Cherriola

A fishing apparatus widely used by the fishermen of Machico, consisting of a central line or madre that falls vertically and to which 4 or 5 small rods of quince or wicker are horizontally fixed, with a gap of 3 palmos between them, from the ends of which small lines or loros with their respective hooks hang. The central line has a stone or pandulho at the lower end that makes the apparatus descend, and is connected at the upper end to a common fishing line. It is mainly used in the capture of adult groupers, working in depths of 206 and 300 fathoms, where also the sea bass, the gata, the ramudo, the xara, and other oil fish can be caught. This apparatus resembles what in Portugal is called barqueira de arame, being dropped vertically until the pandulho touches the underwater ground. The cherriola used by the fishermen of Camara de Lôbos differs somewhat from the one described above. As for the origin of the term, it is not unlikely that the apparatus, due to the arrangement of the rods bearing a certain resemblance to the surriola sticks, which are set perpendicularly to the side of certain ships and from which ropes for mooring the boats hang, received the name surriola, transformed by corruption into cherriola.