Design, use, and effectiveness of collectors for catching the puerulus stage of spiny lobsters

Abstract

Abstract Collectors have been used successfully to catch the puerulus stage of spiny (rock) lobsters to provide animals for study in the laboratory, to investigate levels of puerulus settlement, and for mariculture purposes. Different types of collectors have been developed for different species and different areas. We focus mainly on the use of artificial seaweed collectors for Panulirus cygnus in Australia and crevice types developed for Panulirus argus in the U.S., and Jasus edwardsii in New Zealand. Workers in other countries, including Antigua, Bermuda, Cuba, Grenada, India, Jamaica, Japan, Mexico, and St. Paul and Amsterdam Islands have also used collectors to catch the puerulus stage of Panulirus and Jasus spp. Collectors of various shape and size have been constructed from a range of materials. The biological response to collectors appears to vary among species, and the most appropriate collector is unknown for any species. Collectors are usually set in localities where juveniles occur in large nu...