Abstract

The trap fishery in Barbados, which targets nearshore coral reef species, are believed to be overexploited, particularly along the west and south coasts. In recognition of this, the recent Fisheries Management Regulations(1998) in Barbados set a minimum mesh size for fish traps at 3.18 cm (1¼"), and the Fisheries Management Plan (2001-2003) recommends that this be increased to 3.8 cm (1½") mesh over a two-year period to reduce the mortality of juvenile reef fishes. However, fishers have expressed concems that not only will catch rates be significantly reduced by using a larger mesh, but that the 1½" mesh wire is too soft for trap construction, such that the fishable life of a trap will be much reduced.\Altemative designs to increasing the mesh size of the entire trap have been tested in previous studies, and have been partially successful in reducing mortality of immature fishes. These include the use of: vertical escape slits in conventional traps which reduce the mortality of immature, deep-bodied fishes; and a single large mesh (3.8 cm) panel incorporated into commercial traps which reduces the mortality of immature, round-bodied fishes. This study tests an altemative design (that includes both a vertical escape slit and a large mesh panel), and compares the juvenile catch rates, the size of juveniles captured, and the species composition of thejuvenile catches with conventional small mesh (3.18 cm) traps and large mesh (3.8 cm) traps.\Experimental traps caught fewer juvenile reef fish than conventional traps, but significantly more than large mesh traps per haul. Weight of catch per haul also differed significantly among traps showing the same pattem as number of fish. Individual size of juveniles (by fork length, body depth and weight) also differed significantly among traps with mean size offish becoming increasingly large from conventional to experimental to large mesh traps. All traps caught primarily deepbodied juveniles and relative abundance ofkey species in the juvenile catches did not differ significantly among trap designs.\Both the alternative trap designs reduced juvenile catch rates and increased the mean size of juveniles caught, compared with the conventional traps. Experimental traps did not reduce catch rates as sharply as the large mesh traps and were considered much stronger by fishers than the large mesh traps. As such they would seem to be a more acceptable alternative than the large mesh traps. However, unlike the large mesh traps, experimental traps failed to reduce the proportion of juveniles in the catch. Reduced juvenile catches were simply a result of reduced catches overall, with potentially high short-term economic impacts on fishers. Reducing gear efficiency does not adequately address the management goal of reduced levels of juvenile mortality with minimum impact on fishers.

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