THE ULTIMATE ANGLING BUCKET LIST

sucker lacks, while the two-spotted sucker often has flecks of blue, brown, and yellow, though the
layout of the fins should be sufficient to avoid confusion. Grows to around three inches.
DRAGONET Callionymus lyra
Bucket List status – result
290
Quite a common little fish over clean
to lightly mixed ground in shallow
water all around the British Isles. Yet
despite its relative abundance, its
growth potential of twelve inches for
males and eight inches or so for
females, plus a willingness to eat the
kinds of things anglers like to put on
hooks, providing they are small
enough, it is still none the less a
species in my experience that is rarely
caught.
A fish with a rather flattened body
giving the appearance of its eyes
being located well up on its head.
Male Dragonet
Colouration is particularly striking in
mature males which are sandy brown
with irregular blue blotches and long blue strips on the extremely tall first dorsal fin, which when
flattened down almost reaches to the tail. These markings will also be present on the long second dorsal
fin.
Females and immature males on the
other hand are far less eye catching,
being marked with three brown
saddles on the upper back, and lacking
the exaggerated height of the first
dorsal fin.
In both sexes there are four small
tightly grouped spines on the preoperculum
or first gill cover reaching
out towards the operculum or outer gill
cover itself.
As with the sea scorpions, a rather
fearsome name for such an innocent,
Female Dragonet
attractive little fish. The mature males
in particular with their tall blue and
yellow striped fins. But for the most part, not a fish you really get the chance to deliberately target.
I've picked a few up, including some quite large male fish, while drifting worm baits for cod out over
the mixed to bouldery ground along the seaward side of Walney Island.
I've also had them in Wales. In fact, my first ever specimen came from Aberystwyth, and more recently
I have seen the odd one caught around Anglesey when baits and hooks have been small enough.