Glossary P

Pac boots
Rubberized, waterproof cold-weather boots with a warm felt liner.

Packhorse
A horse used to pack gear, food, and meat.

Pectoral Fin
Front steering fins on either side of a fish; corresponds with front legs.

Pelvic Fin
Lower fin on either side of a fish; corresponds with hind legs.

Peninsula
A body of land that is surrounded by water on three sides.

Permeability
The ability of a material to allow the passage of a liquid, such as water through rocks. Permeable materials, such as gravel and sand allow water to move quickly through them, whereas impermeable material, such as clays, don't allow water to flow freely.

Phytotelma
A small, discrete body of water held by some plants.

Pier
A platform that goes from the land o ut into the water. (dock)

Pirogue
A canoe-like boat developed in Louisiana for duck hunting in cypress swamps and coastal marshes.

Plain
Flat lands that have only small changes in elevation.

Plateau
A large, flat area of land that is higher than the surrounding land.

Poacher
A person who kills game out of season or shoots more than the legal limit of game.

Pocket water
Where fast current rushes around boulders and other obstructions, creating pockets of calmer water.

Point
Where land sticks out into a body of water.

Pond
A small body of water surrounded by land. A pond is smaller than a lake.

Pool
A reach or segment of a river or stream with greater depth and slower current.

Poncho
A hooded water-repelling garment used for a raincoat.

Port
Man-made place along the coastline where ships can load and unload cargo; not a natural harbor.

Prairie
A wide, relatively flat area of land that has grasses and only a few trees.

Predator
Catches and feeds on other animals.

Prey
Something being hunted to be eaten.

Pupa
Sub-surface larval stage of aquatic insect development. the third phase of an insect's life cycle, when wings are beginning to grow.