Definition

Noun: A gill net is a type of fishing net. It is a single, nearly invisible wall of netting, suspended vertically in the water by a float line at the top and a weighted lead line at the bottom. Fish swim into this net and become entangled or caught by their gills when they try to back out.

Usage

A gill net is used as a passive fishing gear. It is set in a specific location, often anchored or allowed to drift, to catch fish that swim into it. - The fisherman set a gill net at dawn to catch salmon. - Using a gill net requires knowledge of fish migration patterns. - Regulations limit the length and mesh size of gill nets in this area to protect fish stocks.

Advanced Usage

• To gill-net (verb, less common): The act of fishing with a gill net.
  • It is illegal to gill-net in this protected estuary.
• The term can be used attributively (as a noun modifier) in compound nouns like gill-net fishery or gill-net fishing.
  • The gill-net fishery is a major source of income for the coastal community.

Variants and Related Words

• Drift gill net: A gill net that is not anchored but drifts freely with the current.
• Set gill net: A gill net that is anchored or fixed in one place.
• Tangle net: A related type of net that ensnares fish by their fins or spines, not specifically their gills.

Synonyms

• Entangling net: A general term for nets that catch fish by snagging them.
• Static net: A net that remains stationary in the water to catch fish.

Related Phrases and Concepts

• Bycatch: Unintended species caught in a gill net.
  • The gill net had significant bycatch of sea turtles.
• Mesh size: The size of the holes in the net, which determines the size of fish caught.
  • A larger mesh size in a gill net allows smaller fish to escape.
• Ghost fishing: When lost or abandoned gill nets continue to catch fish.
  • Gill nets are particularly prone to ghost fishing if not retrieved.

Noun

1. a flat fishnet suspended vertically in the water to entangle fish by their gills