A dropline is a commercial fishing rig consisting of a long

fishing line A fishing line is a flexible, high-tensile cord used in angling to tether and pull in fish, in conjunction with at least one hook. Fishing lines are usually pulled by and stored in a reel, but can also be retrieved by hand, with a fixed attach ...

set vertically down into the water, with a series of baited

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

s attached to the ends of side-branching secondary lines called ''snoods''. Dropline fishing, or droplining, is a specialized

angling Angling is a fishing technique that uses a fish hook or "angle" (from Old English ''angol'') attached to a fishing line to tether individual fish in the mouth. The fishing line is usually manipulated via a fishing rod, although rodless techni ...

technique. Droplines may be set either down underwater trenches or just into the open water column. They have a

weight In science and engineering, the weight of an object is the force acting on the object due to gravity. Some standard textbooks define weight as a vector quantity, the gravitational force acting on the object. Others define weight as a scalar qua ...

at the bottom of the line and are fixed to the water surface at least one

float Float may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music Albums * ''Float'' (Aesop Rock album), 2000 * ''Float'' (Flogging Molly album), 2008 * ''Float'' (Styles P album), 2013 Songs * "Float" (Tim and the Glory Boys song), 2022 * "Float", by Bush ...

at the top. They are usually not as long as longlines and have fewer hooks. Droplines can be contrasted with

trotline A trotline is a heavy fishing line with shorter, baited branch lines commonly referred to as ''snoods'' suspending down at intervals using clips or swivels, with a hook at the free end of each snood. Trotlines are used in commercial angling an ...

s. Whereas a dropline has a series of hooks suspended sideways off a vertical mainline, a trotline has a series of hooks suspended vertically off a horizontal mainline.

Conservation impacts

A concern for marine conservation is that droplines are able to access areas that are otherwise natural fish refuges, such as deep sea canyons and seamounts.Australia's Sustainable Seafood Guide: Expanded Edition, published by AMCS The Australian Marine Conservation Society rates dropline fishing as having a "moderate impact" on wildlife and a "low impact" on marine habitats. Droplines have the potential to interact with orcas (killer whales). There is predation by orcas on commercial longline and dropline fish catches, including around

Tasmania ) , nickname = , image_map = Tasmania in Australia.svg , map_caption = Location of Tasmania in AustraliaCoordinates: , subdivision_type = Country , subdi ...

, Bering Sea and Prince William Sound areas,Killer Whale (''Orcinus orca'') Depredation on Longline Catches of Sablefish (''Anoplopoma fimbria'') in Alaskan Waters. July 1988. Northwest and Alaska Fisheries Center, National Marine Fisheries Servic

/ref> causing significant financial loss to commercial fishers, and threat to orcas, which can become caught or entangled, exposed to ship strikes when moving or migrating, or suffer retaliation from fishers. Retaliation in response to predation on fish catches in previous decades has included shooting and harpooning of orcas.''Orcinus orca'': a Species Complex
, Whale and Dolphin Conservation Society. Accessed: 2007-02-13

References

External links

Australian Fisheries Management Authority {{fisheries and fishing Fishing techniques and methods Fishing industry