as a trotline's mainline is laid horizontally across water with a series of vertically suspended snood lines, while a dropline's mainline is suspended vertically (using a weight) from a floating buoy with a series of side-branching snoods.

Variations

In its use in the commercial crabbing industry (on the Chesapeake Bay for example), a trotline is used as a variation of a setline. Webster's dictionary defines a setline as being "a long heavy fishing line to which several hooks are attached in series." A trotline is defined as

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