Short Shots

    When ice fishing, the ideal depth is six to 12 inches off the bottom.
—•—
    Animals living in water can grow to a much bigger size than animals on land. The biggest animals in the world live in water. This is because the water supports their mass. The blue whale may have a mass of 143 tons. This is nearly 25 times the mass of an African elephant, which is the biggest land animal. Above a certain size, land animals cannot support themselves. The blue whale would not be able to support itself on land.
—•—
    “The day was fine—not another hook in the brook.”
—Daniel Webster (C. 1835)
—•—
    The dragonfly has a lifespan of 24 hours.
—•—
    “We may say of angling as Dr. Boteler said of strawberries: ‘Doubtless God could have made a better berry, but doubtless God never did’; and so, if I might be judge, God never did make a more calm, quiet, innocent recreation than angling.”
—Izaak Walton
—•—
    “Nature meets many of man’s needs. Among other things he finds beauty for his soul, healing for his body, knowledge for his inquiring mind, communion with his Creator, and peace for his troubled heart.”
—Esther Baldwin York
—•—
    Fish stored in the refrigerator can be iced as long as there is proper drainage so that it does not soak up water.
—•—
    A fish is going to run away from the pressure of hook, line, and rod. If you have hooked your fish in moving water, try to position yourself downstream from the fish. That way, the fish is not only fighting you and your tackle, it is also fighting the current. This move may not always be possible, but when it is, do it, even if you have to back out of the stream and walk downstream.
—•—
    All fish like to congregate near drop-offs. The rapid change from deep to shallow water provides quick access to food.
—•—
 “Where the pools are bright and deep,
    Where the grey trout lies asleep,
Up the river and over the lea,
    That’s the way for Billy and me.”
—James Hogg (C. 1810)
—•—
    Most of the world’s 130 species of owls are nocturnal. They have huge, forward-facing eyes used for hunting their prey in dim light. An owl’s eyes are so big that they occupy most of the space in each eye socket in the skull. Because of this, there is no room for any eye muscles. An owl doesn’t move its eyes. Instead it moves its head. The flexible neck allows the owl to turn its head either way to face backward without moving its body. Other nocturnal animals such as tarsiers can also do this.
—•—
    “To waste, to destroy, our natural resources, to skin and exhaust the land instead of using it so as to increase its usefulness, will result in undermining in the days of our children the very prosperity which we ought be right to hand down to them amplified and developed.”
—Teddy Roosevelt…Message to Congress 1907
—•—
    Take a five-gallon bucket with you the next time you go ice fishing. The bucket can be used to carry your gear out to the fishing spot, and can be turned over and used as a seat while you are fishing.
—•—
    When tying knots with monofilament line, use saliva to lubricate the knots. When dry knots are pulled tight the friction causes heat, which can damage the line and cause breakage.
—•—
    If the fish burrows into the weeds, you may well have lost it, but not always. True, if you bend the rod every which way trying to get the fish out of the weeds, you will probably break off sooner or later. However, if you point your rod tip straight at the fish, reel up tight, and start walking backwards, you may coax the fish out of the weeds.
—•—
    I’ve learned that everyone you meet deserves to be greeted with a smile.
—•—
    I don’t care how much a man talks, as long as he says it in few words.
—•—
Shiner:
1. A freshwater baitfish.
2. What your wife will give you if you forget and go fishing on your anniversary.

Bite:
1. What a fish sometimes does to your bait.
2. What the insects always do to you.