Influence of Crab Trap Geometry and Wind Direction over the Catch Fluctuations in a Neotropical Coastal Lagoon

Abstract

Blue crabs (Callinectes spp.) are widely distributed around coastal regions being usually exploited by artisanal fishing through specific fishing gears, like as crab traps. Notably, two crab traps types are adopted in Brazil: (I) rectangular crab traps and (II) circular crab traps. Empirically, fishermen suggest that the geometry of these fishing gears amongst the wind regimes in shallow waters are directly related to the catch success, that is, the blue crabs capture into the crab traps. However, these empirical observations have not been proven by academy. Thus, the present study analysed the performance of circular and rectangular traps during twenty campaigns in a coastal lagoon located in Laguna, Santa Catarina–Brazil. The results showed that circular crab traps obtained the highest catches of Callinectes spp. than rectangular crab traps. We observed that wind direction can influence the catch performance in both fishing gears and the best catch performance in our study region were during NE and SO wind quadrants.