Fishers can optimize gear design if the management system allows for enough flexibility: A modified SELTRA codend can reduce fish catch in the Danish trawl fishery for Norway lobster

Abstract

Through an industry-science collaboration, a modified SELTRA codend consisting of a grid with scaring floats (GSF) was successfully developed by the fishing industry, and tested in a scientific trial on board a twin-rig demersal trawler. The selectivity of the gears used in the fishery needs to be tailored to each vessel and season, as quota availability differs across vessels and seasons. The modified gear aims at avoiding catching unwanted fish when targeting Norway lobster. The use of the modified codend showed good potential for effectively reducing catches of unwanted fish without affecting the catch of the target species Norway lobster. With respect to a standard SELTRA codend, the GSF design led to a significantly lower retention of unwanted fish, with 71 (61–79) % less cod, 94 (73–100) % less saithe and 22 (14–37) % less plaice being retained. The results show that fishers have the knowlegde to develop more selective gears. The authors argue that fisheries management should support such industry driven innovation through more flexible management approaches.