berley
English
Etymology
(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)
Noun
berley (uncountable)
- (New Zealand, Australia) Material (frequently rancid) used as bait to attract fish or other organisms.
- Synonym: chum
- 1895, Charles Thackeray, The Amateur Fisherman's Guide, page 34:
- Another artificial bait can be made by mixing up a berley, savoury in smell to the piscine race, but somewhat obnoxious to the olfactory nerves of human beings, of rotten herrings or tinned fish, bran and flour, into a tough paste and putting it into little bags of mosquito net or fine muslin.
- 1988, Richard Allan, Go Fish Australia: All You Need to Know about Freshwater and Saltwater Fishing - a Comprehensive Guide for Everyone, page 45:
- In Australia, live baits or strip baits in a berley trail produce the big fish and a lot of anglers specialise in using this technique.
- 2007, Julie McEnally, Complete Book of Fishing Baits and Rigs, page 18:
- Apart from its use as bait, bread is an essential berley for many fish. All of the above species are attracted by bread berley as are many others.
- 2013 May, Chris Gaskin, “Lost & Found”, in New Zealand Geographic, number 121:
- A few larger black petrels and flesh-footed shearwaters land close by and pick away at scraps of berley.
Middle English
Noun
berley
- Alternative form of barly