Glossary L...

Landed: Brought to land, brought to shore; in the case of a fish, caught and brought to land.

Landings: Landings of fish are the quantities of fish landed (caught and brought to land) by fishers.

Landslide: A mass of loosened rocks or earth that slides down a slope or hillside.

Larva: An independent embryo stage some animals go through before assuming the characteristics of the adult of the species.

Lateral line: A sensory canal running along the sides of a fish.

Latitude: Distance north or south of the equator of a given position, measured in degrees. The equator has a latitude of 0 degrees, the South Pole is 90 degrees South.

Leg ropes: Rubber cord that attaches the user to a surfboard or body board.

Leopard shark: A species of shark whose skin is marked with dramatic dark spots or blotches.

Light absorption: The dimming of light as it passes through water or any other substance.

Limpet: A group of gastropod molluscs, related to snails, which have simple shells shaped like a bowl or platter.

Lingcod: A long-bodied fish that lives in cold Pacific waters.

Littoral: The benthic zone between the highest and lowest spring tide marks; the inter-tidal zone.

Lobster: A crustacean with a long abdomen and, in most species, large front claws.

Logbook: Record book used by mariners to record events on a ship's voyage. Also used by students in Marine Vocational Educational programs to record competencies.

Longitude: A measurement of distance given in degrees east (to 180 degrees East) or west (to 180 degrees West) from the Greenwich Meridian (0 degrees).

Long-line: A type of commercial fishing that uses hundreds of baited hooks on a line that can be many kilometres long.

Longshore current: Current located in the surf zone and running parallel to the shore as a result of waves breaking at an angle on the shore.

Luau: Hawaiian feast.

Lures: Make-believe prey used as bait to catch fish.

Lycra: Stretchy material made into shirts which keep ultraviolet rays from entering skin.