Bycatch Reduction by Experimental Shaking Codend Attached with Canvas in a Bottom Trawl

An active stimulating method for juvenile fishes to drive escaping from mesh of the codend was examined by shaking canvas in the bottom trawl followed by shrimp beam trawl. Field fishing trials by a bottom trawl were carried out between the Geomoondo and Jejudo in west of South sea, Korea by conver-net methods to examine the effect on the reduction of juvenile fish as a discard catch by generating a shaking movement of the codend using two pieces of asymmetrical semi-circular canvas. The mean period of the shaking motion with the round canvas was 10-15 s, and the range of amplitude as a vertical depth change was up to 0.4-0.6 m when towing speed 3.4-4.3 k't as estimated by peak event analysis. The escape rate of juvenile fish in conver-net by total juvenile bycatch (codend and cover-net) in 14 trials increased from 20% in a steady codend to 34% using a shaking codend in the bottom trawl, while the marketing catch or total bycatch was similar between steady and shaking cod ends. There was no difference in the body size of the fish and species composition between the steady and shaking cod ends. Above results demonstrate a new method for bycatch reduction actually up to 18% using an active stimulating device, although further experiments are needed to increase an effective shaking motion of the codend in amplitude and period for more bycatch reduction.