Misplaced Pages

#404595

119-397: Southeastern Connecticut has historically been an area heavily dependent on traditional New England economic activities such as fishing , whaling , oystering , and the defense industry . In the present day, the area remains the primary home of the state's fishing and shellfish activity but has since diversified its economic base to include tourism, gambling , and other services. The area

238-602: A cutbait . Common natural baits for both fresh and saltwater fishing include earthworm , leech , insects and larvae , minnow , squid , prawn , crayfish , and even crabs, frogs and salamanders . Natural baits are effective due to the real texture, odour and movements of the bait presented. The common earthworm is a universal live bait for freshwater angling, and grubs and maggots are also excellent bait when trout fishing . Grasshoppers , crickets , eels and even ants are also used as bait for trout in their season, although many anglers believe that trout or salmon roe

357-518: A human arm ) and increasing the launch speed of the terminal tackles (the hook, bait/lure, and other co-launched attachments such as float and sinker / feeder ). Traditional fishing rods are made from single piece of hardwood (e.g. ash and hickory ) or bamboo , while contemporary rods are usually made from alloys (e.g. aluminium ) or more often high-tensile composite materials such as fibreglass or carbon fiber , and newer rod designs are often constructed from hollow blanks to increase

476-559: A " direct-drive " design, while modern reels since the Industrial Revolution typically are "multiplier" reels that use internal gear trains to gain a higher rotational speed . Most reels made from the latter half of the 20th century onwards have smoother line guides, anti-reverse designs, gear disengagement mechanisms and sophisticated drag and braking adjustments to help casting farther, more accurately and reliably, and to provide optimal pulling forces when retrieving

595-428: A denser tackle called a sinker , and is typically dressed with an appetizing bait (i.e. hookbait ) to attract and entice the fish into swallowing the hook, but sometimes an inedible fake/imitation bait with multiple attached hooks (known as a lure ) is used instead of a single hook with edible bait. Some type of bite indicator , such as a float , a bell or a quiver tip , is often used to relay underwater status of

714-511: A drifter to steam power. In 1877, he built the first screw propelled steam trawler in the world. Steam trawlers were introduced at Grimsby and Hull in the 1880s. In 1890 it was estimated that there were 20,000 men on the North Sea. The steam drifter was not used in the herring fishery until 1897. The last sailing fishing trawler was built in 1925 in Grimsby. Trawler designs adapted as

833-747: A fish from unhooking itself while being reeled in. Some laws and regulations require hooks to be barbless, typically to facilitate catch and release . This rule is commonly implemented to protect populations of certain species, as a barbed hook could cause significant collateral lacerations (especially when it penetrates the gill) that can kill a fish even after released alive. Fishing lines are long, ultra-thin, flexible cords that may come in monofilament or braided multifilament forms. Traditional fishing lines are made of silk, while most modern fishing lines are made from synthetic polymers such as nylon, polyethylene , polyvinylidene fluoride (" fluorocarbon ") or copolymer materials. Important specifications for

952-423: A fishing line include its material and forms, test weight , diameter, stretch , memory , abrasion resistance, UV resistance, and reflective and/or refractive visibility. A fishing rod is a long, thin stick/pole that acts as an extended lever and allows the angler to amplify line movements while luring and pulling the fish. It also enhances casting distance by lengthening the swing radius (compared to that of

1071-448: A fishing line. Almost all recreational angling activities involve the use of fishing rods , which is used to manipulate the movements of fishing lines and to allow farther casting of baits / lures . The main rod fishing techniques are float fishing , bottom fishing , lure fishing and trolling , while the former two are often collectively known as "bait fishing" due to the exclusive use of conventional edible baits. Float fishing

1190-441: A laterally flattened float called palyaw , which is shaped like a small outrigger boat , a catamaran or a fish. A longline is attached to the float, and set unto the water's edge and dragged by someone running or walking along the beach. The combination of the water resistance and the diagonal pull forces the float outwards into deeper waters, like a kite . Once the line reaches its maximum line length, it moves rapidly parallel to

1309-412: A longline vertically down into the water (instead of being more horizontally deployed like longlining) with a series of baited hooks. Droplines are weighted at the bottom and have a float at the top. They are not usually as long as longlines and have fewer hooks, and tend to be stationary. Trotlining uses a longline that, instead of being tethered to the water surface only at one end, are fixed at/near

SECTION 10

#1732801130405

1428-460: A lure they have just been hooked on, a behaviour that is unlikely if hooking were painful. Opponents of catch and release fishing would find it preferable to ban or to severely restrict angling. On the other hand, proponents state that catch-and-release is necessary for many fisheries to remain sustainable, is a practice that generally has high survival rates, and consider the banning of angling as not reasonable or necessary. In some jurisdictions, in

1547-530: A major source of food. The British dogger was a very early type of sailing trawler from the 17th century, but the modern fishing trawler was developed in the 19th century, at the English fishing port of Brixham . By the early 19th century, the fishers at Brixham needed to expand their fishing area further than ever before due to the ongoing depletion of stocks that was occurring in the overfished waters of South Devon . The Brixham trawler that evolved there

1666-530: A national policy was New Zealand in 1986. The minimum landing size (MLS) is the smallest fish measurement at which it is legal for the fisherman to keep a captured fish. The MLS depends on the species of fish, and allowed sizes also vary around the world, as they are legal definitions which are defined by the local regulatory authority. The idea behind this limitation is that only the older, more mature adult fish get taken, leaving growing juveniles behind to continue breeding and propagating their species. There

1785-496: A recreational fishing boat, so long as a fisher periodically climbs aboard with the intent to catch a fish. Fish are caught for recreational purposes from boats which range from dugout canoes , float tubes , kayaks , rafts , stand up paddleboards, pontoon boats and small dinghies to runabouts , cabin cruisers and cruising yachts to large, hi-tech and luxurious big game rigs. Larger boats, purpose-built with recreational fishing in mind, usually have large, open cockpits at

1904-691: A single species in a single fishing ground ) around the world had adopted some variant of this approach, along with approximately 100 smaller fisheries in individual countries. Approximately 10% of the marine harvest was managed by ITQs as of 2008. The first countries to adopt individual fishing quotas were the Netherlands , Iceland and Canada in the late 1970s, and the most recent is the United States Scallop General Category IFQ Program in 2010 The first country to adopt individual transferable quotas as

2023-429: A smaller size survive longer to continue breeding, and the average size of fish stock shrinks over time. This has led to a collapse in the amount of catchable fish in some fisheries. Although most anglers keep their catch for consumption, catch and release fishing is increasingly practiced, especially by fly anglers. The general principle is that releasing fish allows them to survive, thus avoiding unintended depletion of

2142-546: A tangle – this was called a 'tangle' in Britain, and a 'backlash' in the US. This problem spurred the invention of the regulator to evenly spool the line out and prevent tangling. The American, Charles F. Orvis, designed and distributed a novel reel and fly design in 1874, described by reel historian Jim Brown as the "benchmark of American reel design," and the first fully modern fly reel. Albert Illingworth, 1st Baron Illingworth

2261-504: A textiles magnate, patented the modern form of fixed-spool spinning reel in 1905. When casting Illingworth's reel design, the line was drawn off the leading edge of the spool but was restrained and rewound by a line pickup, a device which orbits around the stationary spool. Because the line did not have to pull against a rotating spool, much lighter lures could be cast than with conventional reels. The development of inexpensive fiberglass rods, synthetic fly lines, and monofilament leaders in

2380-446: A worldwide catch of well over a million tonnes in 1999, with herring and sardines together providing a catch of over 22 million metric tons in 1999. Many other species as well are fished in smaller numbers. Fish farming is the principal form of aquaculture , while other methods may fall under mariculture . It involves raising fish commercially in tanks or enclosures, usually for food. A facility that releases juvenile fish into

2499-399: Is a bass fishing technique that resembles jigging , and involves repetitively lifting and dropping a flat lure, usually made of 1 to 2.5 oz of lead painted to look like a baitfish (or heavy slabs of metal), through a school of actively feeding fish that the angler has located on a fishfinder . It is used on white and striped bass in the reservoirs of the southern US. Rodless trolling

SECTION 20

#1732801130405

2618-561: Is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod , although rodless techniques such as handlining also exist. Modern angling rods are usually fitted with a fishing reel that functions as a cranking device for storing, retrieving and releasing out the line, although Tenkara fishing and traditional cane pole fishing are two rod-angling methods that do not use any reel. The fish hook itself can be additionally weighted with

2737-464: Is a boat or ship used to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Many different kinds of vessels are used in commercial , artisanal , and recreational fishing . According to the FAO , in 2004 there were four million commercial fishing vessels. About 1.3 million of these are decked vessels with enclosed areas. Nearly all of these decked vessels are mechanised, and 40,000 of them are over 100 tons. At

2856-536: Is also a large Latino population mainly from Puerto Rico, followed by the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, and Ecuador. There is an African-American presence in many municipalities, and many Asian communities in different parts of the region. The Pequot and Mohegan tribes both have their own reservations and casinos, along with a strong identity to their culture, though most tribal members only have partial Native American ancestry. Southeastern Connecticut

2975-601: Is an ancient practice that dates back to at least the beginning of the Upper Paleolithic period about 40,000 years ago. Isotopic analysis of the remains of Tianyuan man , a 40,000-year-old modern human from eastern Asia, has shown that he regularly consumed freshwater fish. Archaeology features such as shell middens , discarded fish bones, and cave paintings show that seafood was important for survival and consumed in significant quantities. Fishing in Africa

3094-817: Is an ethnically diverse region. Fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish . Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment ( fresh water or marine ), but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds , canals , park wetlands and reservoirs . Fishing techniques include trawling , longlining , jigging , hand-gathering , spearing , netting , angling , shooting and trapping , as well as more destructive and often illegal techniques such as electrocution , blasting and poisoning . The term fishing broadly includes catching aquatic animals other than fish, such as crustaceans ( shrimp / lobsters / crabs ), shellfish , cephalopods ( octopus / squid ) and echinoderms ( starfish / sea urchins ). The term

3213-501: Is an official region administered by the Southeastern Connecticut Council of Governments . It consists of 18 towns and oversees land use and transportation infrastructure planning for its member towns. This definition adds the towns of Lyme , Old Lyme , and Voluntown to the 16 core towns listed above for a total of 19 towns. The Norwich-New London-Westerly NECTA is the metropolitan area surrounding

3332-479: Is defined by the FAO as including recreational , subsistence and commercial fishing , and the harvesting, processing , and marketing sectors. The commercial activity is aimed at the delivery of fish and other seafood products for human consumption or use as raw material in other industrial processes. In 2022 24% of fishers and fish farmers and 62% of workers in post-harvest sector were women. There are three principal industry sectors: Commercial fishing

3451-581: Is designed to contain and release groundbaits to help attract fish towards the hook. Lure fishing uses a type of artificial fake bait known as lure , which is usually made from inedible materials such as wood, metal and plastics. Unlike conventional fishing baits, lures do not emit any scent and thus cannot attract fish olfactorily, but instead using prey-like appearances, movements, vibrations, bright reflections and flashy colors to attract and entice carnivorous predatory fish into mistakenly striking. Many lures are equipped with more than one hooks to better

3570-550: Is evident very early on in human history. Neanderthals were fishing by about 200,000 BC. People could have developed basketry for fish traps, using spinning and early forms of knitting to make fishing nets able to catch more fish. During this period, most people lived a hunter-gatherer lifestyle and were, of necessity, constantly on the move. However, where there are early examples of permanent settlements (though not necessarily permanently occupied) such as those at Lepenski Vir , they are almost always associated with fishing as

3689-584: Is fishing from boats to catch large open-water species such as swordfish , tuna , sharks , and marlin . Sportfishing (sometimes game fishing) is recreational fishing where the primary reward is the challenge of finding and catching the fish rather than the culinary or financial value of the fish's flesh. Fish sought after include tarpon , sailfish , mackerel , grouper and many others. The fishing industry includes any industry or activity concerned with taking, culturing, processing, preserving, storing, transporting, marketing or selling fish or fish products. It

Southeastern Connecticut - Misplaced Pages Continue

3808-688: Is generally accepted that this management approach will help the fishery create a number of large, trophy-sized fish. In smaller fisheries that are heavily fished, catch and release is the only way to ensure that catchable fish will be available from year to year. The practice of catch and release is criticised by some who consider it unethical to inflict pain upon a fish for purposes of sport. Some of those who object to releasing fish do not object to killing fish for food. Adherents of catch and release dispute this charge, pointing out that fish commonly feed on hard and spiky prey items, and as such can be expected to have tough mouths, and also that some fish will re-take

3927-697: Is home to the United States Coast Guard Academy in New London , a United States Navy base in Groton (also home to Electric Boat where the first U.S. nuclear submarine, USS  Nautilus , was launched, on January 21, 1954), a Pfizer research facility, and the Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods casinos. There are several official definitions for the region. In all definitions, the following 20 towns are always included: This

4046-428: Is increasingly practiced by sport fishermen in recent years to conserve the fish stocks and help maintain sustainability of the local fisheries. Angling is not to be confused with snagging , another fishing technique that also uses line and hook to catch fish. The principal differences between the two techniques are that angling often uses very small hooks and relies on the target fish itself to voluntarily swallow

4165-424: Is not normally applied to harvesting fish raised in controlled cultivations ( fish farming ). Nor is it normally applied to hunting aquatic mammals , where terms like whaling and sealing are used instead. Fishing has been an important part of human culture since hunter-gatherer times. It is one of the few food production activities that has persisted from prehistory into the modern age , surviving both

4284-1087: Is prepared from a small amount of bread, often moistened and softened by saliva, then squeezed into a ball of the bite size of small fish. Some baits are not actual food items but rather just "fake" replicas of food made of inedible materials (e.g. wood, metal, silicone rubber , plastics, etc), and are designed to entice predatory fish to strike by imitating the appearance and motions of real prey ( shad , worm, frog, insect, crayfish , etc.). These inedible, replica baits are typically called lures instead of baits, although expressions such as " swimbaits ", "crankbaits", "jerkbaits", " spinnerbaits " and "chatterbaits" are still used when describing specific types of lures. Unlike conventional baits, lures typically do not release any scents and rely solely on looks and sounds/vibrations to attract fish, although occasionally chemical attractants (e.g. dimethyl-β-propiothetin ) are still used in addition either to impregnate favorable smells or to mask away unwanted plastic smells. Many anglers prefer to fish solely using lures, as these rely more on

4403-439: Is some criticism of this legal requirement, however, as it applies artificial selection pressure to the fish population (see Fisheries-induced evolution ) unless the anglers voluntarily practise catch and release indiscriminate of sizes. As larger fish (whose survival has been more successful so far) get taken out of the population, the genes for larger size are reduced or removed from the gene pool , while fish that mature at

4522-516: Is superior to any other bait. Crayfish, which are preyed upon by a variety of ray-finned fishes , are also commonly used as bait, either live or with only the tail meat. They are popular for catching catfish , largemouth bass , smallmouth bass , striped bass , perch and pike . However, studies had confirmed that introducing crayfish outside of their home range has led to various ecological problems of them becoming invasive species . Transporting crayfish as live bait has also contributed to

4641-512: Is the capture of fish for commercial purposes. Those who practice it must often pursue fish far from the land under adverse conditions. Commercial fishermen harvest a wide range of aquatic species, from tuna , cod and salmon to shrimp , krill , lobster , clams , squid and crab , in various fisheries for these species. Commercial fishing methods have become very efficient using large nets and sea-going processing factories. Individual fishing quotas and international treaties seek to control

4760-496: Is the most common method of angling, defined by the use of a compact light buoy attached to fishing line – known as a float (or " bobber " in the United States) — as the bite indicator . Due to buoyancy, the float remains at the water surface and suspends the baited hook at a predetermined depth. It can also drift in the prevailing current and carry the hook to areas of water otherwise inaccessible by casting alone. When

4879-401: Is the oldest angling technique used by mankind, and can be done from boats or from the shore. It is used mainly to catch groundfish and squid , but smaller pelagic fish can also be caught. Deadlining is the practice of leaving a baited handline in the water (with the other end fastened to the bank ) and returning later (usually overnight) to check and capture any tethered fish, similar to

Southeastern Connecticut - Misplaced Pages Continue

4998-422: Is typically used in commercial fishing, with one or more baited lines drawn through the water behind a slow moving fishing boat that is usually equipped with outriggers , downriggers and trolling motors . Trolling is used to catch economic pelagic fish such as mackerel and kingfish . Pahila (literally meaning "pulled") is a Filipino traditional shoreline trolling, uniquely using baited hooks tied to

5117-538: Is used, and when the lure catches the attention of a game fish and successfully results in biting/swallowing of the lure, the angler can detect it by watching for splashes and feeling any vibrations, rod bending and changes in line tension. Lure fishing also typically uses relatively lightweight fishing rods coupled with baitcasting reels or spinning reels. Depending on the style of lure retrieval, lure fishing can roughly be separated into power fishing , which relies on more frequent and vigorous lure retrievals to increase

5236-534: The Canadian province of Manitoba , for example, catch and release is mandatory for some species such as brook trout . Many of the jurisdictions which mandate the live release of sport fish also require the use of artificial lures and barbless hooks to minimise the chance of injury to fish. Mandatory catch and release also exists in the Republic of Ireland where it was introduced as a conservation measure to prevent

5355-632: The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, the total world capture fisheries production in 2000 was 86 million tons (FAO 2002). The top producing countries were, in order, the People's Republic of China (excluding Hong Kong and Taiwan), Peru, Japan, the United States, Chile, Indonesia, Russia, India, Thailand, Norway, and Iceland. Those countries accounted for more than half of

5474-546: The Neolithic Revolution and successive Industrial Revolutions . In addition to fishing for food , people commonly fish as a recreational pastime . Fishing tournaments are held, and caught fish are sometimes kept long-term as preserved or living trophies . When bioblitzes occur, fish are typically caught, identified, and then released . According to the United Nations FAO statistics,

5593-462: The haberdashers store. After the Great Fire of London in 1666, artisans moved to Redditch which became a centre of production of fishing-related products from the 1730s. Onesimus Ustonson established his shop in 1761, and his establishment remained a market leader for the next century. He received a royal warrant from three successive monarchs starting with King George IV . He also invented

5712-502: The multiplying winch . The commercialization of the industry came at a time of expanded interest in fishing as a recreational hobby for members of the aristocracy . The impact of the Industrial Revolution was first felt in the manufacture of fly lines. Instead of anglers twisting their lines – a laborious and time-consuming process – the new textile spinning machines allowed for a variety of tapered lines to be easily manufactured and marketed. British fly fishing continued to develop in

5831-421: The specific strength and reduce the overall weight. Modern rods also may come in multi-piece or telescoping forms, which are more portable and storage-friendly. Fishing reels are manually cranked reels typically mounted onto a fishing rod, used to wind and stow fishing line when a long casting distance or a prolonged retrieval is expected. Traditional fishing reels are essentially compact windlasses with

5950-489: The stern , designed for convenient fishing. Traditional fishing is any kind of small scale, commercial or subsistence fishing practices using traditional techniques such as rod and tackle , arrows and harpoons , throw nets and drag nets, etc. Recreational and sport fishing refer to fishing primarily for pleasure or competition. Recreational fishing has conventions, rules, licensing restrictions and laws that limit how fish may be caught; typically, these prohibit

6069-413: The 19th century, with the emergence of fly fishing clubs, along with the appearance of several books on the subject of fly tying and fly fishing techniques. By the mid to late 19th century, expanding leisure opportunities for the middle and lower classes began to have an effect on fly fishing, which steadily grew in mass appeal. The expansion of the railway network in Britain allowed the less affluent for

SECTION 50

#1732801130405

6188-550: The 21 towns of New London County and adds the towns of Lyme and Old Lyme. This definition contains 22 towns and adds the towns of Canterbury, Old Lyme, Old Saybrook , and Plainfield , as well as two towns in Rhode Island: Hopkinton and Westerly. Southeastern Connecticut's largest ethnic group is composed of Irish-Americans, followed by Italian-Americans, Polish-Americans, and colonial British descent Americans historically referenced as “Swamp Yankees.” There

6307-649: The German fishing fleet. The earliest steam-powered fishing boats first appeared in the 1870s and used the trawl system of fishing as well as lines and drift nets. These were large boats, usually 80–90 feet (24–27 m) in length with a beam of around 20 feet (6 m). They weighed 40–50 tons and travelled at 9–11 knots (17–20 km/h; 10–13 mph). David Allen designed and made the earliest purpose-built fishing vessels in Leith , Scotland in March 1875, when he converted

6426-642: The Norwich/New London urbanized area using towns as building blocks. This definition contains 22 towns and adds the towns of Canterbury , Lyme, Old Lyme, Voluntown, as well as the towns of Westerly and Hopkinton in Rhode Island (the latter of which now became part of the Providence–Fall River–Warwick, RI-MA NECTA). The Norwich-New London MSA is a metropolitan area definition using counties as building blocks. It consists of

6545-411: The angler's position; and hookbait , which is directly attached to the fish hook to entice the fish into swallowing the hook along with the bait. In colloquial usage, the word "bait" refers specifically to hookbaits, which can be further separated into three main categories: natural baits , artificial baits and lures . The choice of what bait to use is dictated mainly by the target species's diet,

6664-595: The assistance of a drone . Why a fish bites a baited hook or lure involves several factors related to the sensory physiology, behaviour, feeding ecology, and biology of the fish as well as the environment and characteristics of the bait/hook/lure. There is an intricate link between various fishing techniques and knowledge about the fish and their behaviour including migration , foraging and habitat . The effective use of fishing techniques often depends on this additional knowledge. Some fishers follow fishing folklores which claim that fish feeding patterns are influenced by

6783-426: The bait/lure is allowed to drift and react freely to the turbulences in the water current, much like how a tethered kite would behave in a wind gust. Although all angling techniques use hook and line, the term "line fishing" specifically refers to those that do not involve using fishing rods. Handlining is angling with a handheld fishing line, baited with lures or bait fish just like normal rod angling. Handlining

6902-527: The best outcome for managing fish populations. Individual fishing quota (IFQ), also known as individual transferable quota (ITQ), is a kind of catch share that sets a species -specific total allowable catch (TAC), typically by weight and for a given time period. A dedicated portion of the TAC (called "quota share") is then allocated to individual fishermen, and can typically be transferable (i.e. bought, sold or leased). As of 2008, 148 major fisheries (generally,

7021-462: The book was added by Walton's friend Charles Cotton . Charles Kirby designed an improved fishing hook in 1655 that remains relatively unchanged to this day. He went on to invent the Kirby bend, a distinctive hook with an offset point, still commonly used today. The 18th century was mainly an era of consolidation of the techniques developed in the previous century. Running rings began to appear along

7140-433: The chance of anchoring into the fish's mouth , though some hookless lures are used to bait the fish nearer so it can be captured via other means such as spearing , netting / trapping or capturing by hand . In addition to rod angling, handlining , longlining and commercial trolling also employ lure fishing. Lure fishing is a popular style of recreational fishing. When fishing, a lure angler will repeatedly cast out

7259-402: The chance of luring fish; and finesse fishing , which focuses on the more lingered and vivid lure presentation within each cast-retrieval cycle to better entice fish. Rod trolling is basically a simplified version of commercial trolling (see below ), with fishing rods functioning as improvised outriggers to tow the baits/lures through the water, usually behind or beside a moving boat with

SECTION 60

#1732801130405

7378-549: The country. Modern reel design had begun in England during the latter part of the 18th century, and the predominant model in use was known as the ' Nottingham reel'. The reel was a wide drum that spooled out freely and was ideal for allowing the bait to drift a long way out with the current. Geared multiplying reels never successfully caught on in Britain, but had more success in the United States, where George Snyder of Kentucky modified similar models into his bait-casting reel,

7497-498: The decline of Atlantic salmon stocks on some rivers. In Switzerland, catch and release fishing is considered inhumane and was banned in September 2008. Barbless hooks, which can be created from a standard hook by removing the barb with pliers or can be bought, are sometimes resisted by anglers because they believe that increased fish escapes. Barbless hooks reduce handling time, thereby increasing survival. Concentrating on keeping

7616-504: The definition of angling since they do not rely upon the use of a hook and line. Fishing seasons are set by countries or localities to indicate what kinds of fish may be caught during sport fishing (also known as angling) for a certain period of time. Fishing seasons are enforced (usually by water police ) to maintain ecological balance and to protect species of fish during their spawning period during which they are easier to catch and more physiologically vulnerable. Slot limits prohibit

7735-478: The early 1950s revived the popularity of fly fishing. There are many fishing techniques and tactics for catching fish. The term can also be applied to methods for catching other aquatic animals such as molluscs ( shellfish , squid , octopus) and edible marine invertebrates . Fishing techniques include hand gathering , spearfishing , netting , angling , bowfishing and trapping , as well as less common techniques such as gaffing , snagging , clubbing and

7854-857: The entire lure package is known as a rig . Common rigs with a soft plastic lure are the Texas Rig or the Carolina Rig . Some fishing lures (e.g. spoons and spinnerbaits) may not even resemble any prey in looks, and may require skilled rod movements to impart an enticing presentation to the target fish, for example in jigging and topwater fishing . Some lures, such as the flies used in fly fishing , are ultralight and even require specialized gears and techniques to be cast properly. In modern times, there are also lures that photically attract fish with LED illuminiation, as well as battery-powered "bionic" lures that are essentially primitive robot fish that can swim around without needing to be towed by

7973-486: The first American-made design in 1810. The material used for the rod itself changed from the heavy woods native to England to lighter and more elastic varieties imported from abroad, especially from South America and the West Indies . Bamboo rods became the generally favoured option from the mid-19th century, and several strips of the material were cut from the cane, milled into shape, and then glued together to form

8092-404: The first modern fishing port. The elegant Brixham trawler spread across the world, influencing fishing fleets everywhere. By the end of the 19th century, there were over 3,000 fishing trawlers in commission in Britain, with almost 1,000 at Grimsby. These trawlers were sold to fishers around Europe, including from the Netherlands and Scandinavia . Twelve trawlers went on to form the nucleus of

8211-415: The first time to take weekend trips to the seaside or rivers for fishing. Richer hobbyists ventured further abroad. The large rivers of Norway replete with large stocks of salmon began to attract fishers from England in large numbers in the middle of the century – Jones's guide to Norway, and salmon-fisher's pocket companion , published in 1848, was written by Frederic Tolfrey and was a popular guide to

8330-578: The fish bites and swallows the hook, the float visually signals any forces exerted on the leader line below it, as the fisherman can then see it being pulled underwater and/or sideways. Bottom fishing, also called legering in the United Kingdom, uses a weighted tackle called a sinker tied to the end of the fishing line to keep the baited hook close to the bottom of the water, to target groundfishes such as sucker , bream , catfish and crappie . The sinker can also be used to add momentum to

8449-416: The fishing rods, which gave anglers greater control over the cast line. The rods themselves were also becoming increasingly sophisticated and specialised for different roles. Jointed rods became common from the middle of the century and bamboo came to be used for the top section of the rod, giving it much greater strength and flexibility. The industry also became commercialised – rods and tackle were sold at

8568-417: The float pulls the float deeper into the water, causing it to oscillates in and out of water in a bobbing -like fashion (hence its American English name, the "bobber"). Other bite indicators used in angling include: In angling, two broad types of baits are used: groundbait , which is thrown separately into the water in large quantities as an " appetizer " to olfactorily attract distant fish nearer to

8687-437: The habitat and weather conditions](which can alter the fish's foraging behavior), the angler's own personal preferences, and the local fishery regulations . Using an optimal angling bait can increase the chance of catching the intended fish, while conversely using an inadequate bait will greatly reduce the success rate, especially when there are other bait fishermen nearby. Natural baits are food items that are present within

8806-483: The harvest of fish where the measured lengths (from the snout to the end of the tail fin ) fall within a protected interval. These are put in action to help protect certain fish (usually juvenile ) in a given area. They generally require anglers to release captured fish if they fall within a given size range, allowing anglers to keep only smaller (though rare) or larger fish. Slot limits vary from water to water depending on what local officials believe would produce

8925-408: The hook and help casting the line to a further distance. The method can be used both with handlining and rod fishing, and can be done both from boats and from the land . Specialized fishing rods called "donkas" are also commonly used for bottom fishing, and a quiver tip (sometimes coupled with a jingle bell ) is used instead as the bite indicator. Some sinkers are replaced by feeders , which

9044-409: The hook to pierce internally into the fish's mouth; while snagging uses very large, sharp, multi-pointed grappling hooks that actively "claw" and pierce externally into the body/gill of the fish, and hardly ever involves any hookbait. Snagging also inflicts far more mutilating injuries to the fish and makes it very difficult to heal and survive even if the fish is released alive or manages to escape

9163-409: The hook to the surface and alert the angler of a fish's presence. When angling, the fisherman (known as the angler ) will first throw the hook (i.e. " cast ") to a chosen area of water (i.e. fishing ground ), and then patiently wait for fish to approach and devour the hookbait. It is also not uncommon for the angler to scatter some loose bait ( groundbait ) around the target area before even casting

9282-448: The hook, to better attract distant fish with scents. If a fish has succumbed to its own feeding instinct and swallowed the baited hook (i.e. "bite" or "strike"), the hook point will likely pierce into and anchor itself inside the fish jaw , gullet or gill , and the fish in turn becomes firmly tethered by the fishing line. Once the fish is hooked (often colloquially called "fish-on"), any struggles and attempts to escape will pull along

9401-399: The lay of the line. When the game would swallow the bait, a tug on the line would cause the gorge to orient itself at right angles to the line, thereby sticking in the fish or animal's throat or gullet . Gorges evolved into the modern fishing hook which is J-shaped with a loop on one end and a sharp point on the other. Most hooks have a barb near the point to better anchor the point and prevent

9520-408: The light, strong, hexagonal rods with a solid core that were superior to anything that preceded them. George Cotton and his predecessors fished their flies with long rods, and light lines allowing the wind to do most of the work of getting the fly to the fish. Tackle design began to improve in the 1880s. The introduction of new woods to the manufacture of fly rods made it possible to cast flies into

9639-504: The line retrieval to prolong the struggle time and tire out the fish (i.e. "walking" the fish), before dragging it near enough to eventually lift it out of the water (known as " landing ") for a successful catch. Sometimes a hand net (or "landing net") or a long-handled hook is used to make fetching the fish easier. Angling is the principal method of recreational fishing , but commercial fisheries also use angling methods such as longlining , trotlining or trolling . In many parts of

9758-690: The line taut while fighting fish, using recurved point or "triple grip" style hooks on lures, and equipping lures that do not have them with split rings can significantly reduce escapement. Angling is also practiced in fishing tournaments, where contestants compete for prizes based on the total length or weight of a fish, usually of a pre-determined species, caught within a specified time. These contests originated as local fishing contests and have evolved to include large competitive circuits, with professional anglers that are supported by commercial endorsements. Professional anglers may gain cash prizes for placing well in tournaments. Similar competitive fishing exists at

9877-442: The line, causing the bite indicator to signal the angler, who jerks the fishing rod back to further deepen the hook anchorage (i.e. " setting the hook ") and then tries to retrieve the line back, pulling the fish closer in the process. During the line retrieval, the angler will carefully monitor the line and rod tension to avoid equipment breaking. With stronger and feistier fish, the angler might need to temporarily halt or even reverse

9996-401: The line. A bite indicator is any device that can help to notify the angler that the hook has been swallowed by a fish. There are many types of bite indicators, the oldest and most ubiquitously used being the fishing float , a lightweight marker buoy that floats at the water surface with the hook and bait suspended below it. When the fish swallows the hook, the leader line between the hook and

10115-401: The lure afar and then methodically retrieves the line, pulling the lure through the water and creating vibrations, turbulent splashes and/or a popping action in the process, which imitating a small aquatic prey such as a baitfish , a drowning insect or a frog. A skilled angler can explore many possible hiding spots for fish through lure casting such as under logs and on flats. No bite indicator

10234-407: The mouth (i.e. snagging , or "foul hooking" and "jagging" ) or the use of nets and hand hooks other than as an aid in landing a captured fish. Some species, such as bait fish , may be taken with nets, and a few for food. Sometimes, non-sport fish are considered of lesser value and it may be permissible to take them by methods like snagging, bow and arrow or spearing , none of which fall under

10353-496: The ocean possible for the first time, resulting in a massive migration of fishers from the ports in the south of England, to villages further north, such as Scarborough , Hull , Grimsby , Harwich and Yarmouth , that were points of access to the large fishing grounds in the Atlantic Ocean . The small village of Grimsby grew to become the largest fishing port in the world by the mid 19th century. An Act of Parliament

10472-550: The other extreme, two-thirds (1.8 million) of the undecked boats are traditional craft of various types, powered only by sail and oars. These boats are used by artisan fishers . It is difficult to estimate how many recreational fishing boats there are, although the number is high. The term is fluid since some recreational boats may also be used for fishing from time to time. Unlike most commercial fishing vessels, recreational fishing boats are often not dedicated just to fishing. Just about anything that will stay afloat can be called

10591-577: The person pulling it along the beach, and is pulled back to the shore intermittently to check for catches. It is also called subid-subid , sibid-sibid , paguyod , pahinas , hilada, or saliwsiw , among other names, in other Philippine languages . Laws and regulations managing angling vary greatly, often regionally, within countries. These commonly include permits (licences), closed periods (seasons) where specific species are unavailable for harvest, restrictions on gear types, and quotas . Laws generally prohibit catching fish with hooks other than in

10710-610: The popular freshwater fish species include bass , northern pike / muskellunge , walleye , trout and anadromous salmon , tilapia , channel catfish and panfishes such as crappie , sunfish (e.g. bluegill ) and yellow perch . In Europe, Asia and Australasia , freshwater anglers often pursue species such as carp , pike , bream , tench , rudd , roach , European perch , catfish and barbel , many of which are regarded as undesirable " rough fish " in North America. In developed countries , catch and release angling

10829-485: The population. For species such as marlin, muskellunge, and bass, there is a cultural taboo among anglers against taking them for food. In many parts of the world, size limits apply to certain species, meaning fish below a certain size must, by law, be released. It is generally believed that larger fish have a greater breeding potential. Some fisheries have a slot limit that allows the taking of smaller and larger fish, but requiring that intermediate sized fish be released. It

10948-444: The position of the sun and the moon. Fishing tackles are the equipment used by fishers when fishing. Almost any equipment or gear used for fishing can be called a fishing tackle, although the term is most commonly associated with gear used in angling . Some examples are hooks , lines , sinkers , floats , rods , reels , baits , lures , spears , nets , gaffs , traps , waders , and tackle boxes. Fishing techniques refer to

11067-1189: The risk of transmitting Myxobolus cerebralis (whirling disease), trout and salmon should not be used as bait. Anglers may increase the possibility of contamination by emptying bait buckets into fishing venues and collecting or using bait improperly. The transportation of fish from one location to another can break the law and cause the introduction of fish alien to the ecosystem. Artificial baits are edible baits that are not directly acquired via natural means, but are made from other food materials via some kind of artificial processing. These can be fish food that are either homemade (e.g. dried food paste ) or commercially purchased (e.g. boilies and feed pellets ), or prepared/processed food such as cutlets , offals , dehulled kernels (e.g. peas and corns), dairy products (cheese and curd ), bread or doughballs made from various ingredient mixtures (e.g. rice, semolina , cornmeal , bread crumbs, and fishmeal , etc.), which can be used to attract omnivorous or even herbivorous fish. In lakes in southern climates such as Florida, panfish such as sunfish will even take household wheat bread or pet food as bait. These bread bait

11186-407: The rod fixated to the gunwale . It can also be done by very slowly winding the line in (like "finesse"-type lure fishing) or even sweeping the line sideways, with the angler operating the rod from a static position (e.g. atop a jetty, pier or bridge). A variation of trolling is drift fishing , which is usually done from an unpowered boat in faster-flowing waters. The line is not actively reeled, and

11305-414: The same techniques. Recreational fishers fish for pleasure, sport, or to provide food for themselves, while commercial fishers fish for profit. Artisanal fishers use traditional, low-tech methods, for survival in third-world countries, and as a cultural heritage in other countries. Usually, recreational fishers use angling methods and commercial fishers use netting methods. A modern development is to fish with

11424-418: The side, rather than over the stern . The first purpose-built stern trawler was Fairtry built in 1953 at Aberdeen , Scotland. The ship was much larger than any other trawlers then in operation and inaugurated the era of the 'super trawler'. As the ship pulled its nets over the stern, it could lift out a much greater haul of up to 60 tons. The ship served as a basis for the expansion of 'super trawlers' around

11543-488: The snag. The use of the hook in angling is descended, historically, from what would today be called a gorge . The word "gorge", in this context, comes from the French word meaning "throat". Gorges were used by ancient peoples to capture fish and animals like seal, walrus and birds. A gorge was a long, thin piece of bone or stone attached by its midpoint to a thin line. The gorge would be baited so that it would rest parallel to

11662-483: The species and quantities caught. A commercial fishing enterprise may vary from one person with a small boat with hand-casting nets or a few pot traps, to a huge fleet of trawlers processing tons of fish every day. Commercial fishing gear includes weights, nets (e.g. purse seine ), seine nets (e.g. beach seine), trawls (e.g. bottom trawl ), dredges, hooks and line (e.g. long line and handline ), lift nets, gillnets , entangling nets and traps . According to

11781-436: The spread of zebra mussels , which are known to attach themselves onto crayfish, in various waterways throughout Europe and North America. The capture, transportation and culture of bait fish can spread damaging organisms between ecosystems , endangering them. In 2007 several American states enacted regulations designed to slow the spread of fish diseases, including viral hemorrhagic septicemia , by bait fish. Because of

11900-415: The surface at both ends of the longline, with hooked snood lines hanging vertically down along the main line. Trotlines are used for catching crabs or fish (e.g. catfish ), particularly across rivers. They can be physically set in many ways, such as tying each end to a fixed structure and span the line across the water in-between like a boom , and adjusting rest of the line with weights and floats. Slabbing

12019-408: The target fish's natural diet, which are usually animals at a lower trophic level in the food web . A natural bait angler, with few exceptions, will use a common prey species of the target fish as a bait. The natural bait used may be live food (known as a live bait ) or carcass (i.e. dead bait ), and a bait improvised from grossly intact portions of a dead animal (e.g. fish head ) is known as

12138-511: The time. Leonard Mascall in 1589 wrote A booke of Fishing with Hooke and Line along with many others he produced in his life on game and wildlife in England at the time. The Compleat Angler was written by Izaak Walton in 1653 (although Walton continued to add to it for a quarter of a century) and described the fishing in the Derbyshire Wye . It was a celebration of the art and spirit of fishing in prose and verse. A second part to

12257-434: The total number of commercial fishers and fish farmers is estimated to be 39.0 million. Fishing industries and aquaculture provide direct and indirect employment to over 500 million people in developing countries . In 2005, the worldwide per capita consumption of fish captured from wild fisheries was 14.4 kilograms (32 lb), with an additional 7.4 kilograms (16 lb) harvested from fish farms . Fishing

12376-511: The use of a snare trap by hunters . Longlining is a commercial fishing technique that uses a long heavy line with a series of hundreds or even thousands of baited hooks hanging from the main line via branch lines called snoods . Longlines are usually operated from specialised boats called longliners , which use a special winch to haul in the line and can operate in deeper waters targeting pelagic species such as swordfish , tuna , halibut and sablefish . Droplining involves setting

12495-410: The use of nets and the catching of fish with hooks not in the mouth. The most common form of recreational fishing is done with a rod , reel , line , hooks and any one of a wide range of baits or lures such as artificial flies . The practice of catching or attempting to catch fish with a hook is generally known as angling . In angling, it is sometimes expected or required that fish be returned to

12614-552: The use of specially trained animals such as cormorants and otters . There are also destructive fishing techniques (such as electrocution , blasting and poisoning ) that can do irreversible damage to the local ecosystems by killing/ sterilizing entire fish stocks , habitat destruction and/or upsetting the equilibrium of interspecific competitions , and such practices are often deemed illegal and liable to criminal punishments . Recreational , commercial and artisanal fishers use different techniques, and also, sometimes,

12733-407: The user's rod and reel actions to successfully attract fish, and requires frequent casting and retrieving the line, and are thus more interactive and exciting. Lures can be broadly categorized into hard-body and soft-body lures , although hybrid lures with both hard and soft components are also common. Soft-body lures tend to give a more flexible and realistic "swimming" posture when towed through

12852-516: The water ( catch and release ). Recreational or sport fishermen may log their catches or participate in fishing competitions. The estimated global number of recreational fishers varies from 220 million to a maximum number of 700 million fishers globally, which is thought to be double the number of individuals working as commercial fishers. In the United States alone it was estimated that 50.1 million people engaged in fishing activities in both saltwater and freshwater environments. Big-game fishing

12971-502: The water, while hard-body lures usually rely on stirring up more noise and turbulences . Some newer hard lure designs, however, are multi-jointed and can resemble soft lures in dynamics. Soft lures are typically coupled with a single conventional fish hook or a jighead , while hard lures commonly have more than one hooks (which are often treble hooks ). When lures are used in combination with other terminal tackles ( floats , sinkers , swivels , etc.) to produce sophisticated presentations,

13090-420: The way they were powered changed from sail to coal-fired steam by World War I to diesel and turbines by the end of World War II . In 1931, the first powered drum was created by Laurie Jarelainen. The drum was a circular device that was set to the side of the boat and would draw in the nets. Since World War II , radio navigation aids and fish finders have been widely used. The first trawlers fished over

13209-430: The ways the tackles are used when fishing. Tackles that are attached to the end of a fishing line are collectively called terminal tackles . These include hooks, sinkers, floats, leader lines, swivels , split rings, and any wires, snaps, beads, spoons, blades, spinners and clevises used to attach spinner blades to fishing lures. People also tend to use dead or live bait fish as another form of bait . A fishing vessel

13328-502: The wild for recreational fishing or to supplement a species' natural population is generally referred to as a fish hatchery . Fish species raised by fish farms include salmon , carp , tilapia , catfish , white seabass and trout . Increased demands on wild fisheries by commercial fishing has caused widespread overfishing . Fish farming offers an alternative solution to the increasing market demand for fish. Angling Angling (from Old English angol , meaning " hook ")

13447-424: The wind on silk lines, instead of horse hair . These lines allowed for a much greater casting distance. However, these early fly lines proved troublesome as they had to be coated with various dressings to make them float and needed to be taken off the reel and dried every four hours or so to prevent them from becoming waterlogged. Another negative consequence was that it became easy for the much longer line to get into

13566-551: The world in the following decades. The early evolution of fishing as recreation is not clear. For example, there is anecdotal evidence for fly fishing in Japan. However, fly fishing was likely to have been a means of survival, rather than recreation. The earliest English essay on recreational fishing was published in 1496, by Dame Juliana Berners , the prioress of the Benedictine Sopwell Nunnery . The essay

13685-433: The world's production; China alone accounted for a third of the world's production. Of that production, over 90% was marine and less than 10% was inland. A small number of species support the majority of the world's fisheries. Some of these species are herring , cod , sardine , anchovy , tuna , flounder , mullet , squid , shrimp , salmon , crab, lobster , oyster and scallops . All except these last four provided

13804-594: The world, a fishing licence is mandated for angling and size limits apply to certain species, meaning by law, fish below and/or above a certain size range must be released alive after capture. The popular fish species pursued by anglers, collectively known as game fish , vary with geography. Among the many species of saltwater fish that are angled for sport globally are billfish ( swordfish , sailfish and marlin ), tuna , trevally and grouper , while cod and sea bass are popular targets in Europe. In North America,

13923-661: Was first obtained in 1796, which authorised the construction of new quays and dredging of the Haven to make it deeper. It was only in 1846, with the tremendous expansion in the fishing industry , that the Grimsby Dock Company was formed. The foundation stone for the Royal Dock was laid by Albert the Prince consort in 1849. The dock covered 25 acres (10 ha) and was formally opened by Queen Victoria in 1854 as

14042-408: Was of a sleek build and had a tall gaff rig , which gave the vessel sufficient speed to make long-distance trips out to the fishing grounds in the ocean. They were also sufficiently robust to be able to tow large trawls in deep water. The great trawling fleet that built up at Brixham earned the village the title of 'Mother of Deep-Sea Fisheries'. This revolutionary design made large-scale trawling in

14161-467: Was titled Treatyse of Fysshynge wyth an Angle , and included detailed information on fishing waters, the construction of rods and lines, and the use of natural baits and artificial flies. Recreational fishing took a great leap forward after the English Civil War , where a newly found interest in the activity left its mark on the many books and treatises that were written on the subject at

#404595