Unanswered Forum Topics

The effect of acoustic alarms on the by-catch of harbour porpoises in the Danish North Sea gill net fishery

Submitted by morgaac on

Bottom set gillnets with pingers (LU-1, 8 signals, 145 dB, 300 ms, random signal intervals) attached were tested against standard nets and nets with dummy pingers (double blind) to determine if they could reduce the incidental capture of harbour porpoises. The proportion (number of nets with porpoises/number without) of harbour porpoise bycatch was reduced from 0.00229 and 0.00295 for nets with dummy pingers and no pingers respectively, to 0.00015 for nets with active pingers.

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The impact of commercial crab traps on northern diamondback terrapins, Malaclemys terrapin terrapin

Submitted by morgaac on

Several versions of a terrapin excluder design were tested on crab traps to determine how effective they were in reducing terrapin bycatch and what the effect on catch rates of targeted crabs was. All tests consisted of modified and unmodified traps being set in an alternate fashion. A wire bar placed across the opening of the traps was unsuccessful in reducing terrapin bycatch. A second design, which was a rectangular frame (5x10 cm) was successful.

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Field Study 313

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New Jersey
Target catch
Crabs
Effect on bycatch species
Modified traps with a 5X10 cm rectangular frame caught 2 out 15 terrapins during 1992 and 5 out of 51 terrapins during 1995 (remainder caught by unmodified traps)
Effect on target catch
Crab catch rates were 11% higher when the 5x10 cm excluder design was used in 1994 (multiple sites) and 49% higher in 1995 (single site)
Bycatch species
Fishing Gear

Field Study 313

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New Jersey
Target catch
Crabs
Effect on bycatch species
Modified traps with a 5X10 cm rectangular frame caught 2 out 15 terrapins during 1992 and 5 out of 51 terrapins during 1995 (remainder caught by unmodified traps)
Effect on target catch
Crab catch rates were 11% higher when the 5x10 cm excluder design was used in 1994 (multiple sites) and 49% higher in 1995 (single site)
Bycatch species
Fishing Gear

Field Study 313

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New Jersey
Target catch
Crabs
Effect on bycatch species
Modified traps with a 5X10 cm rectangular frame caught 2 out 15 terrapins during 1992 and 5 out of 51 terrapins during 1995 (remainder caught by unmodified traps)
Effect on target catch
Crab catch rates were 11% higher when the 5x10 cm excluder design was used in 1994 (multiple sites) and 49% higher in 1995 (single site)
Bycatch species
Fishing Gear

Field Study 314

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New South Wales, Australia
Target catch
Prawns
Effect on bycatch species
Haulback delay of 10-15 seconds allowed juvenile red spot to escape through the square mesh panels
Effect on target catch
No difference in the catch or weight of prawns
Bycatch species
Reduction technique
Fishing Gear

Field Study 314

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New South Wales, Australia
Target catch
Prawns
Effect on bycatch species
Haulback delay of 10-15 seconds allowed juvenile red spot to escape through the square mesh panels
Effect on target catch
No difference in the catch or weight of prawns
Bycatch species
Reduction technique
Fishing Gear

Field Study 314

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
New South Wales, Australia
Target catch
Prawns
Effect on bycatch species
Haulback delay of 10-15 seconds allowed juvenile red spot to escape through the square mesh panels
Effect on target catch
No difference in the catch or weight of prawns
Bycatch species
Reduction technique
Fishing Gear

Field Study 317

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
North Carolina
Target catch
Spanish mackerel, menhaden, spot
Effect on bycatch species
Catch rates of bonnethead sharks were significantly lower in the 4" modified net
Effect on target catch
Did not reduce catch rates
Bycatch species
Reduction technique
Fishing Gear

Field Study 317

Study Type
Field study in the wild
Location
North Carolina
Target catch
Spanish mackerel, menhaden, spot
Effect on bycatch species
Catch rates of bonnethead sharks were significantly lower in the 4" modified net
Effect on target catch
Did not reduce catch rates
Bycatch species
Reduction technique
Fishing Gear