
The number of fish that would have returned to the mouth of the Columbia River in the absence of any prior harvest.

Aeration Tank
A chamber used to inject air into water.

Aerator
A portable, battery-operated air-pump for oxygenating the water in a livebait bucket. Some types plug into a car's cigarette lighter and run off the car battery.

Affluent (Stream)
A stream or river that flows into a larger one; a Tributary.

Age
The number of years of life completed, here indicated by an arabic numeral, followed by a plus sign if there is any possibility of ambiguity (age 5, age 5+)1.

Age-class
A group of individuals of a certain species that have the same age.

Air-injected deadbait
A deadbait with air injected into its body cavity with a hypodermic needle and syringe. The deadbait then fishes off the bottom.

Air-injected lobworm
A lobworm injected with air with a hypodermic needle and syringe. The lobworm fishes off the bottom.

Alevin
The developmental life stage of young salmonids and trout that are between the egg and fry stage. The alevin has not absorbed its yolk sac and has not emerged from the spawning gravels.

Alewife
A food fish belonging to the herring family.

Alkaline:
Water with a low degree of acidity

Allowance:
An amount set aside from a TAC to allow for the expected catch of fish harvesters who are not subject to quota management.

Amino acids
These are essential nutrients which the body uses to make proteins. Carp anglers use them in liquid form as an appetite stimulant in their baits.

Anadromous:
Fish that hatch rear in fresh water, migrate to the ocean (salt water) to grow and mature, and migrate back to fresh water to spawn and reproduce.

Anal fin
The fin located on the ventral median line and behind the anus.

Anchored crust
A buoyant bread crust hookbait anchored to the bottom by shot or a leger weight on the line close to the hook. It is great for chub and roach on rivers in winter.

Anchored floater rig
A rig comprising a floating hookbait on the surface, anchored in position by a leger weight on the bottom. It avoids line floating on the surface which may spook wary fish and is useful for presenting a still bait to stillwater carp and rudd.

Angling
The act of fishing with hook and line.

Aniseed
A hookbait and groundbait flavouring, in liquid or powder form, that is traditionally used to attract roach.

Annatto
An edible dye once widely used to colour homebred maggots buttery yellow, but not now commonly available.

Annual (or seasonal) Total Mortality Rate
The number of fish which die during a year (or season), divided by the initial number. Also called; actual mortality rate, *coefficient of mortality .

Annulus
A mark or ring that forms annually on the otoliths, scales, and other bones of fish, that correspond to the annual period of slow growth that fish go through. Annuli are used by fish managers to determine age and growth of fish.

Anti-eject rig
A leger rig for carp, tench or barbel that has a hookbait, usually a boilie, mounted on a hair rig in such a way that a fish cannot blow out the bait without the hook pricking its mouth.

Anti-kink vane
A small plastic strip which you mount on the line above the wire trace to prevent the line twisting and kinking when you are spinning, trolling or wobbling.

Anti-reverse
A device on a fixed-spool reel that prevents the reel backwinding and giving line when it is engaged.

Anti-tangle rig
Any kind of leger rig incorporating booms, swivels and tubing in such a way that the risk of tangling during the cast is much reduced. They are mainly used in carp fishing.

Aquatic community:
The interrelationships of biological organisms within a body of water (may also apply to Great Lakes fish)

Aquatic insects:
Water-bred insects which spend all or part of their life in water; e.g., midges, stoneflies, mayflies

Aquaculture
The controlled cultivation and harvest of aquatic plants or animals (e.g., edible marine algae, clams, oysters, and salmon).

Arlesey bomb
An aerodynamic, teardrop-shaped leger weight incorporating a small swivel, in various sizes from 3.5g (1/8oz) up.

Artificials:
Man-made baits; e.g. spoons, plugs

Assessment level
Categories of the level of complexity of and data available for each assessment included in this document; index of abundance (INDEX), yield-per-recruit analysis (YIELD), analysis of the age structure of the catch (AGE STRUCTURE), analysis including the relationship between recruitment and spawning stock size (SPAWNING STOCK) and assessment that allows prediction of future (one or two years ahead) stock sizes and catches (predictive). These levels are detailed in the subsection titled Kinds of Assessments.

Atomizer
An atomizer is useful for spraying groundbait, bloodworm and joker with a fine mist of water, to prevent them drying out. You can add flavourings to the water.

Automatic bail arm
A bail arm on a fixed-spool reel that springs open at the touch of a finger, to allow one-handed casting.

Availability
1. The fraction of a fish population which lives in regions where it is susceptible to fishing during a given fishing season . This fraction receives recruits from or becomes mingled with the non-available part of the stock at other seasons, or in other years. (Any more or less completely isolated segment of the population is best treated as a separate stock.) 2. Catch per unit of effort.

Avon rod
A through-action, 3.4-3.7m (11-12ft) rod, with a 0.45-0.7kg (1-11/2lb) test curve, for legering or float fishing for big barbel, tench, chub and bream.

Avon float
A balsa, pith or poltstyrene-bodied float, with a slim tip, and a cane or wire stem, fished top and bottom with a bulk shot for trotting small baits in fast-flowing water.

Наверх

B

B-run steelhead
Summer steelhead crossing Bonneville Dam after August 25.

Backlash
A tangle of line caused by spool overrun on a baitcasting reel.

Back lead
A sliding weight that you clip on to the line between the rod top and leger rig after casting. It holds the line on the bottom, so that fish are not alarmed by seeing the line or bumping into it. It also prevents line bites.

Back-shot.
One or more small split shot pinched on the line a few inches above the float. You can use back-shot to stabilize the rig when pole fishing in windy conditions, to help sink the reel line when waggler fishing in windy conditions.

Backing
line added to the back of the line, so when spooled it fills the reel

Backtrolling
a system of boat control whereby a craft is moved in reverse while running lures or baits

Backwinding
Allowing a running fish to take line from a fixed-spool reel by winding the handle backwards.

Bag Limit
The number of fish an angler may legally keep per day.

Bail arm
That part of a fixed-spool reel, comprising a wire bar and roller, that rotates around the spool as you turn the handle, so winding the line on to the spool.

Bait additive
Any liquid or powder used to colour or flavour a bait, or otherwise increase its attraction to fish.

Bait apron
An apron with pouches for bait and pockets for disgorgers, spare hooks, catapults and other small items. It allows you to have such things to hand when wading.

Bait box
A plastic container designed to hold maggots, casters or worms, but useful for other baits as well. The lid is perforated to allow the bait to breathe.

Bait box holder
A plastic tray that screws into a bank stick and has moulded receptacles to hold your bait boxes securely. It allows you to keep your bait close to hand, as well as small items such as disgorgers and catapults.

Baitcasting reel
A fishing reel in which the spool is not stationary during a cast, but revolves

Bait colourings
Various powder and liquid dyes are available to colour a variety of baits, including maggots, pastes and boilies. The commonest colours are red, yellow and orange.

Baitdropper
A small, weighted plastic or metal device for feeding groundbait or particle baits accurately under the rod or pole tip. You simply attach it to the line, fill it with bait and lower it into the water. On hitting the bottom it releases its contents.

Baitfishing
Technique using the natural prey of other species

Bait flavourings.
There are hundreds of different concentrated liquid bait flavourings. Most are designed to flavour boilies for carp fishing, but you can use any of them to flavour other baits, such as maggots and pastes, as well as groundbait.

Baitrunner
A fixed-spool reel with an optional free-spool mode. This allows the spool to rotate freely while the bail arm is closed, giving fairly resistance-free line to a taking fish. Just before you strike, a flick of a switch disengages the baitrunner.

Balanced tackle
Tackle is balanced when the test curve of the rod, the breaking strain of the line, and the size and strength of the hook are all compatible.

Balling in
Throwing or catapulting in a large quantity of groundbait all in one go - usually at the start of a session.

Ballooning
Attaching an inflated balloon to a pike rig with a paper clip, then letting the wind drift it beyond casting range. When the balloon reaches the required spot, you strike it off the line, leaving your rig where you want it.

Balsa float
An all-balsa float fished top and bottom with a large bulk shot. Its thick tip and heavy shotting capacity allows you to long-trot a big bait in fast, deep, turbulent water.

Balsa waggler
A short, all-balsa waggler tapering to a fine tip. In sizes up to no more than about 2BB, they are designed for fishing on the drop with fine tackle and small baits, mainly on canals, drains and still waters.

Banana plug
A pike plug shaped like a banana that wobbles enticingly through the water, mimicking a sick or injured prey fish.

Bank stick
A metal pole with a point at one end, to push into the ground, and a screw thread at the other end, to take an accessory such as a rod rest, bait box holder or keepnet.

Barbed hook
A hook with a barb cut into it near the point that helps keep the bait on the hook and ensures that fish stay hooked.

Barbel
A slender tactile process or fleshy projection located around the head.

Barbless hook
A hook with no barb, that miminizes damage to delicate baits, ensures full penetration of the point into the mouth of a fish, and allows easy removal of the hook without damaging the fish.

Barbs
Most hooks have one of three sizes of barb. Barbless hooks have a smooth point for better penetration, bait presentation and hooking. Barbed hooks help keep fish on the hook during the fight.

Barrel lead
A streamlined, barrel-shaped weight that is threaded lengthways on the line. It is most useful in rigs for pike.

Barspoons
An artificial lure comprising a metal spoon revolving about a metal bar, and used mainly to catch pike and perch.

Basiobranchial
The small bones behind the tongue on which the gill arches articulate.

Bass bugs
Large, floating flies with deer hair and/or cork bodies

Batting
Quickly winding line back on to a centrepin reel by spinning the drum with the palm of your hand.

Beachcaster rig
Presenting a floating bait above a leger weight with the rod propped high in the air. This keeps the line clear of the water and so avoids spooking wary carp.

Beads
Ordinary plastic beads of various sizes have a variety of uses. They can be used to prevent sliding floats jamming against stop knots, and they can be incorporated into swimfeeder and leger rigs to protect knots.

Beans
Beans of all types are a superb bait for carp, but you must soak and cook them, otherwise they can swell up inside a carp's stomach and kill it.

Bedchair
A portable, adjustable bedchair gives you a combined bed and chair for long-stay sessions.

Bedding-in
This is when line being wound on to a reel becomes trapped under coils of line already wound on to the spool. It most often occurs when playing a large fish with a closed-face reel that is loaded with too much line.

Bend
Bait such as maggots sit directly below the point with a crystal bend hook, while bigger baits such as luncheon meat fit on a round bend hook much better.

Benthic
Living at or near the bottom of a body of water.

Bent hook rig
A carp rig that originally featured a hook with a bent shank, which improved the hook-up rate of self-hooking rigs. Bent hooks have been banned on some waters, so they have been replaced by rigs in which the bend has been replaced by a length of stiffened bend braided line.

Betalight
A small, clear plastic tube containing an artificial glowing light source. It is fixed to a float, bobbin or rod top for fishing at night. They remain bright for years.

Biological reference points
Fishing mortality rates that may provide acceptable protection against growth overfishing and/or recruitment overfishing for a particular stock. They are usually calculated from equilibrium yield-per-recruit curves, spawning stock biomass-per-recruit curves and stock recruitment data. Examples are F0.1, Fmax and Fmed.

Biomass The aggregate amount of living matter or a specific species within a specific habitat. The total number of a specific species in a specific habitat.

Bird seed
An ingredient commonly used in boilie and paste mixes for carp and tench.

Birdsnest
A birdsnest is when the line on your reel becomes badly tangled around the spool.

Bivvy
A small, dome-shaped tent that can accommodate a bedchair. It is mainly used by long-stay carp anglers.

Blank The main component of a finished fishing rod, minus the guides and handle.

Bleak
A small, silvery, surface-feeding fish found in large shoals in some rivers. It usually grows to no more than 28g (1oz), and so is mainly of interest to match anglers, who have developed techniques for amassing large weights of the fish using the whip.

Block-end swimfeeders
A swimfeeder with end caps, one of which is removable, for filling with particle baits such as maggots or hemp. It is punched with holes to allow the release of its contents in the water.

Bloodknot
An easy to tie and commonly used knot for joining two lengths of line.

Bloodworm
The small, red larvae of midges, found in the silt at the bottom of most still waters, canals, drains and slow rivers. The staple diet of many species of fish, bloodworm are mainly used by match anglers on canals as a hookbait for small fish.

Bloodworm scraper
A tool used to collect bloodworm. It comprises a long handle and an angled metal blade. The bloodworm stick to the blade when it is scraped through the silt at the bottom of ponds.

Blue Bird Skies A term used to describe bright, sunny, blue sky conditions that often makes fishing tougher.

Boat control
The process of placing a boat in the correct position with relation to the fish -- and keeping it there -- in order to facilitate the most effective presentation

Bobber
A device which floats on the surface and allows an angler to suspend baits at various depths and helps to signal a strike; also called a "float"

Bobbin
A bite indicator hung on the line above the reel when legering. Traditionally a lump of dough, the top from a bottle of washing-up liquid, or a piece of silver paper, various commercially made bobbins are now available.

Bodied waggler
A waggler float with a balsa or polystyrene body at its base. The body increases the shot capacity of the float, allowing longer-distance casting, and provides greater stability in windy conditions.

Body-down pole float
A pole float with a teardrop-shaped (the thicker end towards the bottom of the float, hence 'body-down'), usually balsa, body. These floats show up on-the-drop bites well, and are mainly used for fishing still or slow water.

Body-up pole float
A body-up pole float is any pole float with an inverted teardrop-shaped body (the thick end is closer to the tip). It is mainly used to fish running water, where the body shape allows you to hold back without the float riding out of the water.

Boilie
A bait made by adding egg to a paste bait and then boiling it. This gives it a hard skin that deters the unwanted attention of small fish. Usually about the size of a marble, boilies are used mainly in carp fishing. They come in many colours.

Boilie baiting needle
A small, hand-held tool, like a thin crochet hook, for mounting a boilie on a hair-rig.

Boilie drill
A small, hand-held tool with a fine drill bit, for drilling holes in boilies or other particle baits for easy hair-rigging.

Boilie punch
A small, hand-held tool for making a large hole in a boilie in which to insert rig foam to create a buoyant bait.

Boilie stop
A small, angled piece of plastic that keeps the boilie on the hair.

Boilie boat
A radio-controlled boat with a motor that takes boilies out to your chosen swim and drops them there, allowing accurate feeding beyond the range of a throwing stick, catapult or boilie rocket.

Boilie catapult
A catapult with powerful elastic, a rigid cup, and often a wrist support, designed for feeding boilies.

Boilie mix
A commercially made mix of dry ingredients from which to make your own boilies.

Boilie rocket
A weighted, plastic container, similar to a baitdropper, for feeding boilies or other baits beyond the range of a catapult or throwing stick. Attached to the end of the line on a spare rod, it is cast to the required spot, and automatically releases the bait when it hits the water.

Boilie spike
Commercially made, spiked piece of plastic used instead of a hair to hold a boilie close to the hook in a hair-rig. The spikes hold the boilie in place when you cast.

Bolognese method
A method of float fishing deep, flowing water with a heavy pole-float rig on a running line. An extra-long rod of 4.6-6.1m (15-20ft) in length allows you to cast a fixed float set at full depth, and to control the float at long range.

Bolognese rod
An extra-long 4.6-6.1m (15-20ft), telescopic or take-apart float rod, specifically designed for fishing the Bolognese method.

Bolt rig
A leger rig, in which the fish hooks itself. When the hooks pricks the fish inside its mouth, the fish bolts, and the hook is pulled home by a line clip and heavy bite indicators such as monkey climbers or a heavy lead, or both.

Bomb rod
A light, 2.7-3.4m (9-11ft) leger rod for quivertipping with fine line, a small hook and a small Arlesey bomb. It can also cast small swimfeeders, and is mainly used in match fishing. A bomb rod can have built-in, push-in or push-over quivertips, depending on make and model.

Bottom-end float
Any float, but normally a waggler, that is attached to the line at the base only. The float may be attached with a sleeve of rubber tubing, it may have an eye in its base for threading on to the line and holding in place with locking shot, or you can use a float adaptor.

Bouncing bomb
A little used but sometimes devastatingly effective method of legering running water. By choosing a weight not quite heavy enough to hold bottom, and paying out a slight bow into the line, you can bounce your bait slowly down the river, searching the full length of your swim.

Bow method
A method of fishing a swimfeeder in running water. The swimfeeder is weighted so that it just holds bottom with a bow of line paid out from the reel and the rod propped high in the air to keep as much line as possible clear of the water. A biting fish dislodges the swimfeeder, giving a clear drop-back bite - and often hooking itself in the process.

Braided hooklength
A hooklength made from braided line, mainly used when fishing for carp, tench and barbel. The soft braid offers more natural bait presentation than relatively stiff ordinary line - especially line of 2.3 kg (5lb) or more breaking strain.

Braided line
Braided line is far softer and more supple than ordinary monofilament, and is more abrasion-resistant. It also has very little stretch. It is mainly used to tie hooklengths for carp and other big fish.

Bran
A useful agent for cleaning and storing maggots, bran can also be used to bulk out a groundbait mix.

Brandling
A small (5-7.5cm/2-3in), striped worm found mainly in compost and manure heaps. It can be a good bait for many species of fish, especially bream and perch, and breeds well in a wormery.

Bread crust
An excellent legered bait for roach and chub in winter, and an excellent floating bait for carp, rudd and chub in summer. It is best fished on a large hook - at least a size 12. It can be flavoured and coloured.

Bread flake
Pinched on a large hook - at least a size 12 - bread flake is a slow-sinking bait that can be legered or floatfished. It catches all sorts of fish, and takes colours and flavours well.

Bread paste
Little used nowadays, but good for roach, rudd, tench and bream, bread paste is a traditional bait made by soaking stale bread in water and then kneading it to a doughy consistency. Flavours and colours work well with bread paste.

Bread punch
A bread punch is a small, hand-held tool for punching a compressed pellet out of a slice of bread. Different sizes are available for punching different-sized hookbaits.

Breadcrumbs
A common groundbait; both white and brown bread may be used.

Break line
A definite change in depth or cover or the area where two layers of water meet and differ in temperature, oxygen, and/or turbidity

Breakfast cereals
Various kinds of breakfast cereals, including puffed wheat, are used as floating baits, especially for carp.

Breaking strain
The strength of pull required to break line. Line is sold by both breaking strain (in kilograms and grams, or pounds and ounces) and diameter (thickness in hundredths of a millimetre or thousandths of an inch).

Bristle-tipped pole float
Pole floats with fine plastic bristle tips are very sensitive but cannot register the settling of dropper shots.

Bronze bream
A deep-bodied, bottom-feeding fish found in all types of water, but especially still or slow waters. Bream grow to 7.3kg (16lb) or more, but a 4.5kg (10lb) fish is an outstanding specimen. Smaller bream form huge shoals and can be caught in large numbers.

Brood stock
Adult fish used to propagate the subsequent generation of hatchery fish.

Brown crumb
Brown breadcrumbs form the basis of many groundbait mixes, particularly on still and slow waters for skimmers and bream. They can be used neat, or to bulk out more expensive Continental groundbait mixes.

Bubble float
A round, hollow float made of clear plastic, used as a controller float to present a floating bait for rudd or carp. You can partially fill them with water to provide casting weight.

Buccal
Pertaining to the cheeks or the cavity of the mouth.

Buck
A spawning male fish

Bucktail
Lure dressed with deer hair

Bug flies
A cork-bodied surface fly designed to imitate a variety of aquatic and terrestrial foods

Bullet Sinker A cone shaped piece of lead of varying weights that slides up and down the line.

Bulk shot
A heavy split shot, or group of split shot, usually placed on the line just below halfway between the float and the hook. Bulk shot are used mainly with pole floats, and top-and-bottom running line floats such as Avons and balsas, to get a hookbait quickly to the bottom.

Bullhead
A small bottom-feeding fish, also known as the miller's thumb.

Buoyancy
The tendency of a body to float or rise when submerged in a fluid.

Butt indicator
A hinged bite indicator, similar to a swingtip, that clips on to the rod just above the butt ring. Butt indicators are useful when legering still or slow water in very windy conditions, being easy to shelter with an umbrella.

Butt ring
The first ring on a rod above the reel fitting and handle - usually on the butt section. A butt ring needs to be large to facilitate casting.

Butt rest
A small, U-shaped rod rest head for holding the handle of a rod when legering or float fishing.

Butterfly rod rest
A butterfly rod rest comprises two flexible rubber loops that grip the front of your rod when legering, without trapping the line, but which readily release the rod when you strike.

Button-up fry
A salmonid fry that has not completely absorbed its yolk sac and has emerged from its spawning gravel.

Buzz bait
An artificial lure with propeller-style blades that stir up the water upon retrieve; a type of topwater lure.

Buzzer
See 'Electronic bite alarm'.

Buzzer bar
A horizontal bar that fixes to a rod pod or bank stick, and which is specifically designed to hold two or three electronic bite alarms.

Наверх

C

CCPFH - Canadian Council of Professional Fish Harvesters
This group is a national council organized to address the need for nationally-established programmes and standards for professional fish harvesters.

CCN - Coastal Communities Network
A network of community people concerned with the survival of Nova Scotia's coastal communities. This network is a committee that includes representatives from fishery organizations, churches, municipal leaders, women, educational organizations, economic development agencies, environmental groups and others. It is an open forum where concerned people meet to discuss and plan strategic actions.

Caddis
A diverse family of aquatic insects recognizable by down wings.

Cage swimfeeder
An open-end swimfeeder made from plastic or metal mesh. The mesh allows quicker release of the contents than an ordinary plastic open-end swimfeeder. It also offers less resistance to running water, allowing you to use less weight to hold bottom.

Canal catapult
A small catapult with light elastic and a small pouch, designed for accurate loosefeeding at up to about 15m (50ft). This makes it particularly useful on canals, or anywhere when fishing with a pole.

Canal stand
A small, free-standing metal platform for bait boxes and accessories, used by match anglers on canals and other venues where the bank is flat but too hard to use an ordinary bait box holder on a bank stick.

Cane-stemmed pole float
Pole floats with cane stems are designed for fishing on the drop when short-lining with a long pole, and fishing with a bulk shot and droppers with a whip.

Cane-tipped pole float
Pole floats with cane tips can be shotted so that the settling of the dropper shots register on the tip, making them useful for spotting bites on the drop.

Cane-stemmed stick float
When used with shirt-button shotting, cane-stemmed stick floats cock slowly, showing bites on the drop.

Cannonball
A type of very heavy round weight used in deep-water fishing with downriggers

Carbon-stemmed pole float
Carbon fibre-stemmed pole floats are a compromise between the stability of wire-stemmed floats and the slow-cocking properties of cane-stemmed floats.

Carbon-tipped pole float
Carbon fibre-tipped pole floats are similar to plastic bristle-tipped pole floats in that they offer sensitivity without the ability to register the settling of dropper shots.

Carnivorous
Feeding on animal tissues.

Carolina Rig
A "Carolina rig" consists of an egg shaped sinker (usually one ounce), a swivel, a leader of about 4 feet and a large single hook. The size of the sinker and hook can vary depending on the type of cover and how deep you are fishing. The usual type of bait to fish with is a plastic lizard or large plastic worm. This is an excellent method to fish drop-offs and other deep[ water cover. It also works good in the Spring for shallow water bass

Cartilaginous fishes
A major group of fishes including sharks and rays.

Carp bung
A large pole bung designed to fit the third or fourth section of a pole, for use with heavy carp elastics.

Carp elastic
Heavy pole elastic designed for use with carp poles. In the standard size range, 8, 10 and 12 all count as carp elastics. Elastics heavier than size 12 are coded in different ways by different manufacturers.

Carp pole
An extra-strong long pole, usually with put-in joints, designed for fishing with carp elastics for carp of any size up to about 4.5kg (10lb).

Carp rod
A rod designed for fishing for large carp. Some are designed for long-distance fishing, others for stalking in the margins. A general-purpose carp rod, however, is 3.4-3.7m (11-12ft) long, with a through action, and a test curve of about 0.9kg (2lb).

Carp sack
A dark, soft mesh bag with a drawstring, for temporarily retaining specimen fish in the water's edge.

Carryall
A large, waterproof nylon bag with carrying straps, used mainly by match anglers for transporting bulky items that will not fit inside a seat box, such as keepnets, landing nets, bags of groundbait and boxes of bait.

Casters
The pupae of large maggots, widely used as a bait for most species of fish, often in conjunction with hemp and groundbait. Casters exposed to the air until they become crisp, dark floaters are best for the hook.

Catadromous
Refers to fishes that migrate from fresh water to salt water to spawn or reproduce such as the American eel.

Cat biscuits
A widely used floating bait for carp, cat biscuits can also be crushed and added to groundbait or made into a paste.

Catch Curve
A graph of the logarithm of number of fish taken at successive ages or sizes.

Catch Per Unit Of Effort
The catch of fish, in numbers or in weight, taken by a defined unit of fishing effort. Also called; catch per effort, fishing success, availability.

Catchability
"The fraction of a fish stock which is caught by a defined unit of the fishing effort. When the unit is small enough that it catches only a small part of the stock -- 0.01 or less--it can be used as an instantaneous rate in computing population change. (For fractions taken of various portions of the stock, see ""vulnerability."") Also called; catchability coeificient, *force of fishing mortality"

Catch-and-release
An ethical principle whereby an angler carefully releases a fish

Catfish tube
A long, dark, soft mesh bag with a drawstring, designed for temporarily retaining catfish in the water's edge.

Catfood paste
A hookbait made from tinned catfood, and mainly used for catching tench and carp.

Caudal
The tail area of a fish

Caudal
The tail fin.

Caudal peduncle
The tapering portion of a fish's body between the posterior edge of the anal fin base and the base of the caudal fin.

Centrepin reel
A reel with the line wound directly on to a freely revolving drum rather than a fixed spool. Casting distance is limited with centrepins, but they allow excellent tackle control when trotting. They also allow good control of hard-fighting carp, tench and barbel when fighting close in.

Cheater line
A secondary short line attached to the main line for running a secondary lure

Cheese
A marble-sized lump of cheese is an excellent bait for chub, and the smellier the cheese the better. Danish Blue is particularly highly rated.

Cheesepaste
An outstanding bait for chub, cheesepaste is made by mixing any variety of cheese with anything from ordinary breadcrumbs to crushed hemp. You can also add flavourings and colourings.

Chopped worming
A method developed by match anglers, mainly for catching perch in clear water in winter. It involves feeding lobworms, brandlings or redworms chopped into tiny pieces, then pole-fishing a larger worm hookbait over the top.

Chub
A large-mouthed, hard-fighting, silvery shoal fish found mainly in flowing water. Chub grow to 3.6kg (8lb) or more, but a 2.3kg (5lb) fish is a specimen. They are easily spooked by a clumsy approach, but they feed in all weathers and the careful angler can catch them on most baits and using most tactics.

Chubber
A hollow-plastic version of a balsa float, fished top and bottom with a large bulk shot.

Chugger
A top-water plug that has a cup-shaped mouth

Chum
Bait thrown in the water to attract fish; e.g., cornmeal, fish entrails

Cisco
Any of several whitefishes found primarily in the Great Lakes region.

Clarity
The degree of visibility in a body of water as determined by water color and turbidity; i.e., stained, dirty, muddy

Clip-on swimfeeder weights
Flattened, pronged lead weights of various sizes for adding weight to swimfeeders.

Close season
That time of the year when a water is closed to angling for coarse species. It coincides roughly with the time when most coarse fish spawn. In general, all rivers and drains are closed from March 15 to June 15 inclusive, while most canals and still waters are open all year round.

Closed-face reel
A fixed-spool reel with the spool enclosed by a housing and the bail arm replaced by a small pick-up pin. Originally designed for spinning, they are popular for light float fishing, especially trotting.

Cloudbait
A fine-textured groundbait that can be mixed sloppy or dry to form an enticing cloud in the water, cloudbait is mainly used when float fishing on still or slow waters for small fish up in the water or on the drop.

Clutch
See 'Drag'.

Coaster
A brook trout that spends part of its life at sea or in the Great Lakes

Cocktail bait
A hookbait that combines two or more different baits, but usually only two. Commonly used cocktails are worm and caster, and caster and maggot.

Coded-wire tag (CWT)
A small (0.25mm diameter x 1 mm length) wire etched with a distinctive binary code and implanted in the snout of s salmon or steelhead, which, when retrieved, allows for the identification of the origin of the fish bearing the tag.

Coffin weight
A leger weight shaped like a flattened coffin, with a hole through the middle to thread direct on to the line. Coffin weights are designed for holding bottom when using a running leger in flowing water.

Cold-water period
The stable period of very late fall -winter - early spring

Coloured maggots
Ordinary large white maggots dyed different colours. Bronze, red, pink and yellow, and fluorescent pink, red, yellow and orange (bronze) are the commonest colours. You sometimes find a few blue, brown and green maggots as well in a box of ‘mixed maggots’. Red maggots are particularly sffective for perch, bream, tench and carp. Bronze maggots are the first choice bait of many river anglers for roach, chub, barbel and dace.

Colourings
See 'Bait colourings'.

Comfort zone
A species' ideal water temperature, pH, O2, etc.

Common carp
Fully scaled, extremely hard-fighting fish found mainly in still waters and canals, common carp grow to 22.7kg (50lb) or more, but a 9.1kg (20lb) fish is a specimen. Large carp are the favourite quarry of many specialist anglers.

Competitive species
The relationship between two or more species in a body of water competing for the same food and/or spawning habitat

Cone of vision
The area above, below, in front of, and behind a fish, within which it can see

Conditional Fishing Mortality Rate
The fraction of an initial stock which would be caught during the year (or season) if no other causes of mortality operated. (Also called fishing mortality rate).

Conditional Natural Mortality Rate
The fraction of an initial stock that would die from causes other than fishing during a year (or season), if there were no fishing mortality. Also called; annual natural mortality rate, seasonal natural mortality rate.

Confidence rig
A running paternoster rig that allows a wary fish a little resistance-free line, giving it the confidence to take the bait properly.

Continental groundbaits
Groundbaits originally developed by European match anglers, and containing all manner of ingredients such as pigeon droppings, crushed hemp, ground peanuts, ground maize and crushed biscuits. Increasingly popular in Britain, many commercial makes and mixes are now widely available, offering a variety of textures and flavourings for a variety of uses.

Contour lines
Continuous lines on a map indicating depth used by anglers to identify structure

Controlled drift
A system of boat control in which a motor, oars, paddles, or a push pole are used in addition to wind and current drift

Controller floats
A loaded float designed to fish a floating bait, especially on still waters for surface-feeding rudd or carp. It is used more as a casting aid than a bite indicator.

Countdown method
Counting as a lure sinks to determine the desired depth of retrieve

Cover Any feature in a body of water which provides protection for individual or groups of fish; e.g., weeds, rocks, deep water

CPR
Short for Catch, Photograph, Release.

Crank bait
A plug with a lip that causes it to dive.

Crimp
A metal band squeezed on to a wire trace to secure the wire to the eye of a hook or swivel, in place of a knot.

Crimp pliers
Crimp pliers have specially shaped jaws to secure crimps to wire traces with an even pressure, without weakening the wire.

Critical Size
The average size of the fish in a year-class at the time when the instantaneous rate of natural mortality equals the instantaneous rate of growth in weight for the year-class as a whole. Also called; *optimum size.

Critically balanced bait
A hookbait, usually a boilie, whose buoyancy is such that it perfectly balances the weight of the hook, to minimize resistance to a taking fish.

Crowquill
Crowquills fished top-and-bottom with the fat part uppermost were the forerunners of stick floats. Crowquills fished bottom-end only with the slim tapering end uppermost are still used by many anglers in preference to balsa wagglers.

Crucian carp
A small, bottom-feeding, shy-biting species of carp found mainly in still waters. Crucians grow to 2.7kg (6lb) or more, but a 1.4kg (3lb) fish is a specimen.

Crunching pole
A strong, stiff pole, usually with put-in joints, used by match anglers to take heavy weights of bream and roach, fishing to hand, on prolific waters such as those found in Denmark and Ireland. A heavy rig is used, and is tied direct to a cut back and adapted top section.

Crushed hemp
Hempseed that has been coarsely ground. Crushed hemp has an oily texture and is an excellent groundbait additive, especially for roach, chub, carp and tench.

Crystal-bend hook
A hook whose bend is sharply angled below the point, rather than being rounded. Crystal-bend hooks are mainly designed for wriggly baits such as maggots and worms. The sharp angle in the bend prevents such baits masking the point.

Ctenoid
Having a comb-like margin.

Ctenoid scales
Smooth, flat, round scales that have concentric lines called circuli, found on trout, herring, and other fish.

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D

DFO - Department of Fisheries and Oceans
A federal government department responsible for the protection and management of fish stocks and their habitat.

Dace
A small, silvery shoal fish found mainly in flowing water. Often confused with chub, the dace has a much smaller mouth and a concave rather than convex anal fin. It averages only around 100g (a few ounces) and a 0.45kg (1lb) fish is an outstanding specimen.

Damp leem
A fine-textured, dampened, clay that, when mixed with groundbait, makes heavy balls that sink straight to the bottom and break up very slowly. It is widely used in matches by pole anglers, in conjunction with jokers as feed, to create an attractive bed of food on the bottom. It is also used as a binder for neat joker.

Deadbait
A dead sea, game or coarse fish used as a hookbait, usually for pike, but sometimes also for zander, catfish, eels, perch and chub.

Deadbait needle
A tool for threading a deadbait on to the line or wire trace before attaching the hook or hooks.

Dead Sticking
A technique that is primarily used with the Slug-Go or other soft jerk baits but you can use this with other lures or plastic worms. You cast out your lure and let it sit on the bottom without moving it for as long as you can standi it and then let it sit even longer. When you do move it move it just ever so slightly

Deep-diving plug
A plug with a slightly angled plastic vane so that it dives steeply when retrieved.

Deep-water zone
The main basin of a lake or the channel of a river or reservoir

Dendrobena
A large variety of brandling that is only available from tackle shops.

Depth control
Controlling your lure or bait at a specific depth

Descaling
A condition in which a fish has lost a certain percentage of scales. Disco maggots
Maggots that are dyed with fluorescent colours are sometimes known as disco maggots.

Dibber
A small pole float, usually made from peacock quill or balsa, with a bulbous tip. Dibbers are mainly used on canals, with casters as bait, to catch roach from the bottom of shallow far-bank swims.

Disgorger
A small plastic tool for unhooking fish, a disgorger has a slotted head which slides down the line and over the eye or spade of the hook. Disgorgers with different-sized heads are available for different-sized hooks.

Distal
Away from the point of attachment or origin.

Diving plugs
These are floating lures which have vanes at the front which make them dive on the retrieve. The larger the vane and the shallower the angle, the deeper the dive.

DNR
Short for Department of Natural Resources.

Dog biscuits
Dog biscuits are a commonly used floating bait for carp, and can also be crushed and added to groundbait, or made into a paste.

Domed-top stick float
A stick float with a domed top is easier to see at long range than one with a pointed top. It offers greater buoyancy and stability, making it more suited to fishing overdepth.

Domhof knot
A knot used to tie hooklengths to spade-end hooks.

Dorsal fin
The fin situated on the back of the fish

Dotting
Shotting a float so that only the smallest possible amount of tip is visible above the surface.

Double-handled fixed-spool reel
A double handle on a fixed-spool reel is preferred by some anglers for legering because it is better balanced than a single handle and therefore allows finer adjustment of the tension in the line.

Double-ringed balsa slider
A balsa float with a small side ring on the top and bottom in place of float rubbers, to allow it to be used as a sliding float.

Downrigger
A metal device, resembling an oversized rod, that is mounted to the decking of a boat and can be lowered or raised on a metal cable; used to present lures in deep water on light lines

Drag
an adjustable mechanism that allows a hooked fish to take the line off the reel to avoid break-offs.

Drift
the movement of a lure, natural food, or a boat when they move naturally with the flow of water or prevailing winds.

Drilled bullet
A spherical leger weight with a hole through the middle to thread direct on to the line.

Drop-back bite
When a biting fish dislodges the leger weight or swimfeeder, causing the line to slacken and the bite indicator to drop back.

Drop-off
A point where there is sharp increase in depth

Drop-off bite alarm
A bite indicator that combines an electronic bite alarm with a large bobbin. It is mainly used when legering for pike.

Dropper shot
One or more small shot that are spread between the hook and the float, or between the hook and the bulk shot. It aids bite detection because as soon as the fish moves it, the movement shows up on the float.

Dry fly
A fly which floats on the surface of the water and imitates mature aquatic insects

Dry leem
Fine powdered clay that you can add to groundbait in the same manner as damp leem, but which is more often sprinkled on neat jokers to separate them before adding them to groundbait.

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E

EA: - Enterprise Allocation
A quota from a certain species that is allocated to a company.

EFF - Eastern Fishermen's Federation
A Maritime umbrella organization made up of inshore fishermen's organizations.

ESFPA - Eastern Shore Fishermen's Protective Association
Inshore fishermen's organization representing multi-species license holders on the Eastern Shore of Nova Scotia, under the umbrella of the EFF.

Echo sounder
A portable electronic device that uses sonar to determine the depth of water, and display the information on a read-out. Boat anglers fishing large still waters find them very useful.

Ecosystem
A system formed by the interaction of a community of organisms within their environment

Edge concept
Edges can be related to areas of temperature, water clarity, current, or structures, and they often hold catchable fish; e.g., active, feeding bass found on the weedline

Eel
Freshwater eels are migratory fish that live in all sorts of waters but spawn in the Sargasso Sea in the Atlantic Ocean. You can catch them on a variety of bottom-fished baits, especially lobworms and small deadbaits. They feed well on summer nights. but they rarely feed in winter. They grow to more than 4.5kg (10lb), but fish over 2.3gk (5lb) are a rare catch.

Eel section
A section of eel body used as a deadbait when fishing for pike or zander.

Effeciveness Of Fishing
A general term referring to the percentage removal of fish from a stock, but not as specifically defined.as either rate of exploitation or instantaneous rate of fishing.

Egg sinker
A type of weight shaped like an egg with a hole in the middle

Egg take
The number of eggs taken at hatcheries when adult salmon and steelhead are spawned.

Egg-to-smolt survival
The numerical difference between the number of fertilized eggs produced by a groups of fish and the number of smolts resulting from those eggs.

Elderberries
Soft, ripe elderberries can be an effective hookbait for roach, especially when loosefeeding hempseed.

Electronic bite alarm
A compact, battery-operated device for legering, mainly used by carp anglers. It detects line movement, which it registers with a beep, or buzz, and a small light.

Elver
A young freshwater eel. They migrate from their birthplace in the Sargasso Sea to rivers and lakes all over Europe and the Americas, where they mature into fully-grown eels, ready to make the migration back to their spawning grounds.

Emarginate
Having the margin notched.

Embeddedness
The degree to which dirt is mixed in with spawning gravel.

Embryo
The early stages of development before an organism becomes self supporting.

Emergence
The process during which fry leave their gravel spawning nest and enter the water column.

Emerger
An aquatic insect in the process of rising to the surface to become a flying adult.

Emigration
Referring to the movement of organisms out of an area. See immigration and migrating.

Epilimnion
The warm layer of water above the thermocline

Equlibrium Catch
The catch (in numbers) taken from a fish stock when it is in equilibrium with fishing of a given intensity, and (apart from the effects of environmental variation) its abundance is not changing from one year to the next.

Equlibrium Yield
The yield in weight taken from a fish stock when it is in equilibrium with fishing of a given intensity, and (apart from effects of environmental variation) its biomass is not changing from one year to the next. Also called; sustainable yield, equivalent sustainable yield.

Euryhaline
Having a wide tolerance to salinity.

Eutrophic lake
a body of water that is rich in dissolved nutrients, but can be deficient in oxygen.

Even-year run
A population of fish that returns to its natural spawning grounds in even numbered years.

Exotic species
A species that is not native to a body of water, but has been introduced to it intentionally or by accident

Exploitation pattern
The distribution of fishing mortality over the age composition of the fish population, determined by the type of fishing gear, area and seasonal distribution of fishing, and the growth and migration of the fish. The pattern can be changed by modifications to fishing gear, for example, increasing mesh or hook size, or by changing the ratio of harvest by gears exploiting the fish (e.g., gill net, trawl, hook and line, etc.).

Exploitation rate
The proportion of a population at the beginning of a given time period that is caught during that time period (usually expressed on a yearly basis). For example, if 720,000 fish were caught during the year from a population of 1 million fish alive at the beginning of the year, the annual exploitation rate would be 0.72.

Eyed egg
A fish egg containing an embryo that has developed enough so the eyes are visible through the egg membrane.

Eyed hook
A hook with a small eye on the end of the shank, through which you thread and knot the line. Eyed hooks are mainly used in the larger sizes, from size 16 up.

Eyed/spade-end hooks
Small hooks (size 16 or below) tend to be spade end, while larger sizes tend to be eyed. A spade is lighter than an eye for the same size hook, making the hook lighter and improving bait presentation with small baits.

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F

FCC - Fisheries Council of Canada
Organization representing large fish-processing companies, including National Sea, Clearwater, Fishery Products International Ltd., SPANS (Seafood Producers Association of Nova Scotia) and others.

FMO's - Fisheries Management Orders

FRCC - Fisheries Resource Conservation Council
A partnership of government, industry and the scientific community. Created in 1993 to act as an advisory board to the Minister of Fisheries.

FNFA - Fundy North Fishers Association
Inshore fish harvesters organization on the New Brunswick side of the Bay of Fundy.

F0.1
The fishing mortality rate at which the increase in yield-per-recruit in weight for an increase in a unit-of-effort is only 10 percent of the yield-per-recruit produced by the first unit of effort on the unexploited stock (i.e., the slope of the yield-per-recruit curve for the F0.1 rate is only one-tenth the slope of the curve at its origin).

Falcate
Hooked or curved like a sickle.

Fall-run fish
Anadromous fish that return to spawn in the fall.

Fan cast
To make a series of systematic casts to cover an area around the angler

Feature finder
A rig comprising a large, sliding float and a heavy weight, set up on a spare rod and used on still waters to plumb a swim and locate such features as weedbeds and gravel bars. It can also be used as a marker float.

Fecundity
The total number of eggs produced by a female fish.

Feeder
The term 'feeder' is a commonly used abbreviation for a swimfeeder.

Feeder Creek
A tributary that runs into a larger stream or river.

Feeder maggots
An alternative name for squatts that is mainly used in the north of England.

Feeder worm
A larger than normal type of joker that is about half the size of a bloodworm.

Figure-of-eight knot
A simple knot for tying a small loop in the end of a piece of line.

Fine-wire hook
Hooks made from fine wire are useful in the smaller sizes (18 and below) when fishing with fine line for small fish. Their light weight allows more natural presentation of small baits such as pinkies, while their fine wire minimizes damage. Fin Ray
A soft or hard cartilaginous rod in fins.

Fingerling
Refers to a young fish in its first or second year of life.

Fish antiseptic
Antiseptic cream, gel, spray or lotion for treating small sores or wounds on fish before returning them to the water.

Fish Ladder
A series of pools arranged like steps that fish utilize to move upstream over a dam.

Fish oil
Various kinds of fish oil can be used to flavour deadbaits, pastes and boilies.

Fishery
A place for catching fish.

Fisheries management
The scientific practice of studying the aquatic ecosystem and applying measures to keep it balanced

Fishfinder
An electronic device that uses sonar to determine the depth of water, but which also displays the depth and position of fish beneath the boat. It displays this information in LCD picture of the lake or river bed and the fish.

Fishing Effort
1. The total fishing gear in use for a specified period of time. When two or more kinds of gear are used, they must be adjusted to some standard type 2. Effective fishing effort.

Fishing Intensity
1. Effective fishing effort. 2. Fishing effort per unit area 3. Effectiveness of fishing.

Fishing Mortality
Deaths in a fish stock caused by fishing.

Fishing Power
The catch which a particular gear or vessel takes from a given density of fish during a certain time interval. For example, larger vessels (horsepower) have a greater ability to catch more fish, thus the greater their fishing power. Also, improvements in a vessel or gear, such as fish finders, Loran, etc., can increase fishing power.

Fishing pressure
The effect of angling on specific fish populations

Fishing regulations
Governmental measures to protect a species or its environment; e.g., prohibiting the fishing of fragile species during the spawning period

Fishing 'to hand'
Fishing a whip or pole with a rig that is the same length as the pole, so that fish can be swung in or netted without the need for unshipping sections of pole.

Fishout
To exhaust the supply of fish in a body of water.

Fishway
A device made up of a series of stepped pools, similar to a staircase, that enables adult fish to migrate up the river past dams.

Fishways
A contrivance that allows fish to pass around a dam.

Fixed paternoster
A rig in which an Arlesey bomb or swimfeeder is tied to a short 15-30cm (6-12in) length of line, called a link, which is in turn tied to the main line above the hooklength. It is the most commonly used rig in match fishing and general coarse fishing.

Fixed-spool reel
The most commonly used type of reel in coarse fishing, a fixed-spool reel incorporates a bail arm which winds the line on to a fixed spool, and which is opened to allow line to peel smoothly off the spool when you cast.

Flake punch
A small, moulded plastic device for punching a compressed piece of flake out of a slice of bread.

Flat lead
See 'Flattened lead'.

Flat-pouched catapult
A catapult with a flat mesh pouch, designed for loosefeeding maggots, casters and hemp.

Flat-top float
A type of pole float, usually made from peacock quill or balsa, and similar to a dibber, with a thick tip and a flat top. Dotted down flush with the surface, they combine buoyancy with stability and sensitivity.

Flattened lead
An Arlesey bomb-type lead with a flattened profile, to offer less resistance to the flow, for a given weight, in running water.

Flattened leger
A flattened leger is an Arlesey bomb with a flattened profile. It holds bottom better than an ordinary Arlesey bomb in running water, but cannot be cast with the same accuracy.

Flavour enhancer
A bait additive, usually in liquid form, designed to enhance the attractiveness of a bait flavouring.

Flavourings
See 'Bait flavourings'

Flick-tip
A fine, flexible, shock-absorbing tip section for a long pole, for use instead of elastic when fishing to hand.

Flick-tip connector
A small plastic connector that you glue to the tip of a whip, or to the tip of a flick-tip pole section, and to which you attach your float rig.

Flies
Bits of fur, feathers, and other materials that are tied on a hook so that they imitate insects, baitfish, etc.

Flippin'
Method using an underhand pendulum motion with a long rod to present sinking lures to fish in heavy cover

Float adaptor
A small, flexible sleeve of eyed rubber tubing for attaching a bottom-end float to the line. A float adaptor allows you to change your float without having to remove all the shot on the line.

Float box
A container for storing floats. A float box is useful if you don't have a seat box with storage drawers. It is usually compartmented, and should be waterproof. Floater-diver
A plug that floats when not being moved, but runs beneath the surface when retrieved

Float legering
Fishing a still bait on the bottom with a rig that combines a float with a running leger.

Float rod
A rod designed for float fishing. Most float rods are 3.7-4m (12-13ft) long, although shorter and longer ones are available, and have either a solid, spliced tip to give a tip-action for stick-float fishing, or a hollow tip to give a more through action for waggler fishing. Most float rods are designed for use with 340-680g (12oz-1 1/2lb) hooklengths, but more powerful versions are also available.

Float rod rest
A float rod rest is a wide rod rest with a flexible rubber top, to support the front of your float rod when you want to put the rod down to rebait or unhook a fish. It is wide to allow you to drop the rod in it without looking.

Float rubbers
Small, hollow sleeves of rubber or silicone for attaching top and bottom floats, such as pole floats, sticks, Avons and balsas, to the line. Various sizes are available.

Float tube
A hollow plastic tube, with removable caps, for storing floats in.

Floater
Any floating bait used to catch surface-feeding fish. Commonly used floaters are cat and dog biscuits for carp, and bread crust for rudd or chub.

Floating line
Line that floats on the surface. Some makes of line are designed to float, others can be made to float by greasing them or spraying them with silicone line floatant. Floating lines are useful when trotting, and when fishing floaters.

Floating maggots
Ordinary large maggots that have been made to float by placing them in just enough water to cover them for about 20 minutes. They counter the weight of the hook, and are a useful stillwater hookbait, especially in summer when fishing on the drop for fish feeding up in the water.

Fluoro maggots
Maggots that are dyed fluorescent colours are sometimes known as fluoro maggots.

Fluted Avon
An Avon float with a fluted body, to grip the flow. Fluted Avons are rarely seen these days.

Fluted bomb
An Arlesey bomb with fluted sides to make it more aerodynamic for long-distance casting.

Fluvial
Migrating between main rivers and tributaries. Of or pertaining to streams or rivers.

Fmax
The rate of fishing mortality for a given exploitation pattern rate of growth and natural mortality, that results in the maximum level of yield-per-recruit. This is the point that defines growth overfishing.

Fontanelle
Unossified gap between cranial bones.

Foot platform
A metal footrest that can be attached to the front of a platform, or to extendable legs fixed to a seat box. A foot platform is useful when sitting in shallow water or on a steep bank.

Forage Fish
Small fish which breed prolifically and serve as food for predatory fish.

Forceps
Forceps are essential to remove treble hooks as well as single hooks that are too big for even the biggest disgorger.

Forged hook
A hook made from metal that has been forged for extra strength. Forged hooks are mainly used when fishing for big, hard-fighting fish.

Frame swimfeeders
A streamlined swimfeeder comprising a plastic frame around which groundbait can be moulded. Designed originally for long-distance bream fishing on shallow still waters, frame feeders are now most often used when fishing the Method.

Free-running rig
Any leger rig that allows a fish to run with the bait without feeling any resistance from the leger weight.

Free-spool mode
See 'Baitrunner'.

Free-swimming livebait
A floatfished livebait that is not tethered to the spot by a heavy weight and which is free to swim where it will with the float in tow.

Freelining
Fishing with only a baited hook on the end of your line, freelining is mainly used when fishing with a large bait for big fish at close range in clear water. Frenum
Referring to the membrane that binds the lip to the snout or lower jaw.

Freshet
The sudden rising of a stream or river by means of heavy rain or melting snow

Front trolling A system of boat control in which a bait or lure is trolled behind a boat moving forward

Fry
A stage of development in young salmon or trout. During this stage the fry is usually less than one year old, has absorbed its yolk sac, is rearing in the stream, and is between the alevin and parr stage of development.

Наверх

G

Gag
A device for gently holding open the jaws of a pike or zander to allow you to unhook it easily without cutting your hand on the teeth of the fish.

Gaff
A large metal hook for landing fish; prohibited in some areas

Game fish
A fish that is regulated by law for recreational harvest.

Gape
To open the mouth wide. In Zoological terms, it means the measurement of the widest possible opening of a mouth.

Ghost carp
An ornamental variety of carp that is ghostly white in appearance. Ghost carp are often stocked in commercial stillwater fisheries.

Gill rakers
A series of projections located along the front edge of the gill arch.

Gills
The fleshy, and highly vascular organs comparable to lungs used in aquatic respiration.

Glycerine
A clear gel used to prevent wet line freezing to rod rings in winter.

Golden Orfe
An ornamental golden version of the orfe or ide. It has been introduced to a number of still waters in Britain where it grows to around 2.7kg (6lb).

Gozzers
Soft, white homebred maggots that are a deadly hookbait for bream. Not commercially available, gozzers are the larvae of a variety of bluebottle that only lays its eggs on fresh meat and in the dark.

Grass carp
An imported, weed-eating species of carp stocked in a few British still waters where it grows to about 9.1kg (20lb).

Gravel
See cobble.

Grayling
A member of the salmon family that spawns at the same time as coarse fish and not in January-March as other salmon family members do. Despite this, it is still considered a game fish.

Grilled hemp
Hemp that has been grilled and crushed is sold as an alternative groundbait additive to ordinary crushed hemp.

Grilse
Salmon less than 22 inches (56cm) Fork Length (FL).

Grinner knot
A stronger knot than a half-blood knot, for tying line to eyed hooks or swivels.

Ground peanuts
Ground peanuts are a common ingredient of Continental groundbaits, but are also sometimes sold as a separate groundbait additive.

Groundbait
Breadcrumbs mixed with water and thrown in or fed via a swimfeeder to attract fish, either on its own or with the addition of other baits. Groundbait can also contain such things as crushed hemp and ground maize, as well as any number of flavourings and colourings.

Groundbait bowl
A shallow, rigid or foldable plastic bowl, with rounded corners to facilitate an even groundbait mix.

Groundbait catapult
A catapult with powerful elastic and a large rigid cup for firing balls of groundbait into the water.

Groundbait paste
A hookbait made from a stiff mix of groundbait, used in conjunction with groundbait, mainly to catch bream.

Growth overfishing
The rate of fishing, as indicated by an equilibrium yield-per-recruit curve, greater than which the losses in weight from total mortality exceed the gain in weight due to growth. This point is defined as Fmax.

Gudgeon
A small, streamlined, bottom-feeding shoal fish, similar in appearance to barbel, but seldom exceeding 28g (1oz), gudgeon are found mainly in rivers and canals, and are sometimes targeted by match anglers.

Guides
Loops along the length of the rod through which the line is passed

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Habitat
Lhe location where a plant or animal species lives as determined by environmental factors

Hair rig
A rig originally devised to fool wary carp, but now widely used for big fish of other species, a hair rig comprises a bait, usually a boilie, mounted on a short plastic or nylon 'hair' attached to the shank or eye of a bare hook.

Half bloodknot
The simplest and most widely used knot for tying line to eyed hooks, swivels and Arlesey bombs.

Hatch box
A device used to incubate relatively small numbers of fish eggs. The hatch box is usually located adjacent to a stream, which supplies the box with water.

Hawg/hog
A hawg is a term used for a bragging size bass. For Smallmouth that would be over 5 pounds

Headwater
Small stream which is the beginning of a river system hen a spawning female

Healthy stock
A stock of fish experiencing production levels consistent with its available habitat and within the natural variations in survival for the stock.

Helicopter rig
A bolt rig devised by carp anglers for tangle-free long-distance casting, comprising a weight fixed to the end of the line, and a hooklength tied to a swivel trapped between two beads fixed immediately above the weight, so the hooklength can rotate 360 degrees. It is based on a simple fixed paternoster.

Hempseed
Boiled and simmered until white shoots sprout from the grains, hempseed is a widely used hookbait for roach, and loosefeed for roach, carp, tench and barbel.

Heterocercal Said of the tail when the vertebrae curve upward into the upper lobe of the caudal fin.

Hi-tech lines
Also known as prestretched or low-diameter lines, hi-tech nylon monofilament lines offer less stretch but more strength for a given diameter than ordinary line. They are mainly used for hooklengths in pole fishing, where the pole elastic compensates for their lack of stretch.

holding area
Any specific position in a body of water to which fish are attracted because of its cover or food

Holding back
Trotting a float at a slower speed than the surface current, so that the hookbait goes down the swim at the same speed as, or slower than, the current at the bottom of the river.

Home range
The area that an animal traverses in the scope of normal activities. This is not to be confused with territory, which is the area an animal defends.

Homing
The ability of a salmon or steelhead to correctly identify and return to their natal stream, following maturation at sea.

Honey Hole
A slang term used to describe a specific hole or an area containing big fish and/or a high number of fish.

Hook wallet
A plastic wallet with numerous sections for storing spare spade-end hooks tied to nylon.

Hooklength
The length of line, usually of a lower breaking strain than the main line, that joins the hook to the main line.

Hook tyer
A small, hand-held device for tying line to spade-end hooks, a hook tyer is particularly useful for tiny hooks.

Hooklength stiffener
A gel sometimes used by carp anglers to stiffen part or the whole of soft-braided hooklengths.

Hook-to-nylon
A spade-end hook sold ready-tied to a hooklength, with a loop ready-tied in the other end.

Hooks
Hooks used in coarse fishing range from size 2, the biggest, to size 28, the smallest. Fine wire, medium wire and forged hooks are available, with or without barbs, and with spade ends or eyes, and short or long shanks.

Hot-shotting
A presentation whereby a wobbling plug is fished in a river directly downstream from a boat or wading angler

Husbandry
The scientific management and control of the hatchery environment for the production of fish or wildlife.

Hybrid
A cross between two species of fish. The commonest are roach/bream hybrids, once known as Pomeranian bream and thought to be a separate species.

Hydrology (Hydrologic)
The science that deals with the distribution, properties, and circulation of water on land surface, in the soil, underlying rocks, and in the atmosphere.

Hypolimnion
The colder layer of water below the thermocline ichthyology the study of fishes

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Ice-breaker
A heavy weight joined to a length of rope by a few feet of chain, ice-breakers are commonly used by match anglers on frozen canals.

Ichthyology
The specific branch of zoology that deals with the study of fishes.

Imbricated
Lying lapped over each other in regular order (like scales of a fish or shingles on a roof).

Immigration
Referring to the movement of organisms into an area. See emigration and migrating.

Imprinting
The physiological and behavioral process by which migratory fish assimilate environmental cues to aid their return to their stream of origin as adults.

Inbreeding
Mating or crossing of individuals more closely related that average pairs in the population.

Incubation
The period of time from egg fertilization until hatching.

Indian reed
A buoyant material, also known as Sarkandas, often used to make wagglers.

Inferior mouth
The type of mouth that opens on the ventral surface (like sturgeon).

Inflated worm method Inserting an air bubble into a worm with a hypodermic needle

Instantaneous Rate Of Fishing Mortality
When fishing and natural mortality act concurrently, F is equal to the instantaneous total mortality rate, multiplied by the ratio of fishing deaths to all deaths. Also called; rate of fishing; instan- taneous rate of fishing; *force of fishing mortality .

Instantaneous Rate Of Growth
The natural logarithm of the ratio of final weigl1t to initial weight of a fish in a unit of time, usually a year. When applied collectively to all fish of a given age in a stock, the possibility of selective morta lity must be considered .

Instantaneous Rate Of Mortality
The natural logarithm (with sign changed) of the survival rate. The ratio of number of deaths per unit of time to population abundance during that time, if all deceased fish were to be immediately replaced so that population does not change. Also called; *coefficient of decrease.

Instantaneous Rate Of Natural Mortality
When natural and fishing mortality operate concurrently it is equal to the instantaneous total mortality rate, multi- plied by the ratio of natural deaths to all deaths. Also called; *force of natural mortality .

Instantaneous Rate Of Recruitment
"Number of fish that grow to catchable size per short interval of time, divided by the number of catchable fish already present at that time. Usually given on a yearly basis; that is, the figure just described is divided by the fraction of a year represented by the ""short interval"" in question. This concept is used principally when the size of the vulnerable stock is not changing or is changing only slowly, since among fishes recruitment is not usually associated with stock size in the direct way in which mortality and growth are."

Instantaneous Rate Of Surplus Production
"Equal to rate of growth plus rate of recruitment less rate of natural mortality--all in terms of weight and on an instantaneous basis. In a ""balanced"" or equilibrium fishery, this increment replaces what is removed by fishing, and rate of surplus production is numerically equal to rate of fishing. Also called; *instantaneous rate of natural increase."

Interorbital
The space between the eyes.

Introduction Ihe intentional or accidental placement of fish in a body of water; intentional scientific introduction of fish is also called "stocking"

In-line bomb
A bomb with a lengthways hole through which you run the line, mainly used in the larger sizes in rigs for carp.

Insert waggler
A waggler with a tip made from a short length of thin cane, reed, plastic or peacock quill, for greater sensitivity.

Invertebrate drift
Stream and terrestrial invertebrates that float with the current.

Inverted teardrop pole float
See 'body-up pole float'.

Irish brandling
A larger than normal type of brandling, found in Ireland.

Iteroparous
Species that reproduce repeatedly during their lifetime.

J

Jack pike
A pike of any size up to about 4.5kg (10lb).

Jerk baits
Very large stick baits which the angler must jerk to impart action

Jigging
Imparting an up-and-down or sideways action to a jig

Jigs
Lures with a lead head moulded around the hook; many are dressed with fur, plastic, or feathers

Joker powder
A fine powder for sprinkling on damp jokers to separate them for more even mixing into groundbait.

Jokers
Small, red, gnat larvae, collected from polluted streams and used almost exclusively by match anglers for small fish on canals, as a hookbait and as feed, often in conjunction with bloodworm.

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Keeper ring
A small ring whipped on to the butt section of some rods, to hold the hook when the tackled-up rod is not in use.

Keepnet
A round or rectangular nylon mesh tube, with a screw-thread attachment for a bank stick, and rigid plastic shape-retaining hoops, for temporarily retaining fish in the water's edge.

Keepnet damage
Damage caused to the scales or fins of fish by the mesh of badly designed keepnets.

Kelt
A spent or spawned out steelhead salmon.

Knot picker
A pointed tool, often combined with a disgorger, for unpicking unwanted knots in your line.

Kype
The distinctive hooked jaw that male salmon develop during spawning.

Krill
Small abundant crustaceans that form an important part of the food chain in Antarctic waters.

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Lake classifications
Broad categories of lake types; eg. " oligotrophic, " " mesotrophic, " and " eutrophic "

Lake zones
Specific water zones; e.g., shallow water. water

Lamprey
A small, boneless, eel-like jawless fish, found in clear, fast streams. It lives as a parasite and scavenger and is highly prized as a livebait or deadbait for chub and pike.

Landing net
An essential aid for landing fish too big to be lifted straight from the water, a landing net comprises a round or triangular mesh head, and a one-piece, take-apart or telescopic handle.

Landlocked fish
Any species that is limited to a body of fresh water without access to the sea

Lateral line
A series of sensory pores opening to the exterior along the side of fish.

Laying on
Float fishing overdepth, usually with a top-and-bottom float, to present a still bait on the bottom.

Leader
The transition between the line and the lure, often made of heavier line, lighter line, or wire

Leather carp
A scaleless variant of the common carp.

Leem (or leam)
See 'Damp leem', 'Dry leem'.

Legering
Using a rig incorporating a weight, such as an Arlesey bomb, and no float, to present a still bait on the bottom.

Leger beads
A leger bead is a small plastic bead that runs on the main line. It has a small side-eye to which the swimfeeder, weight or link is attached.

Leger booms
A short, hollow plastic tube, used in leger rigs, through which the line is threaded. They are most common in anti-tangle rigs.

Leger stops
A small plastic sleeve held in place on the line with a removable plastic peg, used to stop a sliding leger weight or swimfeeder the required distance from the hook.

Length Frequency
An arrangement of recorded lengths which indicates the number of times each length or length interval occurs.

Lentic
Characterizing aquatic communities found in standing water.

Lift bite
A bite which shows up on a float by the float rising up in the water. It is caused by the biting fish taking the weight of some of the shot on the line.

Lift method
A method devised primarily for stillwater tench, featuring a quill float attached bottom-end only, and all the shot close to the hook, which is fished on the bottom. When a fish picks up the bait and shot you get a clear lift bite.

Light conditions
Refers to intensity of daylight; e.g., cloudy day -- low light conditions, sunny day -- high light conditions

Lignum-stemmed stick float
A stick float with a stem made of lignum, a heavy wood that sinks in water. This produces a stable float that can be cast farther, and held back harder, than a cane-stemmed stick float, but not one suitable for fishing on the drop.

Limnetic
Referring to a standing water Ecosystem (ponds or lakes).

Limnology
The study of lakes, ponds and streams.

Line bite
A line bite, or liner, is a false bite from a fish swimming into or close to the line. Line bites are commonest when legering for bream and float fishing for small carp.

Line clip
A small clip found on the spools of many fixed-spool reels, designed to retain the end of the line when not in use. When legering or float fishing at long range for fish that do not fight hard, such as bream and roach, clipping the line up after casting to the required spot at the start ensures that you cast the right distance every time throughout the rest of the session.

Line floatant
A liquid specially designed for spraying on to line to make it float.

Line greaser
A plastic, grease-filled device that clips on to the rod. Winding the line through the greaser coats it in grease to make it float.

Line standards
Fishing line is often rated by pound-test, which refers to the amount of steady strain a line can withstand; other factors are limpness, shock and abrasion resistance, diameter, and elasticity

Line threader
A needle-like tool to make it easier to thread the line through rod rings. It is particularly useful when tackling up in the dark, and in cold weather when fingers are numb.

Link legering
Quivertipping close to the bank, downstream of your rod, in running water, with light tackle and a small Arlesey bomb or one or two swan shot on a link (a length of line).

Lipless Crankbait
As the name implies this is a crankbait that doesn't have a lip or bill. They are designed with a sloping front and large treble hooks to be retrieved through a variety of cover. They range in sizes from about 1/8 ounce to one ounce. They are usually worked around weeds, rocks and other types of shallow cover

Liquidized bread
Fresh white bread chopped into fine particles in a food processor, to use as groundbait when fishing punched bread.

Little and often
A style of feeding whereby a small amount of feed is thrown into the swim at regular and frequent intervals.

Littoral zone
The region of land bordering a body of water.

Live box
A container filled with water and often equipped with accessories such as aeration equipment that is used to hold and transport live fish.

Livebait
A live fish that is used as a hookbait, mainly by anglers fishing for pike, zander, perch or catfish.

Livebait bucket
A water-filled container, usually with an aerator attached, for storing livebaits.

Loach
There are two species of loach in British waters - the stone loach and the spined loach. They feed on the bottom and grow to around 56-85g (2-3oz).

Loaded float
Any float, but usually a waggler, in which some or even all of the shot capacity is built into the base in the form of brass or lead rod.

Lobworm
A large garden worm that can be used whole or in sections on the hook, especially for eels, chub, tench, carp, barbel, bream and roach, or chopped up for use as feed.

Locking shot
Two or more split shot used to lock a waggler on to the line, to hold the float in place and provide casting weight.

Logbook
A diary in which to keep a record of fishing trips, recording such data as baits and methods used, number and size of fish caught, and weather and water conditions.

Long pole
Available in lengths up to 16m (52ft), in 1-1.5m (3-5ft) sections, long poles are mainly used in match fishing, to fish light float rigs, usually on a short line. This can allow greater speed and accuracy, better bait presentation and a higher proportion of bites hit, than fishing a running line with a rod and reel. The top sections of the pole are usually fitted with shock-absorbing elastic, for playing fish.

Long-lining
Fishing a long pole to hand, with a rig the same length as the pole. Long-lining is mainly used for trotting.

Long-shanked hook
A hook with a long shank makes unhooking small-mouthed fish easier when fishing with very small hooks (sizes 20 and below).

Long-term potential catch
The largest annual harvest in weight that could be removed from a fish stock year after year, under existing environmental conditions. This can be estimated in various ways, from maximum values from production models to average observed catches over a suitable period of years.

Loop method
Fishing with a swimfeeder sliding on a 15-30cm (6-12in) loop tied in the main line above the hooklength. The rig ensures tangle-free casting, and is most often used on running water in conjunction with the bow method.

Loop-to-loop knot
A simple and strong way of joining two lengths of line, particularly the hooklength and reel line.

Loosefeeding
Throwing samples of bait into your swim, by hand or by catapult, without the aid of groundbait, to attract fish and induce them to feed. Loosefeeding is usually best done on a little-and-often basis.

Loosefeed catapult
A catapult for loosefeeding baits such as maggots, casters and hemp. Models with different strength elastics and different-sized pouches or cups are available.

Lotic
Meaning or regarding things in running water.

Luncheon meat
A widely used bait, especially for carp, barbel, tench and chub, luncheon meat can be used straight from the tin or fried, coloured and flavoured.

Lunker
A slang term used to describe a very large bass.

Lure fishing
Fishing with an artificial lure - a fly, spinner, spoon or plug - usually for pike or perch.

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MFU - Maritime Fishermen's Union
A Maritime organization representing inshore fish harvesters made up of MFU Locals throughout the Maritimes.

Macroinvertebrate
Invertebrates visible to the naked eye, such as insect larvae and crayfish.

Maintainable Yield
"The largest catch that can be maintained from the population, at whatever level of stock size, over an indefinite period. It will be identical to the sustainable yield for populations below the level giving the MSY, and equal to the MSY for populations at or above this level""."

Maggot binder
A sticky white powder used to bind maggots into a ball so that you can catapult them accurately over long distances.

Maggot riddle
A riddle designed to separate dead skins and freshly turned casters from large maggots. It is also useful for sieving freshly mixed groundbait to remove any lumps.

Maggots
Large maggots, the larvae of bluebottles, are the most commonly used bait in coarse fishing. They can be bought in their natural white colour or dyed a variety of colours.

Maize meal
Maize meal is a good medium in which to keep and clean maggots and pinkies, and is a useful groundbait additive, especially when you want a heavy mix.

Mandibular
Pertaining to the lower jaw.

Marker float
A large, easily seen float, fixed on the line above a heavy weight and cast in with a spare rod when fishing at long range on still waters, to act as a marker when casting and feeding.

Marker shot
A small shot incorporated into an overdepth float rig and positioned on the line to mark the exact depth.

Marshmallows
Often used as a floating bait for carp.

Mashed bread
Stale bread soaked in a bucket of water to use as groundbait when fishing with flake or crust on the hook, especially on rivers in winter for roach and chub.

Maxillae or maxillaries
The upper jaw, the upper jaw bones.

Maximum Sustainable Yield
The largest average catch or yield that can continuously be taken from a stock under existing environmental conditions. (For species with fluctuating recruitment, the maximum might be obtained by taking fewer fish in some years than in others.) Also called; maximum equilibrium catch ; maximum sustained yield; sustainable catch.

Mealworms
Small, wiry grubs that can be an effective hookbait, especially for roach.

Medium-wire hook
Hooks made from medium-gauge wire are stronger than fine-wire hooks but not as strong as forged hooks; they are good all-round hooks.

Mending the line
This keeps a float trotting in a straight line. The angler momentarily traps the line against the spool with a finger as it peels off the reel, and flicks the rod tip to keep the line behind the float.

Mental
Pertaining to the chin or mentum.

Mesotrophic
The middle stage of a lake's geological aging process; these lakes are usually fertile, warm to cool bodies

Metabolism
The rate at which a fish's biological functions occur; i.e., breathing, digestion

Method
See 'The Method'.

Method swimfeeder
An adapted frame swimfeeder incorporating heavy, shock-absorbing pole elastic, for fishing the Method.

Microbarbed hook
A hook with a tiny barb to minimize damage to the mouth of a fish and to baits such as maggots.

Microbung
A small plastic bung that fits inside the top section of a pole and to which the elastic is attached, when only the top section of pole is elasticated.

Midi boilies
Boilies between mini and standard boilies in size - usually around 10mm (2/5in) in diameter.

Migrant
Life stage of anadromous and resident fish species which moves from one locale, habitat or system (river or ocean) to another.

Migrating
Moving from one area of residence to another.

Milt
The sperm of fishes.

Minced meat
Minced beef used as loosefeed or with groundbait when fishing slivers of steak on the hook for chub.

Mini boilies
Small boilies of about 6mm-10mm (1/5-2/5 in) in diameter.

Minnow
A shoal fish found in running water but rarely exceeding 7.5cm (3in) in length. Minnows are regarded as a nuisance by most anglers, but make effective livebaits or deadbaits for perch, eels and chub.

Minnow trap
A device made from a bottle that is baited with bread and lowered into the water on a string to catch minnows.

Mirror carp
A variety of common carp with only a few large scales.

Mixed stock
A stock whose individuals originated from commingled native and non-native parents; or a previously native stock that has undergone substantial genetic alteration.

Mixers
Pet food mixers which make excellent floating baits for carp.

Molasses
A sweet, sticky groundbait additive that is especially attractive to bream.

Mole hill soil
A groundbait binder popular with match anglers, especially when used with bloodworm and joker and with chopped worm.

Monkey climber
A bite indicator used when legering. It incorporates a bobbin that slides up and down a metal spike.

Monofilament
Single-strand nylon, the material from which ordinary fishing line is made.

Morphology The body shape of a species

Mortality
The number of fish lost or the rate of loss.

Movements
Locational shift of fish from one area to another, usually on a daily or seasonal basis

Mudfeet
Plastic or metal discs placed under the legs of a platform or seat box to stop it sinking into soft mud.

Multiplier reel
A type of reel that incorporates a revolving spool, and is most often used when spinning or trolling for pike.

Multistrand line
A hooklength material comprising numerous soft, fine strands that separate in water, making it very hard to see. It is designed to fool wary fish such as big carp.

Myomeres
The muscle segments.

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Nail clippers
A useful tool for neatly trimming the line close to knots.

Narrow-gaped hook
A hook with a narrow gape between point and shank. Narrow-gaped hooks are usually long-shanked and fine-wire, with a crystal bend, for use with small baits such as bloodworm.

Natal
Birth place.

Natal stream
Stream of birth.

Natural Mortality
Deaths in a fish stock caused by predation, pollution, senility, etc., but not fishing.

Naturally spawning populations
Populations of fish that have completed their entire life cycle in the natural environment without human intervention.

Net Increase (or decrease)
New body substance elaborated in a stock, less the loss from all forms of mortality.

Negative
Fish at the lowest feeding mood, usually stressed by one or more factors in their environment

Neutral
The middle stage of fish activity

Neutral buoyancy device
A plastic device for determining the exact amount of shotting needed to cock a pole float when making up pole rigs at home.

Nitrogen narcosis
A condition suffered by fish when taken suddenly from deep water to the surface, causing expanding gases by rapid decompression

Nominal catch
The sum of the catches that are landed (expressed as live weight or equivalents). Nominal catches do not include unreported discards.

Noodle rod
A special long, soft rod that can handle light lines

Nuts
Various kinds of nuts can be used to catch carp, but they must be soaked and cooked, otherwise they can swell up inside a carp's stomach and kill it.

Nymphs
Flies made to sink below the surface of the water and imitate immature insects

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Odd-year run
A population of fish that returns to its natural spawning grounds in odd numbered years, such as the pink salmon.

Offset hook
A hook with the point bent at a slight angle to the shank. If you lay this kind of hook down, it will not sit flat.

Oligotrophic
A body of water that is deficient in dissolved nutrients, but can be rich in oxygen.

Olivettes
A teardrop-shaped weight, used as a bulk in pole float rigs, that threads on to the line and is held in place with shot or a small plastic peg.

Open-end swimfeeders
A plastic swimfeeder with no end caps, so that it can be filled with groundbait. It is punched with holes to quicken the release of its contents in the water.

Open water
Upper water layer of a lake, from the outside edge of the first major drop-off down to the deep-water zone

Opercle
Refers to the largest bone in the operculum.

Operculum
The gill cover.

Optimum Yield
(OY) The yield from a fishery which provides the greatest overall benefit to the nation with particular reference to food production and recreational opportunities; it is based on MSY as modified by economic, social or ecological factors. Precision and Accuracy Precision is the closeness to each other of repeated measurements of the same quantity or object, while accuracy is closeness of a measured or computed value to its true value.

Organic Baits
Minnows, insects, worms, fish eggs, cut bait, cheese, or similar substances used as a lure.

Outmigration
The migration of fish down the river system to the ocean.

Outplanting
Hatchery reared fish released into streams for rearing and maturing away from the hatchery sites.

Outpoint hook
A hook with the point curved slightly away from the shank, to make it more difficult for a biting fish to eject the bait without the point pricking its mouth. Outpoint hooks are mostly used with hair-rigged baits.

Oxbow
A U shaped bend in a river or stream.

Oxygen factor
The necessary amount of dissolved oxygen to sustain fish, supplied by current, wind, and the photosynthesis of aquatic vegetation

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PV1 binder
A sweet, sticky, powdery groundbait additive, useful when you need a heavy mix that goes straight to the bottom and breaks up in the water very slowly.

Palatines
Paired bones in the roof of the mouth, lateral to vomer; may bear teeth.

Pan fish
Small fish, usually of the sunfish variety such as bluegills

Papilla
A small fleshy projection.

Papillose
Covered with papilla.

Parameter
"A ""constant"" or numerical description of some property of a population (which may be real or imaginary). Cf. statistic."

Parasites
Organisms that infest and draw nourishment from a host, including game fish

Parietals
Pared bones on posterior roof of skull, lateral to supraoccipital.

Parr
The developmental life stage of salmon and trout between alevin and smolt, when the young have developed parr marks and are actively feeding in fresh water.

Parr marks
Distinctive vertical bars on the sides of young salmonids.

Particle baits
A term used by carp anglers to describe small baits, such as maggots, hemp, casters, beans and peas, that are fed in large quantities.

Particle glue
A tasteless, odourless and harmless substance for sticking large numbers of small baits such as hemp to a large hook.

Passive Integrated Transponder (PIT) tags
Passive Integrated Transponder tags are used for identifying individual salmon for monitoring and research purposes. This miniaturized tag consists of an integrated microchip that is programmed to include specific fish information. The tag is inserted into the body cavity of the fish and decoded at selected monitoring sites.

Paternoster rig
A rig in which hooklength branches from the main line, rather than being a continuation of it.

Pattern
Any reoccurring locational/presentational situation, which can be duplicated elsewhere in the body of water being fished

Peacock quill
Sections of quill from the tail feathers of peacocks are often used to make waggler floats.

Peak period
A period in the seasonal cycle of a species that is marked by high activity and is very productive for the angler

Peat
A popular groundbait additive that gives a dark, fluffy, cloudy mix without adding food value.

Pectoral fins
The anterior(front) paired fins, attached to pectoral (shoulder) girdle.

Peg
A numbered swim drawn by a competitor in a fishing match.

Pelagic
Of or in the open ocean or open water.

Pelvic fins
Posterior paired fins, located in the abdominal position or towards the rear.

Pencil float
Also known as a pike waggler, a pencil float is a large but slim balsa or hollow plastic float used when float fishing small livebaits or deadbaits for pike or zander in still or slow waters. It is attached bottom-end only.

Peperami
A spicy sausage, chunks of which can be used as a bait for barbel, chub, tench and carp.

Perch
A large-mouthed, boldly striped, predatory shoal fish found in all types of water, perch grow to 2.3kg (5lb) or more in weight, but a 0.9kg (2lb) fish is a specimen. They are most often caught on livebaits or deadbaits.

Peritoneum
Membrane lining the body cavity.

Pet food
Tinned dog and cat food, cat and dog biscuits, bird seed mixes, and fish pellets and flakes can all be used to make paste baits, mainly for carp, while cat and dog biscuits can also be used as floating baits, again mainly for carp.

PH
The system of measuring the level of acidity in a liquid on a scale of O to 14; each fish species has a preferred pH level

Pharyngeal teeth
Teeth located behind the gills and before the esophagus, and anchored in bone.

Phytoplankton
Microscopic floating plants, mainly algae, that live suspended in bodies of water and that drift about because they cannot move by themselves or because they are too small or too weak to swim effectively against a current.

Pheasant quills
Inverted pheasant quills make sensitive floats similar to crowquills and balsa wagglers.

Pigeon droppings
Dried and powdered pigeon droppings are a common ingredient of Continental groundbaits, especially those aimed at roach.

Pike
A streamlined, predatory fish found in all types of water and growing to 18kg (40lb) or more, although a 9.1kg (20lb) fish is a specimen. Pike are best fished for with artificial lures, livebaits or deadbaits.

Pike bung
A bulbous float designed to support a livebait or deadbait when fishing for pike.

Pike flies
Large artificial flies that imitate small fish, and used when fly-fishing for pike.

Pike rod
A rod designed for pike fishing, usually 3.7m (12ft) long, with a test curve of 0.9-1.4kg (2-3lb). Rods with different test curves, tapers and actions are available for different kinds of piking.

Pike slider
A pike slider is a streamlined balsa or hollow plastic float with a hole running through its length. It is threaded on the line in sliding float rigs and stopped the required distance from the bait by a bead and stop knot.

Pike tube
A long mesh tube with a drawstring, designed for temporarily retaining pike in the water's edge.

Pinkies
Small, lively, pinkish-white maggots that are the larvae of the greenbottle, pinkies are mainly used by match anglers on canals and still waters. Coloured pinkies are available, the commonest colours being bronze, red and fluorescent pink.

Pieces
"Individual items, as in the expression ""two dollars a piece"" . Individual fish."

Placoid scale
Small plate-like scales that have a rough exterior edge found on sharks and related species.

Plankton
Minute floating forms of microscopic plants and animals in water which cannot get about to any extent under their own power. They form the important beginnings of food chains for larger animals.

Plastic-stemmed stick float
Plastic-stemmed stick floats make excellent all-round stick floats, the plastic being heavier than cane but lighter than wire, and allowing you to fish on the drop while retaining stability.

Plastics
Soft, pliable lures made of plastic; available in an infinite variety of designs

Platform
A portable, lightweight aluminium platform with adjustable legs. Platforms make useful bait box stands, seats, and bases for seat boxes, especially on venues with sloping banks or shallow margins.

Plug
A three-dimensional lure that runs on top of or through the water; also called a crank bait bait.

Plummet
A small weight that is attached to the hook to ascertain the exact depth of your swim when float fishing.

Point
An extension of land which slopes into deep water

Pointed-top stick float
A stick float with a pointed top can be dotted right down for extra sensitivity. Less stable and less visible than a domed-top stick float, it is best used for fishing off the bottom in steady water at close range.

Polarizing sunglasses
Polarizing sunglasses are useful when stalking fish in clear water, as they cut out surface glare and make it easier to see into the water.

Pole bung
A tapered plastic cone to which the pole elastic is attached, and which fits tightly inside one of the top sections of the pole.

Pole Cat
A catapult designed for loosefeeding maggots, hemp or casters one-handed while fishing the long pole.

Pole cup
A plastic cup that clips securely near the tip of a pole, for accurately loosefeeding or groundbaiting a swim when short-lining with a long pole.

Pole cushion
A seat-box cushion with a central groove, to allow you to sit safely and comfortably on the butt section when fishing the long pole.

Pole elastic
Elastic, of various grades, that is fitted inside the top sections of pole, to act as a shock-absorber when striking into and playing fish.

Pole elastic lubricant
A liquid designed to facilitate the smooth passage of elastic from inside a pole, to allow smooth playing of fish without jerking them off the hook.

Pole elastic tensioner
A small plastic device, fitted just above a pole bung, on which the pole elastic can be wound to adjust its tension.

Pole elastic threader
A length of springy wire for threading elastic through one or more sections of pole.

Pole joint protector
A canned spray that dries into a hard sheen and reduces wear on the joints of a pole.

Pole joint restorer
A canned, carbon-based spray that restores loose, worn pole joints.

Pole rest
A pair of hooped rests, usually attached to the side of a seat-box, used to support a long pole out over the water.

Pole roller
A support with rolling bars that, when positioned behind you, allows you to feed a long pole back and forth smoothly.

Pole umbrella
An umbrella with a hole in one panel through which you can feed a long pole back and forth.

Pole-end protector
A plastic or rubber buffer that fits on to the butt of a pole to protect it from damage in use.

Pole winder
A plastic holder on which to store a ready tied pole-float rig.

Pole winder anchor
A looped rubber tether to secure the line at the end of a pole float rig to its winder.

Polyballs
Polyballs are small balls of polystyrene of various sizes. They can be used to pop-up deadbaits. They can also be incorporated into various float and leger rigs by threading them on to the line with a boilie needle.

Pond
A body of water smaller than a lake, often artificially formed.

Pool
A deep, slack area of a pool or river

Pop-up boilie
A boilie made buoyant by microwaving it, or by the insertion of a piece of rig foam.

Pop-up deadbait
A deadbait made buoyant by being injected with air or by the insertion of polystyrene balls or rig foam.

Positive
Referring to fish intent on feeding; also called "active"

Powergum
Thick, shock-absorbing line used to connect a weight or swimfeeder to the main line when casting long distances.

Prebaiting
Baiting up a swim before fishing it, either the day or night before, or over a period of several days or even weeks.

Predator/prey relationship
The relationship of baitfish and other forage to the fish which eat them

Presentation
The act of placing the correct bait at the correct depth and speed to trigger a response from the fish

Pre-smolt
A juvenile salmon or steelhead that has not yet reached the physiological state known as a smolt.

Pre-spawning mortality
Generally refers to non-fishery mortality of adult salmon and steelhead between the time the fish enter the Columbia River and the completion of spawning.

Precocious
Fish that have matured quickly, or faster than the remaining fish of its age-class.

Predation
Hunting and killing another animal for food.

Premaxilla
The paired bones forming the front of the upper jaw.

Preopercle
The large membrane bone lying in front of and parallel to the opercle.

Preorbital
The membrane bone lying in front of and below the eye.

Production
1. The total elaboration of new body substance in a stock in a unit of time, irrespective of whether or not it survives to the end of that time. Also called; *net production ; *total production. 2. *Yield.

Pteryhoids
Bones of the roof of the mouth lying behind and articulating with the palatines.

PTFE bush
A Teflon tube that fits on to the tip of a pole to allow the smooth, friction-free passage of pole elastic.

Pulses
Various kinds of pulses (beans and peas) can be used to catch carp, but they must be soaked and cooked, otherwise they can swell up inside a carp's stomach and kill it.

Punch crumb
Commercially produced white breadcrumb groundbait for use when fishing punched bread on the hook.

Put-in pole
A take-apart pole in which the base of each section fits inside the top of the next. Put-in poles tend to be heavier and stronger than put-over poles, and are most often used when fishing for carp or when fishing to hand for big weights of fish.

Put-over pole
A take-apart pole in which the base of each section fits over the top of the next. Put-over poles tend to be lighter and easier to unship than put-in poles. Most ordinary long poles have put-over joints.

PVA
A material that dissolves in water, PVA comes in tape, bag and string form for a variety of uses, such as attaching a string of boilies to the hook.

Pyloric
Pertaining to that part of the stomach from which the intestine leads.

Pyloric caecum
A projection in the form of a blind sac attached to the intestine near the posterior end of the stomach.

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Quiver
A rod holdall designed to carry rods ready made-up with reels and rigs attached.

Quivertip
A bite indicator for legering that comprises a ringed length of fine, flexible, tapered fibre-glass or carbon fibre. Some quivertips screw into the tip ring of an ordinary leger rod, but most quivertip rods either have a built-in quivertip.

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Radio-telemetry
Automatic measurement and transmission of data from remote sources via radio to a receiving station for recording and analysis.

Ramus
A branch; a projecting part.

Rate Of Exploitation
The fraction, by number, of the fish in a population at a given time, which is caught and killed by man during the year immediately following . The term may also be applied to separate parts of the stock distinguished by size, sex, etc. Also called; *fishing coefficient .

Rate Of Removal
An inexactly-defined term that can mean either rate of exploitation or rate of fishing--depending on the context .

Rate Of Utilization
Similar to rate of exploitation, except that only the fish landed are considered. The distinction between catch and landings is important when considerable quantities of fish are discarded at sea.

Ray
One of the supports of a fin.

Rear
To feed and grow in a natural or artificial environment.

Rearing
Refers to the amount of time that juvenile fish spend feeding in nursery areas of rivers, lakes, streams and estuaries before migration.

Recruitment
The amount of fish added to the exploitable stock each year due to growth and/or migration into the fishing area. For example, the number of fish that grow to become vulnerable to the fishing gear in one year would be the recruitment to the fishable population that year. This term is also used in referring to the number of fish from a year class reaching a certain age. For example, all fish reaching their second year would be age 2 recruits. Recruitment Curve, Reproduction Curve; A graph of the progeny of a spawning at the time they reach a specified age (for example, the age at which half of the brood has become vulnerable to fishing), plotted against the abundance of the stock that produced them.

Recruitment overfishing
The rate of fishing above which the recruitment to the exploitable stock becomes significantly reduced. This is characterized by a greatly reduced spawning stock, a decreasing proportion of older fish in the catch, and generally very low recruitment year after year.

Recruits
The total numbers of fish of a specific stock available at a particular stage of their life history.

Redd
A nest of fish eggs covered with gravel.

Redworm
Small (2.5-5cm/1-2in) red worm found in compost and manure heaps. Redworms are a good bait for many fish, especially bream and perch, and are easy to breed in a wormery.

Reel fittings
Sliding plastic, carbon or metal sleeves attached to the handle of a rod to secure the reel in place. Some rods have fixed screw-fittings.

Relative Abundance
An estimate of actual or absolute abundance; usually stated as some kind of index; for example, as bottom trawl survey stratified mean catch per tow.

Reproduce
To produce offspring.

Resident species
Species of fish which spend their entire lives in freshwater.

Retrieve
The various ways of working a cast lure back to the angler

Rhythm method
A summer method of fishing for dace in mid-water with a waggler and maggots by spraying the surface with maggots and striking repeatedly each cast until a fish is hooked.

Rig
Fishing equipment; most often refers to an outfitted boat or specially prepared terminal tackle

Rig foam
Buoyant foam rubber, which you can use to make pop-up boilies and pop-up deadbaits.

Rig rest
A wide, multi-notched device for neatly keeping spare, ready-rigged top sections of pole clear of the water or of bankside vegetation. It screws into a bank stick.

Rig spool
A large plastic drum around which you can wind and store spare carp or pike leger rigs.

Rig tubing
Lengths of plastic tubing used mainly by carp anglers to create tangle-free leger rigs.

Rig wallet
A large plastic wallet with envelopes in which you can store ready-made pike or carp rigs.

River classifications
According to the geological aging process, rivers or sections of rivers are classified as young, middle aged, or mature; young rivers are usually at headwaters and low in fertility; middle-aged sections are further downstream and more fertile; mature sections have deeper, slower-moving waters with high fertility and lower oxygen levels

Rivulet
A small stream or brook.

Roach
A silvery, bottom-feeding shoal fish, widespread in all types of water and growing to 1.8kg (4lb) or more, although a 0.9kg (2lb) roach is the fish of a lifetime.

Rod bag
A nylon or cloth bag for storing a rod, usually with a separate compartment for each section of rod.

Rod holdall
A large, waterproof nylon tube with carrying straps, for transporting your rods, poles, bank sticks and umbrella.

Rod holder
A device attached to the decking of a boat in which you place your rod; useful when trolling large baits

Rod licence
By law, all coarse anglers must carry a temporary or annual rod licence purchased from a Post Office.

Rod pod
A stable, rigid metal frame, with attachments for buzzer bars, for supporting one or more rods when legering. Rod pods are mainly used when fishing for big carp. They are very useful on hard banks.

Rod rest
A plastic device that screws into a bankstick, used to support a rod clear of the ground and water. Various kinds are available to support both the butt and top of a rod.

Rod taper
The taper of a rod determines the way in which it bends. Fast-taper rods have a tip action, slow-taper rods a through-action. Some rods have compound tapers, which share some of the attributes of both types.

Rod tubes
Rigid plastic tubes, usually with caps, for safe storage of rods inside a rod holdall.

Roe
The eggs of fishes.

Roll cast
One of the basic fly casting methods whereby the line is rolled directly off the water

Rolling leger
Fishing running water with a leger rig that rolls and bounces along the bottom with the current.

Rotten bottom
A length of weak line connecting a leger weight or swimfeeder to the main line, used in snaggy swims so that you lose only the weight or swimfeeder and not the fish should the weight become snagged during the fight. It also ensures that a fish cannot become tethered to a snag should the line break over the rig.

Rough Fish
Those species of fish considered to be of either poor fighting quality when taken on tackle or of poor eating quality, such as carp, gar, suckers, etc. Most species in this group are more tolerant of widely fluctuating environmental conditions than Game Fish.

Run (of fish)
A group of fish of the same species that migrate together up a stream to spawn, usually associated with the seasons, e.g., fall, spring, summer, and winter runs. Members of a run interbreed, and may be genetically distinguishable from other individuals of the same species.

Round-bend hook
Hooks with round bends have a wider gape than hooks with crystal bends and are therefore better for large baits such as bread, worms, luncheon meat and sweetcorn.

Round-bodied pole float
A pole float with a spherical or bulbous oval balsa body allows the bait to be inched through the swim in running water without the float riding out of the water.

Roving
Travelling light and moving from swim to swim, fishing each one for only a short period of time.

Rubber lure
A lure made from soft rubber shaped to imitate a small fish, and fitted with trebles to catch mainly pike and perch.

Rudd
A silvery-gold, surface-feeding shoal fish found mainly in still waters. Frequently confused with roach, with which it often hybridizes, rudd grow to a similar size.

Ruffe
A small (5-12.5cm/2-5in), bottom-feeding shoal fish, found mostly in rivers and canals, and mainly of interest to match anglers.

Rugby-ball bodied pole float
A pole float with a rugby-ball shaped body is a good all-round pattern, being suitable for still and slow waters, and for fishing on the drop or on the bottom.

Run
A term used when a fish, usually a pike or carp, picks up your bait and swims off with it.

Run clip
Mainly used when legering for big fish, a run clip is a plastic clip that traps the line against the rod just above the reel, but releases the line when you get a run.

Running leger
A leger rig in which the weight runs freely on the line to minimize resistance to a biting fish.

Running paternoster
A paternoster rig in which the weight is attached to a short link that runs freely on the line.

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Salmonid
Fish of the family Salmonidae, that includs salmon and steelhead.

Sample A
proportion or a segment of a fish stock which is removed for study, and is assumed to be representative of the whole. The greater the effort, in terms of both numbers and magnitude of the samples, the greater the confidence that the information obtained is a true reflection of the status of a stock (level of abundance in terms of numbers or weight, age composition, etc.)

Sand
Small substrate particles, generally referring to particles less than 2 mm in diameter. Sand is larger than silt and smaller than cobble or rubble.

Sausage meat
Flavoured or unflavoured sausage meat can be an effective bait for carp, barbel, chub and tench.

Scalded maggots
Maggots that have been killed by immersing them in boiling water, so that they cannot crawl away into the bottom silt when fed into a swim.

Scientific method
In contrast to fishing by "luck," fishing based on the observation of the environment

Screw-bomb
An Arlesey bomb with a screw-in swivel attachment to allow you to change the size of the bomb without breaking down your whole rig.

Scute
An extendal bony plate, usually keeled.

Sea fish
Various sea fish, including sprats, sardines, herrings, smelts and mackerel, make excellent deadbaits for pike.

Seat box
A tackle box with a carrying strap, cushioned seat, drawers and adjustable legs.

Sediment
The organic material that is transported and deposited by wind and water.

Self-cocking float
A float with all its shotting loaded into the base, to present a slow-sinking bait with no shot on the line

Self-hooking rig
See 'Bolt rig'.

Semelparous
Species that reproduce only once during their lifetime.

Setting the hook
Using the rod to drive the hook through the mouth of the fish

Shallow-water zone
The area of a lake from shore to the first major drop-off

Shank
Section of hook between the eye and the point

Shallow-diving plug
A plug with a sharply angled vane, so that it fishes just below the surface when retrieved.

Shelf-life boilies
Commercially produced boilies containing food preservatives, shelf-life boilies are banned on some waters.

Shirt-button shotting
A waggler or stick float rig, with small shot spaced at regular intervals between the float and the hook, for fishing on the drop.

Shock beads
A rubber bead that is used as buffer above knots to absorb the shock of long-distance casts when legering or swimfeeder-fishing.

Shock leader
A length of strong line, usually about 6-10m (20-33ft) long, connecting the reel line to the rig, to absorb the shock of long-distance casts when legering or swimfeeder-fishing.

Short-lining
Fishing a long pole with a rig that is shorter than the length of pole being used.

Shot bite
A false bite that occurs when a fish, usually a roach, mistakes a small shot on the line for a grain of hemp.

Shrink tube
This is rig tubing which shrinks permanently when boiling water is poured over it. It is useful in some anti-tangle rigs when shrunk over links and other items which are prone to tangling.

Side-hooking
Mounting a bait such as a boilie on the shank of a hook on the opposite side to the point.

Silicone tubing
Silicone rubber tubing of different colours and diameters has a variety of uses - you can cut float rubbers from lengths of it, use it to attach a Betalite to a float and use it in many specialist rigs, such as semi-fixed leger rigs.

Silkweed
Soft, green, fine-stranded weed found growing on rocks and weir sills in running water, silkweed can be used on the hook to catch roach and dace.

Silver bream
A deep-bodied, silvery shoal fish that is often mistaken for small, skimmer bronze bream. Silver bream are mainly found in eastern England, and grow to about 1.4kg (3lb).

Sink and draw
A method of fishing a deadbait or lure by pausing occasionally on the retrieve, which allows the bait to sink and gives it an enticing erratic motion through the water.

Sinking line
Brands of line designed to sink are useful for legering and waggler fishing as they sink below surface drift.

Sinkers
Lead weights of various designs and sizes used to sink baits and lures

Silt
Substrate particles smaller than sand and larger than clay.

Skimmer
Small bronze bream up to about 0.9kg (2lb) are called skimmers. They have silvery rather than bronze flanks.

Skirt
Usually a rubber or vinyl addition to a lure that gives it action and texture

Slider fishing
A method of fishing deep water with a float sliding freely on the line. A stop knot tied of a short length of different line and a bead above the float cock it at the required depth.

Slim-bodied pole float
Pole floats with slim balsa bodies are designed for fishing shallow still waters, or deeper still waters on the drop.

Slip-sinker
A sinker threaded on the line which slides, preventing the fish from feeling resistance

Slipping clutch
See 'Drag'.

Slugs
Large black slugs are a good bait for chub, especially when freelined.

Smolt
Refers to the salmonid or trout developmental life stage between parr and adult, when the juvenile is at least one year old and has adapted to the marine environment.

Smoltification
Refers to the physiological changes anadromous salmonids and trout undergo in freshwater while migrating toward saltwater that allow them to live in the ocean.

Snake trolling
A system of boat control in which a lure or bait is trolled in a weaving manner in order to impart erratic action to a lure or to avoid spooking shallow fish; sometimes called zigzagging

Snap-link swivels
A swivel that allows rig components to be clipped on and off the line without breaking down the whole rig.

Snap tackle
A wire trace with one or more sets of treble hooks attached, used mainly in pike fishing.

Snelled hook
A hook with leader material attached

Sour-bran specials
Not commercially available, sour-bran specials are small, soft maggots bred by leaving out a shallow tray containing a mixture of vegetable water, bran and sour milk.

Spade-end hook
A hook with a small spade rather than an eye at the top of the shank. Spade-end hooks are mainly used in the smaller sizes (16 and below).

Spawn
The act of reproduction of fishes. The mixing of the sperm of a male fish and the eggs of a female fish.

Spawning stock biomass (SSB)
The total weight of all sexually mature fish in the population. This quantity depends on year class abundance, the exploitation pattern, the rate of growth, fishing and natural mortality rates, the onset of sexual maturity and environmental conditions.

Spawning stock biomass-per-recruit (SSB/R)
The expected lifetime contribution to the spawning stock biomass for a recruit of a specific age (e.g., per age 2 individual). For a given exploitation pattern, rate of growth, and natural mortality, an expected equilibrium value of SSB/R can be calculated for each level of F. A useful reference point is the level of SSB/R that would be realized if there were no fishing. This is a maximum value for SSB/R, and can be compared to levels of SSB/R generated under different rates of fishing. For example, the maximum SSB/R for Georges Bank haddock is approximately 9 kg for a recruit at age 1.

Speed trolling
A system of boat control in which a lure is trolled behind a boat moving at fast speed

Spigot
The joint in a rod where one section fits neatly into the other.

Spincasting reel
A closed-faced, push button-operated reel which sits on top of a casting rod; ideally suited for beginners

Spine
A single, median supporting element of a fin, usually stiff. Distinguished from a ray in that it is single, median, never branched or jointed.

Spinner
A lure that consists of one or more blades attached to a central wire shaft with a clevis; the blades spin.

Spinner bait
Differs from an ordinary spinner in that the blade is attached to one end of the bent safety pin wire and the other end of the wire is moulded into the head of a Jig

Spinning
This method uses a reel with a fixed spool hung below a rod fitted with oversized guides; when the angler turns the handle of the reel, a metal bail engages the line and deposits it on the spool

Splitshot
A type of weight used for light tackle angling that is pinched directly onto the line

Split shot
Small, round, slotted weights that pinch on to the line and are used when float fishing. Various sizes are available, from number 13 (the smallest) to SSG, or swan shot (the largest).

Spooking
Frightening a fish spool the section of a reel that holds the coiled fishing line

Spool knot
A knot for tying line to the spool of a reel.

Spoons
Lures that are stamped from flat metal, varying in size, weight, and thickness.

Spread bulk
A string of closely spaced small split shot used on the line in float rigs in place of larger bulk shot.

Springtip
A legering bite indicator that screws into the tip ring of a rod, a springtip comprises a length of plastic or cane on a short spring.

Squatts
Tiny white maggots that are the larvae of houseflies, squatts are mainly used in groundbait for bream, but can also be loosefed and used on the hook with light tackle on slow and still waters for small fish. Squatts dyed red and bronze are commonly available.

Stacking lures
Placing more than one lure at different depth intervals, using one rod, usually with the aid of a downrigger

Stalking
Stealthily fishing for individual fish spotted at close range in clear water.

Stalking rod
A short, usually 2.4m (8ft), through-action rod designed for catching large fish at close quarters in often tight, overgrown swims.

Standard length
The straight distance between the tip of the snout and the base of the caudal fin rays.

Standardization
The procedure of maintaining methods and equipment as constant as possible.

Starlight
A small plastic tube, containing a chemical that emits light for several hours, which can be attached to a float or other bite indicator for fishing at night.

Status of exploitation
An appraisal of exploitation is given for each stock discussed in the Species Synopsis section using the terms unknown, protected, not exploited, underexploited, moderately exploited, fully exploited, and over-exploited. These terms describe the effect of current fishing effort on each stock, and is based on current data and the knowledge of the stocks over time.

Steak
Fishing with small slivers of raw steak on the hook and feeding minced beef can be an effective method for chub.

Stick baits
Cigar-shaped plugs with no built-in action, baits with added scents

Stick float
A slim trotting float that is fished top and bottom, a stick float comprises a buoyant balsa top and a heavier cane, plastic, lignum or wire stem. Stick floats are mainly used with light tackle and small baits such as maggots.

Stick float rod
A tip-action float rod with a solid spliced tip for a quick pick-up of the line on the strike when stick float fishing.

Strike Zone
The term strike zone is the area of water that the fish is in and is willing to travel and chase after any available bait/lure that passes through that area. This is usually a relatively small area as far as depth is concerned. If a bass is in 8 feet of water its strike zone would be considered from about 4 to 8 feet. Depending on the water clarity it could go all the way to the surface. To keep your lure in the strike zone you have to remember that to get your lure to that depth you have to cast past where you want your lure to go, consider the distance that the lure has to travel as it's diving to get to that depth and then as it nears your rod it starts to travel back out of the strike zone. It sounds likes it's pretty complicated to do this but it really isn't and only takes about a fraction of a second to think about it.

Stickleback
A small, hardy fish which is common throughout much of Britain.

Stock
A specific population of fish spawning in a particular stream during a particular season.

Stock A
part of a fish population usually with a particular migration pattern, specific spawning grounds, and subject to a distinct fishery. A fish stock may be treated as a total or a spawning stock Total stock refers to both juveniles and adults, either in numbers or by weight, while spawning stock refers to the numbers or weight of individuals which are old enough to reproduce.

Stone
Rock fragments larger than 25.4 cm (10 inches) but less than 60.4 cm (24 inches).

Stonfo
A small, sleeved plastic device for connecting the float rig to the elastic when fishing the pole.

Straight waggler
A waggler with no body or insert, mainly used for fishing at full depth in running water.

Straying
A natural phenomena of adult spawners not returning to their natal stream, but entering and spawning in some other stream.

Streamers
Wet flies made of feathers usually imitating baitfish

Strike
The instant a fish contacts a bait

Stringer
A number of boilies attached to the hook with soluble PVA string to act as free offerings close to your hookbait in the water.

Stringer needle
A small, hand-held tool like a long, thin crochet hook, for threading a string of boilies on to a PVA stringer.

Stripping
Line pulling line off the reel by hand

Structure
Any natural or man-made physical feature in a body of water; e.g., boulders, docks, weeds

Stunted fish
Fish whose growth is severely hampered by environmental factors such as overpopulation

Styl pincers
A tool for pinching Styls on to the line with even pressure.

Styls
Small, elongated split shot preferred to ordinary small shot by some anglers for delicate pole rigs.

Subabdominal pelvic fin
Said of pelvic fins when placed forward on abdomen but not attached internally to pectoral girdle.

Subadult
A developmental life stage when fish exhibit most but not all traits of an adult fish.

Submandibular pores
Pores found in some species that are located on the underside of the lower jaw

Subsurface lures
Lures designed to run at shallow depths

Sunken float paternoster
A float rig for pike fishing where the bait is on a separate link, making it a paternoster. The float's only purpose is to hold the rig off the bottom and has no bite detection function, so it sits below the surface.

Subpopulation
A well-defined set of interacting individuals that compose a proportion of a larger, interbreeding population.

Subspecies
A population of a species occupying a particular geographic area, or less commonly, a distinct habitat, capable of interbreeding with other populations of the same species.

Subyearling
A developmental life stage of fish that are less than one year old.

Success (of fishing)
Catch per unit of effort.

Supramaxilla
A small bone attached to the posterior end of the maxilla, dorsally.

Surface plug
A plug that floats and splashes across the surface on the retrieve. They are mostly used to catch summer pike.

Surplus Production
Production of new weight by a fishable stock, plus recruits added to it, less what is removed by natural mortality. This is usually estimated as the catch in a given year plus the increase in stock size (or less the decrease). Also called; natural increase, sustainable yield, equilibrium catch .

Survival Rate
Number of fish alive after a specified time interval, divided by the initial number. Usually on a yearly basis.

Suspended fish
Fish holding in an area anywhere off bottom to the surface

Sustainable yield
The number or weight of fish in a stock that can be taken by fishing without reducing the stock biomass from year to year, assuming that environmental conditions remain the same.

Sweetcorn
Frozen or tinned sweetcorn is an effective bait for many fish, and can readily be dyed and flavoured.

Swim
The area of water within casting range of your fishing position, and in which you are fishing.

Swimfeeder
A weighted, plastic device used in place of a leger weight and filled with groundbait or particle baits such as maggots, to attract fish into the vicinity of your hookbait.

Swimfeeder rod
An 3.4-4m (11-13ft) rod, usually incorporating one or more interchangeable push-in quivertips, but with a stiffer middle section than an ordinary quivertip rod, for casting swimfeeders. Light, medium and heavy models are available.

Swim-up fry
A salmonid fry that is swimming in the water column in search for food.

Swinger
A bite indicator used in legering that comprises a swinging arm that you attach to your line between the reel and the butt ring. As a fish takes, it pulls the swinger up giving a visible indication of the bite.

Swingtip
A sensitive, screw-in rod-top bite indicator for stillwater legering that comprises a 30cm (12in) or so length of cane or plastic hanging from a rubber hinge. kinking.

Swivel device
Attached to line which prevents line twist

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T

TAC
Total allowable catch is the total regulated catch from a stock in a given time period, usually a year.

Tail
The length of line, including the hooklength, between the hook and a leger or paternoster.

Tailing
A method of landing a fish by grasping it near the tail

Taper
An area that slopes gradually and evenly towards deeper water

Tapered line
Main or lead line that decreases in diameter towards both ends (double taper) or towards one end (weight forward and shooting heads)

Tares
A large seed bait commonly used on the hook in conjunction with loosefed hempseed for roach.

Target board
A circular or square plastic plate screwed into a bank stick and positioned behind a rod-top bite indicator such as a quivertip, to make it easier to spot bites when legering and to shield the bite indicator from the wind.

Teardrop pole float
See 'Body-down pole float'.

Temperature preference
The specific temperatures at which a given species functions most efficiently

Tench
An olive-green, powerful bottom-feeding fish found mainly in still waters, tench grow to 4.5kg (10lb) or more, although a 2.3kg (5lb) fish is a specimen.

Terminal mouth
Said of the location of the mouth when it opens at the end of the head, as in trout.

Terminal tackle
The equipment at the end of the fishing line, including hooks, lures, weights, and leaders

Territory
The area that an animal defends, usually during breeding season, against intruders of its own species.

Test curve
The amount of pull, in kilograms or pounds and ounces, you have to exert on a rod to bend the tip until it is at right angles to the butt.

Texposed
A Texas rigged plastic bait that has the point of the hook going through the plastic, thus esposing the point of the hook. This is a good rig to use in relatively brush or weed free water conditions

The Method
A method developed for catching small carp with a rig comprising a short hooklength attached to a frame swimfeeder by a short length of powerful pole elastic. The hookbait is often buried in a ball of groundbait moulded around the feeder.

Thermal stratification
The process whereby a lake divides into layers of water with different temperature ranges

Thermocline
A horizontal band of temperature change in a stratified body of water between the epilimnion and hypolimnion

Thoracic pelvics
Said of the pelvic fins when attached immediately below the pectorals and connected internally with the pectoral girdle.

Through-action rod
A rod that bends progressively through its length from the tip to the handle.

Throwing stick
A stick with a scoop at one end, for one-handed loosefeeding. Large versions are good for flicking out baits such as boilies, smaller ones for baits such as maggots. Very large versions are also available for feeding balls of groundbait.

Tip-action rod
A rod that bends only through the tip and middle sections.

Tippet
The fine end of a leader where a fly is tied; it is classified by size

Tip-up
A type of line-holding device used in ice fishing that indicates a strike

Top-water lure
Lures that float and are designed to be retrieved on the surface

Top and bottom float
Any float, but usually a stick, balsa or Avon, attached to the line with float rubbers at the top and bottom.

Topper
See 'Crowquill Avon'.

Touch legering
Feeling for bites on the line above the reel with your fingertips while legering.

Trace
A hooklength which may be made of wire, braided nylon or monofilament nylon.

Transition area
The place where one structure or water type ends and another begins; e.g., rock bottom turning into gravel

Treble hook
Three hooks with their shanks welded together and connected to the line or a wire trace by a single eye. Trebles are mainly used when fishing with deadbaits, livebaits or artificial lures for pike and zander.

Treble-hook guard
A moulded plastic device that clips on to treble hooks to guard their points when not in use.

Trigger
The sight, sound, smell, taste, texture, or vibration of a lure which entices a fish to strike

Trolling
A method of angling whereby lures or baits are presented by a moving boat.

Trotting
Fishing a bait below a float, especially a top-and-bottom float, by letting it run down a river with the current.

Trout pellets
Soaked to soften them, trout pellets can be a good bait for many fish, but especially carp and tench. They can be used as floaters, loosefed, ground up and added to groundbait, or made into a paste.

Truncate caudal
Said of the margin of the caudal fin when it is squared off as in some catfish.

Trunk myomeres of lampreys
The number of body segments between the last gill opening and the cloacal slit.

Tucked half blood knot
A blood knot with the tag end tucked back through the final loop so that it points back up the line. It may be less prone to slipping than a standard half blood knot.

Tule
Fall chinook stock native to the Columbia River tributaries.

Tungsten putty
A dense, mouldable substance mainly used by carp anglers on hooklengths to anchor critically balanced baits and floaters in the right position.

Turbidity
Suspended particles in water

Turmeric
A yellow powdered spice used by many river match anglers to degrease, colour and flavour large maggots.

Turnover period
A brief period when lakes or reservoirs are in the process of mixing water layers of different temperatures

Twitcher
A barely detectable bite given by large carp when they pick up the bait but do not move off with it.

Twitcher wheel
A wheel that you can fit into some electronic bite alarms that increases the sensitivity of the alarm to twitcher bites.

Twitching
Inducing a fish to bite by twitching the bait with a slight turn of the reel handle or a small movement of the rod tip.

Two-storey fish community
The relationship between species in a body of water where the warmer-water species inhabit the upper layer and the cooler-water species inhabit the deeper, colder portion Type N coho
A coho stock that rears in ocean waters off the mouth of the Columbia River and northward to the northern Washington coast.

Type S coho
A coho stock that rears in ocean waters off the mouth of the Columbia River and southerly to northern California.

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U

Undulating To move in waves. Referring to the movement of a female fish's tail in a waving motion used to move gravel for the construction of a redd.

Unhooking mat
A thick, soft, often inflatable, plastic mat, to lay large fish on when unhooking them, so protecting them from damage.

Up-trace
A wire trace which sits in a rig above the bait trace. It prevents a pike biting through the main line when it takes the bait in a float paternoster rig.

Upriver Bright stock (URB)
A stock of fall chinook destined for the Columbia River and several tributaries upstream from The Dalles Dam. These fish enter the Columbia from early August with the peak of the run at Bonneville Dam in early September.

Upwelling
The movement of nutrient rich waters from the bottom of the ocean to the surface.

Usable Stock
The number or weight of all fish in a stock that lie within the range of sizes customarily considered usable (or designated so by law). Also called; *standing crop.

Utilized Stock, Utilized Population
The part, by number, of the fish alive at a given time, which will be caught in future.

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V

Vaned plug
A plug with a metal vane at the front, which can be adjusted to work the plug at different depths.

Vanilla
A popular bait and groundbait flavouring in powder or liquid form, especially attractive to bream.

Ventral fins
See pelvic fins.

Vermiculations
Irregular lines or impressions like worm tracks.

Virtual Population
Utilized stock.

Virtual population analysis (or cohort analysis)
An analysis of the catches from a given year class over its life in the fishery. If 10 fish from the 1968 year class were caught each year for 10 successive years from 1970 to 1979 (age 2 to age 11), then 100 fish would have been caught from the 1968 year class during its life in the fishery. Since 10 fish were caught during 1979, then 10 fish must have been alive at the beginning of that year. At the beginning of 1978, there must have been at least 20 fish alive because 10 were caught in 1978 and 10 more were caught in 1979. By working backward year by year, one can be virtually certain that at least 100 fish were alive at the beginning of 1970. A virtual population analysis goes a step further and calculates the number of fish that must have been alive if some fish also died from causes other than fishing.

Vomer
The most anterior bone of the roof of the mouth; may bear teeth.

V-shaped rod rest
A V-shaped rod rest is a rigid, notched, V-shaped rod rest that lightly supports the front of your rod when legering, without trapping the line.

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W

Waggler
A float attached to the line at the bottom-end only, usually with locking shot, and which can be used in all types of water with small baits such as maggots and casters.

Waggler rod
A float rod with a hollow tip section and a more through-action than a spliced-tip stick float rod, to absorb the shock of the vigorous strikes often needed when waggler-fishing to pick up the line and set the hook.

Walking sinkers
Sinkers designed to move across the bottom, avoiding snags

Walking the Dog
"Walking the dog" is a term given to a type of retrieve used with certain types of topwater baits. To perform this type of retrieve you hold your rod tip down and give it a little twitch, this causes your bait to turn one direction. Reel up the slack just a little then you then give it another twitch and this causes your bait to turn to the opposite direction. You continue this type of motion until you get your bait coming to you in a zig-zag pattern. Not all topwater lures can be retrieved this way. The most famous and popular lure for this is the Zara Spook.

Wallis cast
A method of casting a float or leger with a centrepin reel by giving the line a sharp tug as you cast to set the drum of the reel spinning, and casting so the rig flies out at the same speed as line is peeling off the drum. It takes a bit of practise.

Wand
A short (1.8-3m/6-10ft), sensitive quivertip rod designed for very light, close-range legering with fine tackle.

Warmwater fish
A broad classification on non-salmonid fish that generally have at least one spiny ray, have pelvic and pectoral fins located behind the gills, and are usually suited for water that consistently exceeds 70 degrees F.

Washing-up liquid
Used to make line sink, washing-up liquid can be applied direct to the line on the reel or to a sponge on a rod rest.

Wasp grubs
A deadly bait for chub, especially when used with groundbait containing a wasp's nest mashed up in boiling water.

Water knot
A knot for joining two pieces of line.

Wave action
Wave action disturbs water surface, deters light penetration, and causes a shift in water temperature, current, and forage distribution

Weak stock
"Listed in the Integrated System Plan's list of stocks of high or highest concern; listed in the American Fisheries Society report as at high or moderate risk of extinction; or stocks the National Marine Fisheries Service has listed. ""Weak stock"" is an evolving concept; the Council does not purport to establish a fixed definition. Nor does the Council imply that any particular change in management is required because of this definition."

Weed guards
Devices of wire, plastic, rubber, or nylon attached to hooks which prevent their points from becoming snagged

Weedline
The outside or inside edge of weedbeds

Weed rake
A device comprising the heads of two rakes welded together and fixed to the end of a rope, for clearing water weed.

Weedcutter
A small, curved blade that can be screwed into the end of a landing net handle or long bank stick to cut marginal weed.

Weedless lures
Artificial lures designed so that their hooks don't get snagged up when used in weedy water.

Weigh sling
A net designed to hold large fish such as carp and pike safely while you weigh it.

Weir (fish trap)
Usually a barrier constructed to catch upstream migrating adult fish.

Wels catfish
A hard-fighting, nocturnal, large-mouthed, whiskered, bottom-feeding fish introduced to Britain and found in a few still waters, wels catfish grow to 23kg (50lb) or more.

Wet flies
Flies designed to sink below surface

Wheat
Soaked and boiled grains of wheat are a traditional roach bait, but can also be good for tench and carp. They can be flavoured and dyed.

Whip
A short 1.5-6m (5-20ft), telescopic or partly telescopic pole with a soft flick-tip, designed for catching small fish to hand.

White crumb
White breadcrumbs are commonly used in place of brown crumb to make a slightly heavier groundbait mix.

Wigglers
Nymph stage of the giant mayfly

Wild carp
Also known as wildies, wild carp are descended from carp bred by monks in monastery ponds in the Middle Ages, and are now found in only a few still waters. They are similar in appearance to common carp, but with slimmer bodies, and grow to 7kg (15lb).

Wire lining
Using metal line to present lures when trolling

Wild populations
Fish that have maintained successful natural reproduction with little or no supplementation from hatcheries.

Wild stock
A stock that is sustained by natural spawning and rearing in the natural habitat, regardless of parentage (includes native).

Wire-stemmed pole float
Wire-stemmed pole floats are more stable than ones with cane or carbon stems and are designed for fishing on the bottom rather than on the drop.

Wire-stemmed stick float
A stick float with a wire stem has greater stability in windy conditions and turbulent flow than a cane-stemmed stick float. The heavy stem also allows the hookbait to be held back hard.

Wire-tipped pole float
Wire-tipped pole floats are designed for fishing on the bottom on still waters and canals with small baits for small fish, and register the slightest of bites.

Wire thickness
There are broadly three thicknesses of wire. Fine wire hooks are ideal for presenting small baits such as pinkies and bloodworm as they damage the bait less. They are also light and don't affect bait presentation too much. They tend to straigthen out when under pressure from a big, fighting fish, however. Forged hooks are thick wire and very strong, but they are heavy and tend to spoil perfect bait presentation. They are ideal for catching big, hungry fish. Medium-wire hooks are somewhere between the two other types and make ideal general coarse hooks.

Wire trace
A wire trace between the hook and main line is essential when fishing for pike, catfish and big eels, to prevent the fish biting through the line.

Wobbled deadbait
A deadbait mounted on a set of trebles so that there is a bend in the body of the fish, and slowly retrieved so that it wobbles through the water, resembling a fish in distress.

Worm rigs
Specialized combinations of hooks, weights, and plastic or natural worms

Wormery
An aerated container such as a plastic dustbin, stocked with redworms or brandlings, which are kept fed and encouraged to breed with regular helpings of horse manure, grass cuttings, vegetable peelings, used teabags and the like.

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Y

Year Class
All of the fish/offspring of a given fish species in a given year

Yearling
A one year old fish.

Yield-per-recruit
The expected lifetime yield-per-fish of a specific age (e.g., per age 2 individual). For a given exploitation pattern, rate of growth, and natural mortality, an expected equilibrium value of Y/R can be calculated for each level of F.

Yolk
The food part of an egg.

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Z

Zander
A streamlined predatory fish, like a cross between a pike and a perch in appearance, but actually a separate species. Zander were introduced to Britain from Europe in several separate waves between 1880 and 1950. They are found mainly in the east of England.

Zooplankton
Small aquatic animals that are suspended or swimming in water.

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