Catch efficiency and retentive ability of commercial crawfish traps

Abstract

The catch efficiency and retentive ability of 10 commercial crawfish traps were evaluated in commercial ponds. Trap designs with three entrance funnels caught significantly more crawfish than did trap designs with one or two funnels. Conversely, the retentive ability of the trap designs was inversely related to the number of entrance funnels. Traps constructed from PVC plastic-coated wire caught significantly more crawfish than identical trap designs made from galvanized wire; however, retentive ability of traps was not related to construction material. The posture (horizontal versus vertical) of identically designed traps when set in the pond did not affect the catch efficiency nor retentive ability of the traps. Traps with exposed bait caught 40–47% more crawfish than did traps with protected bait. An average of 84, 80 and 64% of marked crawfish were retained by traps after 12, 24 and 48 h, respectively.