Definitions and Terminology...what all this stuff means
Species - In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertileoffspring, typically by sexual reproduction.
aquatic insects - Aquatic insects come in a wide variety of shapes, sizes, and types. There are some common aquatic insects that may be familiar to you, such as the caddisflies, damselflies, dragonflies, mayflies, stoneflies, true flies, and water beetles.
terrestrial insects - Terrestrial insects live predominantly or entirely on land as compared with aquatic insects which live predominantly or entirely in the water. Common examples include mayflies, caddisflies, stoneflies, damselflies, etc.
Taxonomy (general) is the practice and science of classification of things or concepts, including the principles that underlie such classification. For more specific information click here...
family - Family (Latin: familia, plural familiae) is one of the eight major hierarchical taxonomic ranks in Linnaean taxonomy; it is classified between order and genus.
nymph - Immature mayflies are aquatic and are referred to as nymphs or naiads. In contrast to their short lives as adults, they may live for several years in the water. They have an elongated, cylindrical or somewhat flattened body that passes through a number of instars (stages), molting and increasing in size each time. When ready to emerge from the water, nymphs vary in length, depending on species, from 3 to 30 mm (0.12 to 1.18 in).
subimago - The final molt of the nymph is not to the full adult form, but to a winged stage called a subimago that physically resembles the adult, but which is usually sexually immature and duller in colour. The subimago often has partially cloudy wings fringed with minute hairs; its eyes, legs and genitalia are not fully developed. Subimagos are generally poor fliers, and typically lack the colour patterns used to attract mates. After a period, usually lasting one or two days but in some species only a few minutes, the subimago moults to the full adult form, making mayflies the only insects where a winged form undergoes a further moult.s is your item description. Use this space to add a description of the services, products, team members or any other items you want to highlight on your site. Have a lot to say? Easily turn any item into a full page by clicking ‘Create a page from this item’ in the edit panel.
Imago - Adult mayflies, or imagos, are relatively primitive in structure, exhibiting traits that were probably present in the first flying insects. These include long tails and wings that do not fold flat over the abdomen. Mayflies are delicate-looking insects with one or two pairs of membranous, triangular wings, which are extensively covered with veins. At rest, the wings are held upright, like those of a butterfly
swimmer nymph - The Baetidae family are swimmers and they include the Blue Winged Olives, Gray Drake, Slate Drake, Callibaetis, and Brown Duns. They are named swimmers because they swim very fast and dart to and fro in the water.
clinger nymph - are adapted to very fast moving water. Their bodies are typically quite flat and "streamlined"
burrower nymph - as the name implies, these nymphs burrow into the silt or fine sand. Examples are the hexagenia and the brown drake.
crawler nymph - these nymphs are found in many types of water. They attach themselves to aquatic plants, rocks, sticks, etc. and move about easily. Examples of these nymphs are the pale morning dun and the tricorythodes (trico).
Fly Reels - some terminology:
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Die cast reels - This a less expensive mass production process generally used in the production of less expensive reels. Molten metal (usually an alloy) is poured or injected into a mold. Die casting allows for creating shapes and forms that would not be possible with CNC machining. The down side to die casting is that the cast material is typically heavier and more brittle and thus more prone to breaking when dropped. Die casting also does not allow for the very tight tolerances that are preferred.
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CNC or machined reels - this manufacturing process is used by the vast majority of today's top reel manufacturers. Most are made using a CNC (computer numerical controlled) machine and are made of aerospace grade aluminum bar stock. The parts are usually anodized to prevent corrosion by salt water. Reels made this way are generally more light weight and more expensive than die cast reels and are stronger and will, with proper care, will last a very long time.
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Spring and Pawl drags - this is also known as a "click drag". It is a very simple mechanism that uses a toothed gear that is engaged by a "tooth-like" piece and, with the help of a spring, creates some resistance as line is being stripped from the reel. Some are slightly adjustable but even on the maximum setting do little when a fish is taking line from the reel.
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Disc Drag - this type of drag systems is more modern and is preferred by most fly fishermen today. This works as a brake as it creates tension/resistance as the fish takes line.but does not significantly increase tension when line is being wound back on the reel. The are two basic types of disk drags; those that apply the pressure to the inside of the spool or those that apply pressure within a hub. Many different materials are used in disc drag systems. They include cork ceramics, teflon, carbon fibre and others. A good disc drag can apply as much as 20 lbs. or more pressure when line is being taken from the reel. There are either sealed or non-sealed drags. Sealed drags are water tight and require no maintenance whereas non-sealed drags may require some light maintenance such a cleaning periodically.
Arbor size - It has only been in very recent years that arbor size has become part of the discussion on fly reels. Historically, a reel or associated spool had a very small central diameter or "hub". Arbor size is typically associated with just the larger size reels. Arbor size is typically talked about as small arbor (traditional fly reels) or large arbor and then there is mid size. Here is the deal about arbor size...with a large arbor reel you can retrieve line 2-3 times fast than on a traditional size or small arbor reel. This becomes more important in situations where a fish has taken a lot of backing. You can retrieve all that line much quicker. Some large arbor reels also have a wider spool to help maximize line capacity.
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Mollusk - an invertebrate of a large phylum which includes snails, slugs, mussels, and octopuses. They have a soft unsegmented body and live in aquatic or damp habitats, and most kinds have an external calcareous shell.
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