Abstract

Parrotfish are essential to the health and resilience of coral reefs. As the Caribbean’s main herbivores, they reduce the extent and canopy height of macroalgae, create space for coral settlement, and mediate spatial competition between corals and algae. Due to their crucial ecological function, protecting parrotfish populations is an increasing management priority across the region. Identifying and implementing realistic yet effective management strategies for areas that are subject to fishing pressure is essential, considering that 98% of Caribbean coastal waters are not under marine protection. Parrotfish may be particularly vulnerable in locations where fish traps are widely used. Their simple construction and ease of deployment, combined with their ability to capture fish not susceptible to hook-and-line, make this non-selective fishing gear advantageous to fishers. However, their sustained use has been widely blamed for the overexploitation of near shore reef fish populations including parrotfish in many areas of the Caribbean. In the current study, we collated data from the literature and combined this with results from original trap experiments conducted in Honduras to build a regression model to calculate the importance of different factors affecting the susceptibility of parrotfish species to trapping, including design, dimensions, mesh size, deployment substrate, depth, and soak times. The results suggest easily interpretable management guidelines for fish trap use to be applied in areas where banning fish traps is currently unachievable due to limited enforcement capacity, strong cultural connections to fish traps, or a large economic dependence with few available alternatives.

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