Promoting co-existence of Saimaa ringed seal and commercial fisheries by developing a seal-safe fyke net
(Poster)
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Saimaa ringed seal (Pusa hispida saimensis) is a critically endangered species, which lives only in the Saimaa lake area. Both commercial and recreational fisheries are common in the Saimaa lake area, and gillnets are one of the most common gears used in fisheries. On the other hand, drowning (or suffocating) into fishing gear is one of the most common causes of death for Saimaa ringed seal. Especially dangerous are gillnets for young, unexperienced seals. Closed season for gillnet fishing and technical gear restrictions are in use in large part of the Saimaa lake area to reduce fishing gear mortality of the Saimaa ringed seal, and to some extent restrictions have been effective. For commercial fishermen, fishing restrictions lead to decrease in fishing opportunities and income.
As a part of EU-funded Saimaannoppa-Life project, a new type of fyke net was developed and tested together with commercial fishermen. Main features of the gear are a steel bar structure in the fyke net throat which prevents seal from entering the closed end chamber of the fyke net. A further improvement was a partly cover on the fore-chambers of the gear. The modification made it possible to use fyke net in e.g. commercial percid fishery, which is traditionally carried out with set bottom gillnets. Main target species of the fishery are perch and pike-perch, both relatively high-value species. Especially during the open water fishing season, modified trap nets offer an alternative to commercial gill-net fishery. Results of the development work lead to changes in fishing restrictions, allowing the use of the modified fyke net in Lake Saimaa fisheries.