A
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 - The act of dragging a fly across the current and giving it an unnatural drift.
Adam's Special - A general, widely used dry fly pattern to imitate an adult mayfly.
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 - The final phase of an insect's life cycle, most often occurring above water for aquatic
insects.
Aeration Tank - A chamber used to inject air into water.
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.
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.
Alphabet lures - Wide-body crankbaits that were originally fashioned from wood. Modern examples
include Bomber Model A and the Cotton Cordell Big O.
Amateur - Fisherman who is less experienced than his partner. Normally a term used in Pro/Am
style tournaments. Also describes angler who does not earn his living fishing.
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.
Anchor buoy - Usually a red plastic ball of at least 24 inches in diameter, with a large ring
attached. Hook the ring on the anchor rope and heave the buoy overboard. Drive the boat upwind
or upcurrent. Presto! The anchor is pulled up quickly to the buoy using horsepower instead of
human power.
Annelid - Term used for an aquatic worm which is a common food for trout and other fish.
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.
Antron - A synthetic yarn material made of long sparkly fibers used for many aspects of fly tying
including wrapped bodies, spent wings, and trailing shucks. Is also used for dubbing material.
Aquaculture - The controlled cultivation and harvest of aquatic plants or animals (e.g., edible
marine algae, clams, oysters, and salmon).
Arbor - The size of the spool of a fly reel. "Large arbor" reels have large-diameter spools, which
helps prevent a fly line from curling.
Artificial Reef - Any material sunk offshore for the express purpose of attracting fish. Old boats,
concrete culverts, metal pipe, the list is endless. Most states now require a permit before dumping
because non-practical material was being used, objects that rusted quickly, polluted or were a
hazard to shrimpnets.
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.
Attractor patterns - Bright, bold flies that do not imitate any insect in particular, but many insects in
general. Attractor patterns often provoke a trout's tendency to strike.
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.
B
Backing - Thin, strong string that is attached to a fly reel to fill up the spool before attaching the fly
line.
Backing down - Driving the boat backwards (in reverse) while pursuing a fish.
Baetis - A small gray mayfly.
Bait seine - Net used for catching bait fish.
Baitcaster - Most common style of reel used in bass fishing, typically round or oval shaped and
somewhat open construction. Also known as level wind reels.
Balao - Pronounced "bally-hoo," this is the popular offshore bait used for trolling, most often for
billfish. The bait of choice for sailfish for many years.
Ball bearings - Small metal balls added to the mechanical mechanism of high-quality reels to make
the retrieve smoother. Normally the more ball bearings a reel has the higher quality.
Balsa - Type of wood several lures are manufactured from. This wood is very light, yet highly
buoyant. Gives the lure great action. Examples include Bagley's Balsa B, and Rapala Minnows.
Barbel - A slender tactile process or fleshy projection located around the head.
Basiobranchial - The small bones behind the tongue on which the gill arches articulate.
Beads - Glass, or plastic beads added to a Carolina Rig to enhance the noise, and protect the
knot.
Beds - Circular areas in the lake bottom that bass clear out in which to lay their eggs during the
spawn. "The bass are on the beds" refers to the fish actively spawning.
Bell sinkers - Sinkers shaped like a bell, which are normally used on a Carolina Rig. Also known as
casting sinkers.
Belly - The middle section of a fly line.
Belly strip - A strip of belly meat from a baitfish. Cut and trimmed in a streamlined fashion, it can be
trolled behind the boat, where it flutters in a fashion enticing to gamefish.
Billfish - Any of several species of pelagic fish, including sailfish, spearfish, blue, black or white
marlin, and swordfish.
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.
Blood knot - A knot used to tie two pieces of tippet together -- also known as a barrel knot.
Bottom fish - Fish that spend most of their lives on bottom, such as carp, catfish, cod, snapper,
and grouper.
Brackish - Water that is mostly fresh, with some salt. The far ends of tidal creeks are mostly
brackish, supporting sometimes fresh and saltwater fish.
Braided channel - Usually found on freestone rivers, braided channels are ever-changing smaller
channels that together constitute the course of the entire river.
Brass - Materials used to manufacture several products in the marine industry since it resists
corrosion. Also refers to sinkers made of brass, which are harder and noisier that typical lead
sinkers.
Brood stock - Adult fish used to propagate the subsequent generation of hatchery fish.
Buccal - Pertaining to the cheeks or the cavity of the mouth.
Bump-troll - Keeping a trolled bait mostly in one spot, by pointing the boat into the current/wind
and "bumping" the engines in and out of gear, to hold position.
Buoyancy - The tendency of a body to float or rise when submerged in a fluid.
Butt seat - A seat that is shaped in a sort of half moon design, which anglers often use to lean
against while fishing. Also known as "Bike" seats.
Button-up fry - A salmonid fry that has not completely absorbed its yolk sac and has emerged from
its spawning gravel.
Bycatch - Non-targeted sea life caught by commercial fishermen. Tuna longlines have a bycatch of
turtles or mahi-mahi, for instance. Shrimp nets have a bycatch of at least a hundred species of fish
and crab, discarded overboard.
C
Caddis - A general name for the dozens of subspecies of caddis flies found in trout streams all
over the world. Also known as a "sedge," they are characterized by a tent-like wing. Caddis have
four stages of development, from egg to larva to pupa to adult.
Cape - The skin off a rooster chicken's neck, which yields several hundred good fly-tying feathers
from a quality cape.
Captive brood stock - Fish raised and spawned in captivity.
Carnivorous - Feeding on animal tissues.
Carolina rig - A rigging method designed to present a soft plastic lure along the contour of the
bottom. This rig consists of a main line with a heavy sinker, bead, then swivel. The swivel has a
leader (1-6ft) to which a plastic lure is tied.
Cartilaginous fishes - A major group of fishes including sharks and rays.
Cast net - A circular net thrown by hand. The outer perimeter is lined with lead weights. Great for
catching shrimp and baitfish.
Catadromous - Refers to fishes that migrate from fresh water to salt water to spawn or reproduce
such as the American eel.
Catch-and-release - Term that refers to releasing the fish you catch so that they can live to fight
another day, and thus insuring a productive fishery.
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"
Caudal - Pertaining to the tail.
Caudal fin - 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.
Centipede - Four-inch straight plastic worm used for Carolina rigs.
cfs - Abbreviation for "cubic feet per second," the term is a means of measuring the flow of a
stream. A small stream might carry 40 cfs and offer good trout fishing, while a large river like the
Colorado might reach 30,000 cfs in the Grand Canyon during flood stage.
Charger - Device used to charge the boaters trolling motor batteries.
Chine - The "running edge" of a boat. The chine is the edge made by the joining of the bottom
and the sides of a boat.
Chugger - Topwater lure that "chugs" when retrieved, similar but smaller than a popper. Example,
Storm Chug Bug.
Chum - Chopped up fish, shellfish or even animal parts (for sharks), dropped overboard to attract
gamefish.
Chum bag - A mesh bag left hanging overboard, filled with chum. Trollers sometimes drag the bag
alongside the boat. Smaller bags can be trolled deep while attached to downrigger balls.
Chunk - Plastic or pork trailer commonly used on jigs.
Cigar minnows - A yellow-tailed member of the scad family, sold most often as frozen bait in
five-pound boxes, caught along the Florida Panhandle. Widely regarded for their firm texture and
appeal to offshore fish. Cigar minnows can also be caught on tiny fly hooks, called Sabiki Rigs.
Circle hook - A circular hook up to 16/0 size, very safe to handle. The fish hooks itself with this
one, and the harder they pull, the more firmly the hook imbeds itself. Ideal for releasing fish, since
the circle hook is seldom swallowed.
Clacker - A metal device added to certain brand buzzbait in order to make additional noise.
Classic - Better known as The BASS Masters Classic, the year-end championship of bass fishing.
This is where the top anglers meet to crown a world champion angler.
Clicker cork - A thin Styrofoam cork, 3 inches long, mounted on an 8-inch wire. Yanking on it
produces a clicking sound that imitates shrimp snapping their tails underwater. These corks are
great for suspending a plastic shrimptail jig above a grass bottom, and below troublesome floating
grass.
Clinch knot - One of 4-5 very useful knots. Very simple to tie, yet very strong.
Clouser minnow - A streamer pattern that imitates baitfish, popular for many different species of
fish, named after originator Bob Clouser.
Clown - A color typically used mostly in hard jerkbait like Rogues. Consists of chrome body, with
chartreuse back, and red head or face.
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.
Colorado - Blade design used in spinnerbaits. Gives out a strong vibration. Blades are circular
shaped.
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.
Cover - A place for a game fish to rest in relative security from predators and current.
Crankbait - A plastic or wooden lure with a diving bill, that dives downward when retrieved or
"cranked."
Crawfish - Small fresh water crustaceans similar to lobsters only smaller. A favorite food of bass.
Also describes a reddish color used in all sorts of lures.
Crimp sleeve - A metal tube, thin as two wire leaders together. When attaching wire or very heavy
mono leader to a hook, one should use the crimp sleeve. A special, plier-like tool crimps the
sleeve tight.
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.
Cross chop - Wind-driven waves and ocean swell colliding from two directions. Also caused by
waves bouncing off a seawall and going back out, colliding with incoming waves.
Ctenoid - Having a comb-like margin.
Ctenoid scales - A type of fish scale that has spines or ctenii on the posterior or exposed portion,
found on bass, walleye, and other fish.
Cul de canard - In French, literally, "the butt of the duck," which is where these fine, downy, useful
fly-tying feathers can be found.
Culling - Refers to releasing a smaller fish when you have a limit and have now caught a larger
fish that will weed out one of the smaller ones.
Culprit worm - Although there are several similar worms, Culprit is the manufacturer of the original
ribbon tail plastic worm, thus it is often referred to as a "Culprit" style worm.
Cut - A narrow body of water cutting through land. For instance, a boat cut gouged through a
barrier island, for boater access.
Cut bait - Fish cut into chunks to fit the hook.
Cutting board - Plywood surrounded by a lip of wood, sealed and painted. Or just an old piece of
plywood. Used for cutting bait, and preventing knife cuts on expensive boat gunnels.
Cycloid scales - Smooth, flat, round scales that have concentric lines called circuli, found on trout,
herring, and other fish.
D
Deep-drop - Bottom fishing in deep water, from 500 to 1,100 feet and sometimes deeper. Usually,
a sash (window) weight is required to reach bottom. Circle hooks are a necessity.
Descaling - A condition in which a fish has lost a certain percentage of scales.
Delta - Sediment deposited at the mouth of a major river, pushing shallow water offshore, as in the
Mississippi Delta.
Distal - Away from the point of attachment or origin.Do-nothing rig - Western, clear water
technique generally applied in deep water and on light line. Consists of main line with a small
brass sinker, then a bead, and light wire hook. Baits are usually small 4-inch worms. The rig is
dropped to desired depth and then just slightly jiggled or left to "do nothing."
Dock lines - Ropes used to moor the boat.
Doormat - Large flounder, roughly the length and weight of a doormat.
Dorsal - Pertaining to the back, or situated near to or on the back.
Dorsal fin - The fin located on the back of fishes, and in front of the adipose fin, if it is present.
Dorsal fin ray - Refers to one of the cartilaginous rays (stiff rods) located in the membrane of a
dorsal fin.
Double haul - A casting technique where the angler pumps the fly line with the non-casting hand
on the forward and backward segments of the cast. The pumping motion accelerates the line and
gives the cast additional length. Double hauling is an essential technique for long casting.
Double-tapered fly line - A fly line that is thicker on both ends and thinner in the middle.
Double-tapered fly lines can be switched around as one end becomes worn.
Downrigger - Piece of equipment used to slow troll.
Downrigger ball - Cannonball-shaped device with a fin, used to keep a trolled bait far beneath the
boat.
Downstream drift - The act of allowing the fly to drift past the fisherman and rise to the surface on
the river below him, particularly on a nymph drift.
Drag - When a fly line catches on a current, making the fly drift in an unnatural fashion. Also the
mechanical device on a fly reel that limits how fast a fish can strip line from the reel.
Dredging - Retrieving a crankbait so that it continually digs or dredges up the bottom. This causes
reflex strikes from fish.
Drift anchor - Used most commonly in windy areas, by fishermen who drift all day. This anchor is
more of an underwater kite that slows the boat's drift in order to thoroughly fish a productive area.
Drift boat - Also known as a Mackenzie river dory, it's a river fishing craft ranging between 14 and
18 feet long with a flat bottom, upswept prow and rigid hull.
Drift fishing - Drifting along with the wind and tide.
Drift sock - A large sock shaped like airport wind socks. This is dropped over the side of the boat
to help control the boat in rough water.
Drip bag - Very similar to an IV drip bag used by doctors, this device releases a constant drip of
pogey oil over the side, attracting fish.
Drop shot rig - Technique in which the main line is tied to a sinker. The lure is tied to a leader
which is tied above the sinker. This allows the lure to sit a the exact depth of suspended fish.
Dropper - The secondary fly tied on the leader somewhere between the lead fly and the fly line.
Dry fly - A pattern designed to imitate an adult insect, floating on top of the water.
Dubbing - A wrapping to thicken the body of a fly, made by rubbing ground-up muskrat fur, rabbit
fur or other substance onto a waxed thread.
E
Eddy - A calm spot next to a fast current, or in the case of a "back eddy," where the current
switches direction.
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 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.
Egg weight - Egg-shaped lead weights of various sizes, with a hole drilled through the center.
When a bottom fish runs with the bait, the line slides through the weight's hole, allowing little
resistance and fooling the fish.
Electronics - Commonly refers to the depth finders, and fish locaters used by anglers.
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 insect in the transition period from hatching off the bottom of the river to flying away
from the surface of the water as an adult insect.
Emigration - Referring to the movement of organisms out of an area. See immigration and
migrating.
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.
Estuary - Sheltered water, often with grass bottom or grassy shorelines, where juvenile fish have
shelter, food and a chance to grow.
Euryhaline - Having a wide tolerance to salinity.
Evening hatch - When many insects choose to emerge from under the water.
Even-year run - A population of fish that returns to its natural spawning grounds in even
numbered years.
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.
F
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).
FADs - Fish Attracting Devices were first used centuries ago. Any large, floating object like a tree
that attracts pelagic fish. Some are anchored; others are allowed to drift.
Falcate - Hooked or curved like a sickle.
Fall-run fish - Anadromous fish that return to spawn in the fall.
False casting - Casting ever-increasing segments of line, or casting the same amount of line,
keeping the line aloft in the air without touching the water.
Fan cast - To cast in a manner that resembles the arms of a clock. Thus the angler is attempting
to cover as much ground as possible.
Fathom - Six feet of depth. Many nautical charts are marked in fathoms, not feet.
Fecundity - The total number of eggs produced by a female fish.
Felt soles - Most wading shoes for flyfishing are soled with thick felt for good traction on slick rocks.
Ferrule - The joint where different sections of a rod fit together.
Fiberglass - Material used to make crankbait rods. Glass makes the rod less sensitive and more
flexible, and reduces the chance of pulling a crankbait from a fish's mouth.
Fin Ray - A soft or hard cartilaginous rod in fins.
Finesse - Commonly refers to slowing down and using smaller lures, line, and rods. Also a style of
small lures used for this technique.
Fingerling - Refers to a young fish in its first or second year of life.
Finning - The wasteful, immoral practice of removing sharks' fins, dumping the carcass (often while
still alive), and selling the dried product for Asian soup.
Fire tiger - Color scheme that involves a lure with green back, chartreuse sides, orange belly and
black vertical lines on the sides.
Fish pass - A cut dredged through a barrier island, created to allow better fish traffic and tidal
flushing.
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, lowrance, etc., can increase fishing power.
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.
Flats - Very shallow water, easy to wade, usually with a sand bottom. This water is so thin, anglers
equipped with polarized glasses can visually spot and cast to various fish.
Flies - Artificial imitations of the aquatic and terrestrial insects found in and near trout streams.
Flies are tied of many and various materials, such as feathers, fur, thread, tinsel, and even
space-age materials. Patterns imitating minnows, baitfish and other fish and crustacean species
are also called "flies."
Flipping -Technique in which a short amount of line is pulled from the reel and raised vertically
then lowered to the side of an object. Normally used in dirty water and in thick cover.
Flipping stick - A heavy 7-foot rod designed specifically for flipping. Normally these rods telescope
down to a smaller size.
Float tube - A one-man fishing floatation device for lake and slow river fishing that looks like an
inner tube covered with a cloth mesh liner, seat, and back rest.
Floatant - A coating designed to keep a dry fly from becoming waterlogged.
Floater - Style of lure that floats rather than sinks at rest. Example wooden crankbaits.
Floating worm - Plastic worm used to catch spawning bass that actually floats on top of the water.
Florida rig - A worm sinker that has a metal cork screw in the base so that the angler can screw in
the worm. This keeps the sinker and worm together and reduces tangles.
Fluorocarbon - New style of line that is often invisible below the water's surface.
Fluvial - Migrating between main rivers and tributaries. Of or pertaining to streams or rivers.
Flying bridge - A permanent, raised steering cabin or platform on the bigger fishing boats.
Flying gaff - A detachable gaff, designed for big fish. The steel hook is attached to a strong rope.
The pole is used to jerk the hook into the fish, detaches, and the fish is suddenly attached to the
boat by a rope.
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.
Football head - Design refers to the shape of certain jigs that resemble a football mounted side
ways. Normally used in very rocky locations.
Forage Fish - Small fish which breed prolifically and serve as food for predatory fish.
Freestone river - A natural river with an undammed channel that allows free movement of stones
rolling down the river course over time.
French fry - Soft-plastic worm about 4 inches long. Resembles a crinkle-cut French fry. Used often
on Carolina Rigs.
Frenum - Referring to the membrane that binds the lip to the snout or lower jaw.
Frog - Soft, tough plastic lure that swims on top of the water. Often used in thick, scummy areas.
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.
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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 - The act of dragging a fly across the current and giving it an unnatural drift.
Adam's Special - A general, widely used dry fly pattern to imitate an adult mayfly.
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 - The final phase of an insect's life cycle, most often occurring above water for aquatic
insects.
Aeration Tank - A chamber used to inject air into water.
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.
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.
Alphabet lures - Wide-body crankbaits that were originally fashioned from wood. Modern examples
include Bomber Model A and the Cotton Cordell Big O.
Amateur - Fisherman who is less experienced than his partner. Normally a term used in Pro/Am
style tournaments. Also describes angler who does not earn his living fishing.
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.
Anchor buoy - Usually a red plastic ball of at least 24 inches in diameter, with a large ring
attached. Hook the ring on the anchor rope and heave the buoy overboard. Drive the boat upwind
or upcurrent. Presto! The anchor is pulled up quickly to the buoy using horsepower instead of
human power.
Annelid - Term used for an aquatic worm which is a common food for trout and other fish.
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.
Antron - A synthetic yarn material made of long sparkly fibers used for many aspects of fly tying
including wrapped bodies, spent wings, and trailing shucks. Is also used for dubbing material.
Aquaculture - The controlled cultivation and harvest of aquatic plants or animals (e.g., edible
marine algae, clams, oysters, and salmon).
Arbor - The size of the spool of a fly reel. "Large arbor" reels have large-diameter spools, which
helps prevent a fly line from curling.
Artificial Reef - Any material sunk offshore for the express purpose of attracting fish. Old boats,
concrete culverts, metal pipe, the list is endless. Most states now require a permit before dumping
because non-practical material was being used, objects that rusted quickly, polluted or were a
hazard to shrimpnets.
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.
Attractor patterns - Bright, bold flies that do not imitate any insect in particular, but many insects in
general. Attractor patterns often provoke a trout's tendency to strike.
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.
B
Backing - Thin, strong string that is attached to a fly reel to fill up the spool before attaching the fly
line.
Backing down - Driving the boat backwards (in reverse) while pursuing a fish.
Baetis - A small gray mayfly.
Bait seine - Net used for catching bait fish.
Baitcaster - Most common style of reel used in bass fishing, typically round or oval shaped and
somewhat open construction. Also known as level wind reels.
Balao - Pronounced "bally-hoo," this is the popular offshore bait used for trolling, most often for
billfish. The bait of choice for sailfish for many years.
Ball bearings - Small metal balls added to the mechanical mechanism of high-quality reels to make
the retrieve smoother. Normally the more ball bearings a reel has the higher quality.
Balsa - Type of wood several lures are manufactured from. This wood is very light, yet highly
buoyant. Gives the lure great action. Examples include Bagley's Balsa B, and Rapala Minnows.
Barbel - A slender tactile process or fleshy projection located around the head.
Basiobranchial - The small bones behind the tongue on which the gill arches articulate.
Beads - Glass, or plastic beads added to a Carolina Rig to enhance the noise, and protect the
knot.
Beds - Circular areas in the lake bottom that bass clear out in which to lay their eggs during the
spawn. "The bass are on the beds" refers to the fish actively spawning.
Bell sinkers - Sinkers shaped like a bell, which are normally used on a Carolina Rig. Also known as
casting sinkers.
Belly - The middle section of a fly line.
Belly strip - A strip of belly meat from a baitfish. Cut and trimmed in a streamlined fashion, it can be
trolled behind the boat, where it flutters in a fashion enticing to gamefish.
Billfish - Any of several species of pelagic fish, including sailfish, spearfish, blue, black or white
marlin, and swordfish.
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.
Blood knot - A knot used to tie two pieces of tippet together -- also known as a barrel knot.
Bottom fish - Fish that spend most of their lives on bottom, such as carp, catfish, cod, snapper,
and grouper.
Brackish - Water that is mostly fresh, with some salt. The far ends of tidal creeks are mostly
brackish, supporting sometimes fresh and saltwater fish.
Braided channel - Usually found on freestone rivers, braided channels are ever-changing smaller
channels that together constitute the course of the entire river.
Brass - Materials used to manufacture several products in the marine industry since it resists
corrosion. Also refers to sinkers made of brass, which are harder and noisier that typical lead
sinkers.
Brood stock - Adult fish used to propagate the subsequent generation of hatchery fish.
Buccal - Pertaining to the cheeks or the cavity of the mouth.
Bump-troll - Keeping a trolled bait mostly in one spot, by pointing the boat into the current/wind
and "bumping" the engines in and out of gear, to hold position.
Buoyancy - The tendency of a body to float or rise when submerged in a fluid.
Butt seat - A seat that is shaped in a sort of half moon design, which anglers often use to lean
against while fishing. Also known as "Bike" seats.
Button-up fry - A salmonid fry that has not completely absorbed its yolk sac and has emerged from
its spawning gravel.
Bycatch - Non-targeted sea life caught by commercial fishermen. Tuna longlines have a bycatch of
turtles or mahi-mahi, for instance. Shrimp nets have a bycatch of at least a hundred species of fish
and crab, discarded overboard.
C
Caddis - A general name for the dozens of subspecies of caddis flies found in trout streams all
over the world. Also known as a "sedge," they are characterized by a tent-like wing. Caddis have
four stages of development, from egg to larva to pupa to adult.
Cape - The skin off a rooster chicken's neck, which yields several hundred good fly-tying feathers
from a quality cape.
Captive brood stock - Fish raised and spawned in captivity.
Carnivorous - Feeding on animal tissues.
Carolina rig - A rigging method designed to present a soft plastic lure along the contour of the
bottom. This rig consists of a main line with a heavy sinker, bead, then swivel. The swivel has a
leader (1-6ft) to which a plastic lure is tied.
Cartilaginous fishes - A major group of fishes including sharks and rays.
Cast net - A circular net thrown by hand. The outer perimeter is lined with lead weights. Great for
catching shrimp and baitfish.
Catadromous - Refers to fishes that migrate from fresh water to salt water to spawn or reproduce
such as the American eel.
Catch-and-release - Term that refers to releasing the fish you catch so that they can live to fight
another day, and thus insuring a productive fishery.
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"
Caudal - Pertaining to the tail.
Caudal fin - 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.
Centipede - Four-inch straight plastic worm used for Carolina rigs.
cfs - Abbreviation for "cubic feet per second," the term is a means of measuring the flow of a
stream. A small stream might carry 40 cfs and offer good trout fishing, while a large river like the
Colorado might reach 30,000 cfs in the Grand Canyon during flood stage.
Charger - Device used to charge the boaters trolling motor batteries.
Chine - The "running edge" of a boat. The chine is the edge made by the joining of the bottom
and the sides of a boat.
Chugger - Topwater lure that "chugs" when retrieved, similar but smaller than a popper. Example,
Storm Chug Bug.
Chum - Chopped up fish, shellfish or even animal parts (for sharks), dropped overboard to attract
gamefish.
Chum bag - A mesh bag left hanging overboard, filled with chum. Trollers sometimes drag the bag
alongside the boat. Smaller bags can be trolled deep while attached to downrigger balls.
Chunk - Plastic or pork trailer commonly used on jigs.
Cigar minnows - A yellow-tailed member of the scad family, sold most often as frozen bait in
five-pound boxes, caught along the Florida Panhandle. Widely regarded for their firm texture and
appeal to offshore fish. Cigar minnows can also be caught on tiny fly hooks, called Sabiki Rigs.
Circle hook - A circular hook up to 16/0 size, very safe to handle. The fish hooks itself with this
one, and the harder they pull, the more firmly the hook imbeds itself. Ideal for releasing fish, since
the circle hook is seldom swallowed.
Clacker - A metal device added to certain brand buzzbait in order to make additional noise.
Classic - Better known as The BASS Masters Classic, the year-end championship of bass fishing.
This is where the top anglers meet to crown a world champion angler.
Clicker cork - A thin Styrofoam cork, 3 inches long, mounted on an 8-inch wire. Yanking on it
produces a clicking sound that imitates shrimp snapping their tails underwater. These corks are
great for suspending a plastic shrimptail jig above a grass bottom, and below troublesome floating
grass.
Clinch knot - One of 4-5 very useful knots. Very simple to tie, yet very strong.
Clouser minnow - A streamer pattern that imitates baitfish, popular for many different species of
fish, named after originator Bob Clouser.
Clown - A color typically used mostly in hard jerkbait like Rogues. Consists of chrome body, with
chartreuse back, and red head or face.
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.
Colorado - Blade design used in spinnerbaits. Gives out a strong vibration. Blades are circular
shaped.
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.
Cover - A place for a game fish to rest in relative security from predators and current.
Crankbait - A plastic or wooden lure with a diving bill, that dives downward when retrieved or
"cranked."
Crawfish - Small fresh water crustaceans similar to lobsters only smaller. A favorite food of bass.
Also describes a reddish color used in all sorts of lures.
Crimp sleeve - A metal tube, thin as two wire leaders together. When attaching wire or very heavy
mono leader to a hook, one should use the crimp sleeve. A special, plier-like tool crimps the
sleeve tight.
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.
Cross chop - Wind-driven waves and ocean swell colliding from two directions. Also caused by
waves bouncing off a seawall and going back out, colliding with incoming waves.
Ctenoid - Having a comb-like margin.
Ctenoid scales - A type of fish scale that has spines or ctenii on the posterior or exposed portion,
found on bass, walleye, and other fish.
Cul de canard - In French, literally, "the butt of the duck," which is where these fine, downy, useful
fly-tying feathers can be found.
Culling - Refers to releasing a smaller fish when you have a limit and have now caught a larger
fish that will weed out one of the smaller ones.
Culprit worm - Although there are several similar worms, Culprit is the manufacturer of the original
ribbon tail plastic worm, thus it is often referred to as a "Culprit" style worm.
Cut - A narrow body of water cutting through land. For instance, a boat cut gouged through a
barrier island, for boater access.
Cut bait - Fish cut into chunks to fit the hook.
Cutting board - Plywood surrounded by a lip of wood, sealed and painted. Or just an old piece of
plywood. Used for cutting bait, and preventing knife cuts on expensive boat gunnels.
Cycloid scales - Smooth, flat, round scales that have concentric lines called circuli, found on trout,
herring, and other fish.
D
Deep-drop - Bottom fishing in deep water, from 500 to 1,100 feet and sometimes deeper. Usually,
a sash (window) weight is required to reach bottom. Circle hooks are a necessity.
Descaling - A condition in which a fish has lost a certain percentage of scales.
Delta - Sediment deposited at the mouth of a major river, pushing shallow water offshore, as in the
Mississippi Delta.
Distal - Away from the point of attachment or origin.Do-nothing rig - Western, clear water
technique generally applied in deep water and on light line. Consists of main line with a small
brass sinker, then a bead, and light wire hook. Baits are usually small 4-inch worms. The rig is
dropped to desired depth and then just slightly jiggled or left to "do nothing."
Dock lines - Ropes used to moor the boat.
Doormat - Large flounder, roughly the length and weight of a doormat.
Dorsal - Pertaining to the back, or situated near to or on the back.
Dorsal fin - The fin located on the back of fishes, and in front of the adipose fin, if it is present.
Dorsal fin ray - Refers to one of the cartilaginous rays (stiff rods) located in the membrane of a
dorsal fin.
Double haul - A casting technique where the angler pumps the fly line with the non-casting hand
on the forward and backward segments of the cast. The pumping motion accelerates the line and
gives the cast additional length. Double hauling is an essential technique for long casting.
Double-tapered fly line - A fly line that is thicker on both ends and thinner in the middle.
Double-tapered fly lines can be switched around as one end becomes worn.
Downrigger - Piece of equipment used to slow troll.
Downrigger ball - Cannonball-shaped device with a fin, used to keep a trolled bait far beneath the
boat.
Downstream drift - The act of allowing the fly to drift past the fisherman and rise to the surface on
the river below him, particularly on a nymph drift.
Drag - When a fly line catches on a current, making the fly drift in an unnatural fashion. Also the
mechanical device on a fly reel that limits how fast a fish can strip line from the reel.
Dredging - Retrieving a crankbait so that it continually digs or dredges up the bottom. This causes
reflex strikes from fish.
Drift anchor - Used most commonly in windy areas, by fishermen who drift all day. This anchor is
more of an underwater kite that slows the boat's drift in order to thoroughly fish a productive area.
Drift boat - Also known as a Mackenzie river dory, it's a river fishing craft ranging between 14 and
18 feet long with a flat bottom, upswept prow and rigid hull.
Drift fishing - Drifting along with the wind and tide.
Drift sock - A large sock shaped like airport wind socks. This is dropped over the side of the boat
to help control the boat in rough water.
Drip bag - Very similar to an IV drip bag used by doctors, this device releases a constant drip of
pogey oil over the side, attracting fish.
Drop shot rig - Technique in which the main line is tied to a sinker. The lure is tied to a leader
which is tied above the sinker. This allows the lure to sit a the exact depth of suspended fish.
Dropper - The secondary fly tied on the leader somewhere between the lead fly and the fly line.
Dry fly - A pattern designed to imitate an adult insect, floating on top of the water.
Dubbing - A wrapping to thicken the body of a fly, made by rubbing ground-up muskrat fur, rabbit
fur or other substance onto a waxed thread.
E
Eddy - A calm spot next to a fast current, or in the case of a "back eddy," where the current
switches direction.
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 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.
Egg weight - Egg-shaped lead weights of various sizes, with a hole drilled through the center.
When a bottom fish runs with the bait, the line slides through the weight's hole, allowing little
resistance and fooling the fish.
Electronics - Commonly refers to the depth finders, and fish locaters used by anglers.
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 insect in the transition period from hatching off the bottom of the river to flying away
from the surface of the water as an adult insect.
Emigration - Referring to the movement of organisms out of an area. See immigration and
migrating.
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.
Estuary - Sheltered water, often with grass bottom or grassy shorelines, where juvenile fish have
shelter, food and a chance to grow.
Euryhaline - Having a wide tolerance to salinity.
Evening hatch - When many insects choose to emerge from under the water.
Even-year run - A population of fish that returns to its natural spawning grounds in even
numbered years.
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.
F
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).
FADs - Fish Attracting Devices were first used centuries ago. Any large, floating object like a tree
that attracts pelagic fish. Some are anchored; others are allowed to drift.
Falcate - Hooked or curved like a sickle.
Fall-run fish - Anadromous fish that return to spawn in the fall.
False casting - Casting ever-increasing segments of line, or casting the same amount of line,
keeping the line aloft in the air without touching the water.
Fan cast - To cast in a manner that resembles the arms of a clock. Thus the angler is attempting
to cover as much ground as possible.
Fathom - Six feet of depth. Many nautical charts are marked in fathoms, not feet.
Fecundity - The total number of eggs produced by a female fish.
Felt soles - Most wading shoes for flyfishing are soled with thick felt for good traction on slick rocks.
Ferrule - The joint where different sections of a rod fit together.
Fiberglass - Material used to make crankbait rods. Glass makes the rod less sensitive and more
flexible, and reduces the chance of pulling a crankbait from a fish's mouth.
Fin Ray - A soft or hard cartilaginous rod in fins.
Finesse - Commonly refers to slowing down and using smaller lures, line, and rods. Also a style of
small lures used for this technique.
Fingerling - Refers to a young fish in its first or second year of life.
Finning - The wasteful, immoral practice of removing sharks' fins, dumping the carcass (often while
still alive), and selling the dried product for Asian soup.
Fire tiger - Color scheme that involves a lure with green back, chartreuse sides, orange belly and
black vertical lines on the sides.
Fish pass - A cut dredged through a barrier island, created to allow better fish traffic and tidal
flushing.
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, lowrance, etc., can increase fishing power.
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.
Flats - Very shallow water, easy to wade, usually with a sand bottom. This water is so thin, anglers
equipped with polarized glasses can visually spot and cast to various fish.
Flies - Artificial imitations of the aquatic and terrestrial insects found in and near trout streams.
Flies are tied of many and various materials, such as feathers, fur, thread, tinsel, and even
space-age materials. Patterns imitating minnows, baitfish and other fish and crustacean species
are also called "flies."
Flipping -Technique in which a short amount of line is pulled from the reel and raised vertically
then lowered to the side of an object. Normally used in dirty water and in thick cover.
Flipping stick - A heavy 7-foot rod designed specifically for flipping. Normally these rods telescope
down to a smaller size.
Float tube - A one-man fishing floatation device for lake and slow river fishing that looks like an
inner tube covered with a cloth mesh liner, seat, and back rest.
Floatant - A coating designed to keep a dry fly from becoming waterlogged.
Floater - Style of lure that floats rather than sinks at rest. Example wooden crankbaits.
Floating worm - Plastic worm used to catch spawning bass that actually floats on top of the water.
Florida rig - A worm sinker that has a metal cork screw in the base so that the angler can screw in
the worm. This keeps the sinker and worm together and reduces tangles.
Fluorocarbon - New style of line that is often invisible below the water's surface.
Fluvial - Migrating between main rivers and tributaries. Of or pertaining to streams or rivers.
Flying bridge - A permanent, raised steering cabin or platform on the bigger fishing boats.
Flying gaff - A detachable gaff, designed for big fish. The steel hook is attached to a strong rope.
The pole is used to jerk the hook into the fish, detaches, and the fish is suddenly attached to the
boat by a rope.
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.
Football head - Design refers to the shape of certain jigs that resemble a football mounted side
ways. Normally used in very rocky locations.
Forage Fish - Small fish which breed prolifically and serve as food for predatory fish.
Freestone river - A natural river with an undammed channel that allows free movement of stones
rolling down the river course over time.
French fry - Soft-plastic worm about 4 inches long. Resembles a crinkle-cut French fry. Used often
on Carolina Rigs.
Frenum - Referring to the membrane that binds the lip to the snout or lower jaw.
Frog - Soft, tough plastic lure that swims on top of the water. Often used in thick, scummy areas.
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.
Copyright© 2006 BobberStop.com
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| Glossary of Fishing Terms |
| "Fishing is much more than fish. It is the great occasion when we may return to the fine simplicity of our forefathers." Herbert Hoover |
| "Carpe Diem" does not mean "fish of the day." Author Unknown |
