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Fisheries Research 67 (2004) 235–239

Short communication

Performance of traditional rush and modern plastic
traps on the capture of Palinurus elephas
(Fabricius, 1787) in laboratory tanks

Michele Gristina a,∗, Monica Gagliano b

a IRMA-CNR, Via L. Vaccara 61, 91026 Mazara del Vallo (TP), Italy
b School of Marine Biology and Aquaculture, James Cook University, Townsville, Qld 4811, Australia

Received 9 May 2003; received in revised form 17 September 2003; accepted 17 September 2003

Abstract

Experiments were conducted under controlled laboratory conditions to evaluate catch performance of traditional rush and
modern plastic spiny lobster (Palinurus elephas) traps. Our results showed that there was no signiﬁcant difference in the catch
efﬁciency of the two kinds of traps used suggesting that plastic traps could play an important role in re-launching the local
artisanal ﬁshery.
© 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Spiny lobster; Palinurus elephas; Traps; Catch performance; Laboratory conditions

1. Introduction strong decline in spiny lobster stocks (FAO, 1997),
virtually eliminating trap ﬁshing in the entire region
Traps have been considered among the most ver- (Secci and Cau, 1996; Gristina et al., 2002).
satile and effective ﬁshing gears. They are commonly
employed by ﬁshermen to catch and retain desired Located in an historically important ﬁshing ground
target species of lobsters, other crustaceans as well subjected to intense trawl and artisanal ﬁshing pressure
as ﬁnﬁsh, gastropods and molluscs (Miller, 1990). over the last 20 years, the re-introduction of traditional
Moreover, they represent a useful tool for sustainable selective traps in the Egadi Isles Marine Reserve rep-
harvest. They are selective, undersized animals can be resents an important opportunity for the re-launching
returned to the water unharmed, they produce negligi- of the local artisanal ﬁshery in accordance with sus-
ble by-catch (Groneveld, 2000) and they have a min- tainable management practices, and the ﬁrst real at-
imal impact on the benthic communities (Eno et al., tempt to re-establish an artisanal trap-ﬁshery in the
2001). However, the introduction of trammel nets in archipelago of Egadi (Gristina et al., 2002). How-
Italian waters during the 1960s and the high intensity ever, traditional rush traps are expensive to produce.
of trawl ﬁshing pressure in coastal area resulted in a Few craftsmen are still able to build them and the art
has not been handed down to successive generations.
∗ Corresponding author. Tel.: +39-0923-94-89-66; Consequently, modern plastic traps are here being as-
fax: +39-0923-90-66-34. sessed as alternatives to traditional rush traps. The
E-mail address: gristina@irma.pa.cnr.it (M. Gristina). aims of this study were to formally evaluate and com-
pare the catch performances of traditional rush traps

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