Effect of Hang‐in Percentage on Catch Rates of Flounder in the North Carolina Inshore Gill‐Net Fishery

Abstract

AbstractThe effects of hang‐in percentage (degree of tautness) on the catch efficiency of gill nets for paralichthine flounders in North Carolina were examined using monofilament gill nets with 5.75‐in stretched mesh. Nets with hang‐in percentages of 33% and 60% were fished in pairs and were separated by a single monofilament gill net of 5.50‐in stretched mesh. Catches of the paired test nets were significantly different, with the catches obtained by the looser nets (60% hang‐in) exceeding the catches in the more tightly hung nets (33% hang‐in) by 37% in number of fish and 46% in estimated weight. Length‐frequency distributions of the catch were not significantly different between the paired nets with different hang‐in percentages. Length‐frequency distributions of legal‐sized fish taken in 5.50‐ and 5.75‐in stretched‐mesh nets were significantly different, with the smaller mesh size resulting in a smaller (left‐shifted) length‐frequency distribution. Thus, hang‐in percentage can be manipulated to alter flounder harvest rates per unit of net, and small changes in mesh size can alter the size distribution of the catch.