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N°1 | The Plaice fish

The Plaice fish belongs to the Pleuronectidae family. it does not usually exceed 61 cm. Growth is slow and the average lifespan is between 12 and 15 years. Reproduction takes place between February and May. Fertility is 125,000 eggs on average. It can be fished all year round. The plaice fish is a dexterous flat asymmetric fish: its two eyes are located on the right flank. Its body is thick. The ocular side is generally uniform, ranging from reddish to dark beige and spotted, while the blind side is white. His mouth is big. Its caudal is rounded and of moderate size. The lateral line is almost straight, except for a slight arc above the pectoral muscles. The dorsal fin has 76 to 101 rays, it originates in front of the left eye and ends on the caudal peduncle. The anal has 60 to 79 rays, it begins just below the operculum and ends under the posterior end of the dorsal fin. The head and body are covered with small ctenoid scales, they are rough on the ocular side; those on the blind side are mainly smooth and cycloid.

Fishing period : All year

Minimum size : 30 cm

Difficulty :

N°2 | The Coalfish

The Coalfish belongs to the Gadidae family. With a size of up to 1.30 m, the coalfish can weigh up to 10 kg. It has a life span of 8 to 10 years. The breeding period varies according to the location. The female lays up to 4 million eggs. It can be fished all year round but at a minimum catch size of 61 cm. Its body is fusiform and elongated, covered with small round scales. In profile, the lower jaw is slightly prominent. The back is greenish brown; the belly is silvery. The clear and almost straight lateral line is well marked. It extends along the entire length of its sides. There may also be a black spot at the base of the pectoral fins. The mouth is terminal. She's black on the inside. The fins are soft-raked. They are dark like the back of a fish, except for the lighter pelvic fins. The coalfish has 3 dorsal fins, the first being triangular, the others longer, and 2 anal fins. The pelvic fins are positioned well forward, under the head, and the caudal fin is a little concave. Young people may have a small barbel on their chin.

Fishing period : All year

Minimum size : 61 cm

Difficulty :

N°3 | The John Dory Fish

The John Dory fish belongs to the Zeidae family. It measures 30 to 50 cm on average and can reach a maximum weight of 8 kg. It can live up to 12 years. This fish is caught all year round but more easily from April to July. This fish has a high body and very strongly compressed laterally. Its head and the base of its fins carry thorns and bone ridges. The filaments carried by the dorsal fin are very long in juveniles and gradually regress until the animal reaches its adult size. Its eyes are high and his protractile mouth is widely split. An arched lateral line can be seen above the pectoral fins. Its color varies from grey-green with silvery to golden yellow reflections, often marked by longitudinal mottling. A large black eye patch surrounded by grey adorns the middle of each flank.

Fishing period : all year

Minimum size : no restriction

Difficulty :

N°4 | The Haddock fish

The Haddock fish belongs to the Gadidae family. The average size of haddock is 30 to 50 cm. It can measure up to 1.20 m and weigh up to 14 Kg and can live until the age of 20 years. It reproduces in spring. The female can respond to up to 3,000,000 eggs. This fish can be caught all year round outside of spawning periods. Like all coastal fish of which it is a part, haddock has three dorsal fins and two anal fins. Its body is more or less dark, crossed by a black lateral line and characterized by its silvery reflections. Its belly has a lighter shade on its back, it can be olive green and sometimes black. Two distinctive features for this fish: the black spot at the base of its pectoral fin and a small barbel on its lower jaw.

Fishing period : July to February

Minimum size : 30 cm

Difficulty :

N°5 | The European Eel

The European Eel belongs to the Anguillidae family. The european eel can reach a maximum size of 1.50 m and a weight of 3 kg. However, males rarely exceed 45 cm. The current size is more modest and varies between 40 and 60 cm. Its longevity is 12 to 20 years but in captivity it can reach more than 50 years. They can be fished from June to September. The European eel has a snake-like body, with a circular cross-section and very elongated. The body is covered with smooth, viscous skin, rich in thick mucus-secreting cells. The scales are small, oval and deeply embedded in the skin. It has a small round eye and a terminal mouth. The lower jaw is prominent. The color of the eel varies as it grows. In the yellow eel stage, it has a brownish, greenish or yellowish color depending on its habitat (homochrome). The lateral line is not very visible. In the silver eel stage, the back is dark green, the sides have silvery highlights and the belly is pearly white. The lateral line becomes very visible. The body of the European eel does not have pelvic fins. The pectoral fins, the only even fins, are small. On the other hand, odd fins (dorsal, anal, caudal) are very long and fuse at the tail.

Fishing period : June to September

Minimum size : 38 cm

Difficulty :

N°6 | The Conger Eel

The Conger Eel belongs to the Anguillidae family. Its average size is 40 to 150 cm for an average weight of 4 kg. It has a life span of 50 years old. They breed from spring to summer. The best period to fish for Conger Eel is from April to September at night. Snake-shaped, oval body and the rear part is vertically compressed. The skin is relatively thick and covered with mucus that covers the scales. The lower jaw is longer than the upper and the nostrils are tubular. The dorsal and anal fins merge with the caudal fin and this all forms a single continuous fin that starts well behind the pectoral fins. There is no pelvic fin. Back brown-green with yellowish belly for yellow eel but back black with silver belly for silver eel. It turns black with a silver belly in silver eels for individuals ready to migrate to the Sargasso Sea.

Fishing period : April to September

Minimum size : 58 cm

Difficulty :

N°7 | The Pollack fish

The Pollack fish belongs to the Gadidae family. Its size can reach 1.40 m for an average of 60 to 80 cm. The Pollack grows very quickly and lives between 8 and 10 years, while most pelagic fish have a lifespan of more than 20 years. Reproduction takes place in February March. Fertility can reach 4 million eggs. It can be fished all year round. Elongated body, covered with small scales, orange-yellow color, darker on the back, marbled in young individuals, bright yellowish white in adults. Prominent lower jaw, big eye. The dark-colored lateral line is curved at the pectoral fins, which makes it easily distinguishable from the black locus (Pollachius virens) in which it is straight. The Pollack, like many Gadidae, has three clearly triangular dorsal fins and two anal fins. It is one of the few Gadidae that does not have chin barbells. Juveniles are rather reddish brown with longitudinal stripes of blue-grey.

Fishing period : All year

Minimum size : 30 cm

Difficulty :

N°8 | The Smoothhound fish

The Smoothhound fish belongs to the Triakidae family. In exceptional cases, the emissole can reach a length of 160 cm, but it is common between 60 and 120 cm. He can live for about twenty years. Breeding takes place between June and March. The female can give birth to 10 or 20 young. It is mainly fished in the summer. The Smoothhound fish is a cartilaginous fish (the skeleton is composed of cartilage elements) of medium size. The body is elongated and tapered. The head is compressed in the upper part and the muzzle is long and rounded. The mouth, located at the bottom, is oblique and equipped with a series of small and low teeth, which may be less rounded in young people. The nostrils, in a ventral position, have a large opening, and are closer to the mouth than to the top of the muzzle. The eyes are small, round in young subjects, and horizontal oblong pupil (typical of deep-sea species) in adults. On the muzzle, there are sensory organs for depth detection (hydrostatic). Next to the terminal part of the head, there are five gill cracks. A subtle but distinct fold of the skin is found along the back, from the tail to the gill cracks. The skin (shagreen skin) is almost smooth. The dorsal fins are two, triangular in shape, the second is slightly smaller than the first. The pectoral muscles have a rounded and slightly concave inner top. The caudal fin has two non-symmetrical lobes (the upper part more developed). The anal fin is present. The colouring of the back and sides ar

Fishing period : summer

Minimum size : 60 cm

Difficulty :

N°9 | The Ling fish

The Ling fish belongs to the Lotidae family. It generally measures 1.60 m in adulthood, but can reach a height of 2 meters and weigh up to 45 kg. Its longevity is estimated at 10 years for males and 14 years for females. Breeding takes place from March to July. The female can lay up to 60 million eggs. It can be fished all year round except in winter. The Ling has a cylindrical and very elongated body. The head is flattened with a prominent upper jaw. The fairly long chin barbell is larger than the diameter of the eye. This species has two dorsal fins and one anal fin. The first dorsal fin is shorter and often shows a black spot on the back, the second one runs the rest of the body to the tail. The black caudal fin has a white border on the tip. It is uniformly greenish brown in color, but slightly darker dorsally in adults. The young are often lighter, with its coloring more or less marbled orange.

Fishing period : all year except in winter

Minimum size : no restriction

Difficulty :

N°10 | Seabass

The Seabass belongs to the Moronidae family. Its size is usually between 70 and 80 cm (1.10 m maximum). The life expectancy of the seabass is variable: about thirty years in an aquarium, 24 years in Ireland, 6 years maximum most often in the Mediterranean. Breeding takes place between December and March or January to May depending on the location. The female lays 200,000 eggs at once. The body of this fish is elongated and slightly compressed. The two dorsal fins (the first thorny and the second soft) are well separated and have almost the same length and height. The anal fin is composed of 10 soft rays preceded by 3 thorny rays. The caudal peduncle is quite elongated and the caudal fin is indented, with an upper lobe often slightly longer than the lower lobe. The pectoral fins are short. The upper part of the head is quite straight, the upper jaw is a little shorter than the lower jaw. The operculum may have a more or less visible black spot in its posterior upper part. The scales are small in size but clearly visible. The lateral line is slightly arched in the front part of the body. The back is grey in color, the sides are lighter, with yellowish or silvery reflections. The pectoral and ventral fins are yellowish white; the others are darker. Mostly in young individuals, black spots may be present in the dorso-ventral region.

Fishing period : Refer to section below

Minimum size : 40 cm

Difficulty :

7.6

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How it works

This is a score of 1 to 10 calculated city by city according to some forty criteria affecting fishing: moon, weather conditions, atmospheric pressure, sunrise / sunset. sun, tides, swell etc .