Lave net

Last updated

Fisherman carrying a lave net Lave net.jpg
Fisherman carrying a lave net

A lave net is a type of fishing net used in river estuaries, particularly in the Severn Estuary in Wales and England to catch salmon.

Contents

The lave net is a Y-shaped structure consisting of two arms called rimes made from willow, which act as a frame work to the loosely hung net. The handle is called the rock staff and is made of ash or willow. The arms are hinged to the rock staff and are kept in position while fishing with a wooden spreader called the headboard.

Fishermen wade out at low tide with lave nets on their shoulders to the fishing grounds, with the water up to their waists. The net is then opened and lowered into the outgoing tide which rushes through the net. With his fingers placed at the bottom meshes of the net, the fisherman then waits for the fish to hit the net.

The last lave net fishermen in Wales promote the fishery as a tourist attraction at Black Rock, Portskewett, with the aim of maintaining its history and tradition. Demonstrations of lave net fishing can be watched on certain days from the picnic site at Black Rock. [1]

There are similarities with haaf net fishing, practised in the Solway Firth, where the fishermen stand waist deep in the water with large oblong nets. However, unlike haaf netters, lave net fishermen move around in the water. [2]

On the English side of the Severn, lave net fishing was practised for centuries at Oldbury on Severn. In the 1990s the fishery declined because the fishing stations silted up, claimed by the fishermen to be a result of slower tides caused by the construction of the Second Severn Crossing. [3]

In the past, sturgeon have also been caught in lave nets. [4]

See also

Putcher fishing

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gillnetting</span> Type of fishing net

Gillnetting is a fishing method that uses gillnets: vertical panels of netting that hang from a line with regularly spaced floaters that hold the line on the surface of the water. The floats are sometimes called "corks" and the line with corks is generally referred to as a "cork line." The line along the bottom of the panels is generally weighted. Traditionally this line has been weighted with lead and may be referred to as "lead line." A gillnet is normally set in a straight line. Gillnets can be characterized by mesh size, as well as colour and type of filament from which they are made. Fish may be caught by gillnets in three ways:

  1. Wedged – held by the mesh around the body.
  2. Gilled – held by mesh slipping behind the opercula.
  3. Tangled – held by teeth, spines, maxillaries, or other protrusions without the body penetrating the mesh.
<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing net</span> Net used for fishing

A fishing net is a net used for fishing. Some fishing nets are also called fish traps, for example fyke nets. Fishing nets are usually meshes formed by knotting a relatively thin thread. Early nets were woven from grasses, flaxes and other fibrous plant material. Later cotton was used. Modern nets are usually made of artificial polyamides like nylon, although nets of organic polyamides such as wool or silk thread were common until recently and are still used.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Severn Estuary</span> Estuary and Site of Special Scientific Interest in Great Britain

The Severn Estuary is the estuary of the River Severn, flowing into the Bristol Channel between South West England and South Wales. Its very high tidal range, approximately 50 feet (15 m), creates valuable intertidal habitats and has led to the area being at the centre of discussions in the UK regarding renewable tidal energy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Denny Island</span> Uninhabited island off the shores of Great Britain

Denny Island is a small uninhabited rocky island of 0.24 hectares, with scrub vegetation, in the Severn Estuary. Its rocky southern foreshore marks the boundary between England and Wales. Above high water mark, the island is reckoned administratively to Monmouthshire, South Wales. The island also marks the north-western limit of the City of Bristol's water boundary in the Severn estuary.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Goldcliff</span> Village in the city of Newport, South Wales

Goldcliff is a village, parish and community to the south east of the city of Newport in South Wales. It lies within the Newport city boundaries in the historic county of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent. Administratively, the community of Goldcliff includes the village/parish of Whitson. The population in 2001 was 233; by 2011 it had risen to 329.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing techniques</span> Methods for catching sea creatures, especially fish

Fishing techniques are methods for catching fish. The term may also be applied to methods for catching other aquatic animals such as molluscs and edible marine invertebrates.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portskewett</span> Village and community in Monmouthshire, Wales

Portskewett is a village and community (parish) in Monmouthshire, south east Wales. It is located four miles south west of Chepstow and one mile east of Caldicot, in an archaeologically sensitive part of the Caldicot Levels on the Welsh shore of the Severn Estuary. The Second Severn Crossing passes overhead carrying the M4 motorway. The community includes Sudbrook, Crick and Leechpool.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">History of fishing</span>

Fishing is a prehistoric practice dating back at least 70,000 years. Since the 16th century, fishing vessels have been able to cross oceans in pursuit of fish, and since the 19th century it has been possible to use larger vessels and in some cases process the fish on board. Fish are normally caught in the wild. Techniques for catching fish include hand gathering, spearing, netting, angling and trapping.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing industry in Uganda</span>

There are two major sources of fish in Uganda; one is from aquaculture, the other from fishing in rivers and lakes. The latter has made up the largest and most significant share of all fishing. Open water covers 15.3 percent of Uganda's surface and comprises five major lakes which are the main sources of fish in the country. Lake Victoria continues to be the most important water body in Uganda both in size and contribution to the total fish catch, followed by Lake Albert and Lake Kyoga.

This page is a list of fishing topics.

The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to fishing:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hand net</span> Type of fishing net

A hand net, also called a scoop net, is a handheld fishing net or meshed basket used to capture and retrieve objects from water, somewhat in the manner of a sieve. It is distinguished from other fishing nets in that the net or mesh is supported by a rigid circular or polygonal frame, which may or may not be mounted to the end of a handle.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Putcher fishing</span>

Putcher fishing is a type of fishing which employs multiple putcher baskets, set in a fixed wooden frame, against the tide in a river estuary, notably on the River Severn, in England and South East Wales. Putchers are placed in rows, standing four or five high, in a wooden "rank" set out against the incoming and/or outgoing tides.

This is a glossary of terms used in fisheries, fisheries management and fisheries science.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitebait</span> Collective term for the immature fry of fish

Whitebait is a collective term for the immature fry of fish, typically between 25 and 50 millimetres long. Such young fish often travel together in schools along coasts, and move into estuaries and sometimes up rivers where they can be easily caught using fine-meshed fishing nets. Whitebaiting is the activity of catching whitebait.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Traditional fishing boat</span>

Traditionally, many different kinds of boats have been used as fishing boats to catch fish in the sea, or on a lake or river. Even today, many traditional fishing boats are still in use. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), at the end of 2004, the world fishing fleet consisted of about 4 million vessels, of which 2.7 million were undecked (open) boats. While nearly all decked vessels were mechanised, only one-third of the undecked fishing boats were powered, usually with outboard engines. The remaining 1.8 million boats were traditional craft of various types, operated by sail and oars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tangle net</span> Type of nylon fishing net

Similar to a gillnet, the tangle net, or tooth net, is a type of nylon fishing net. Left in the water for no more than two days, and allowing bycatch to be released alive, this net is considered to be less harmful that other nets. The tangle net is used in the Philippines by commercial fishermen, as well as by the scientific community. When spent, these nets can be bundled, and left on the sea floor to collect smaller species. These bundles are known locally as lumen lumen nets.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cuisine of Monmouthshire</span> Welsh regional cuisine

The cuisine of Monmouthshire is historically associated with Lady Augusta Hall, also known as Lady Llanover, who published one of the first Welsh cookery books called First Principles of Good Cookery (1867). The book uses a fictional Welsh hermit to give culinary advice to a visiting guest who is travelling though Wales.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Haaf net fishing</span>

Haaf net fishing is an ancient type of salmon and sea trout net fishing practised in Britain, and is particularly associated with the Solway Firth, the estuary forming part of the border between England and Scotland. The technique involves fishermen standing chest-deep in the sea and using large submerged framed nets to scoop up fish that swim towards them. It is a form of fishing that is believed to have been brought to Britain by the Vikings more than a thousand years ago and to have been practised in the Solway Firth since then.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fishing industry in Wales</span> Sector of the Welsh economy

The fishing industry in Wales is a sector of the Welsh economy.

References

Notes
  1. Black Rock Lavenets website Archived 10 July 2009 at the Wayback Machine
  2. Smylie, Mike (2023). A Short History of Britain's Fisheries. Pen & Sword. pp. 44–45. ISBN   978-1-39906-954-0.
  3. The Independent 15 March 1997
  4. Did Sturgeon Ever Breed in British Waters?, by Alan Knight