THE ULTIMATE ANGLING BUCKET LIST

worm re-emerges from the sand thinking the danger has past, it strikes, either sucking it from its tube,
or biting off that bit which it has hold of.
Despite the rather misleading name, this fish isn't in any way related to the sole other than by being flat.
It is in fact quite closely allied to the plaice which it resembles in general body shape rather than the
true sole which is narrow and long. A fish which ichthyologist Alwyne Wheeler in his book 'The Fishes
of the British Isles and North-West Europe' describes as not taking angler's baits.
In this instance, that is most definitely not the case, as both the record list and my own personal
experience shows, as this is a fish I have actually witnessed caught by an angler many years ago on
Loch Long. Granted, it won't be a regular occurrence. But not an impossible one either.
Limited catch stats could just as easily be due to the fact that out in the deeper water it prefers, small
worm baits on tiny hooks are hardly the norm, so what might be a willing fish in theory, is actually
being restricted by angling practise.
On the plus side, most of those that do take a bait tend to be of good size, which for a fish of such high
commercial value and renowned eating qualities is always a bonus.
WITCH Glytocephalus cynoglossus
Bucket List status – no result yet
150
A long narrow bodied fish,
probably nearer to the basic shape
of a dover sole than it is to that of
the lemon sole to which it's
related, but with a 'proper flatfish'
head and a centrally placed very
small mouth. The eyes, like those
of the plaice and flounder are
located on the right side of the
body, are noticeably large to
enhance vision in the darker
depths the witch favours. The
lateral line is virtually straight.
Colouration is a rather drab greyish brown with the scales having a dry roughish feel when brushed
against the grain tail to head. The end of the pectoral fin on the fish’s upper side is darker than the rest
of the fin. However, it's most striking identification feature, which can readily be seen on close
examination, is a series of small cavities on the underside of the head.
What limited experience I have of this species comes from commercially caught specimens taken off
Hartlepool where we had a couple come aboard. That area of the North Sea supposedly marks the
southerly extent of its distribution over on that side of the country.
All of Scotland, the west coast of Ireland, and the extreme south west of Britain make up the remainder
of its regular range, usually well out beyond angling reach.
In his book 'The Fishes of the British Isles and North-West Europe' ichthyologist and one time advisor
to the British Record Fish Committee the late Alwyne Wheeler, describes the witch as a species that is
not caught on rod and line.