ghost traps wtf

[djay57]

this winter in new smyrna beach i have seen so many ghost traps in the lagoon due to low water ...we need to do a clean up in the winter here ..bad ...that is sad commercial guys ...

[boater2579]

if you can see em, get out there and get em  just sayin

[capt. ron]

djay

Ever try pulling one of those traps up?  They are so buried you'll pull your back out.  Besides how long has the water been low?  If the corks have been under the water they couldn't fine them to begin with.  Trust me at $30 a pop we don't want to loose to many.

Ronnie

[djay57]

yeah i grabbed some but i have a ghennoe not to big of a boat ...i am tring to get them but I travel alot out of town so i am not out there all th time .....need pontoon boat and a long gaff ....so how does it happen boats cuttin them off.....

[djay57]

here the winter tides are very low so you can see all the traps ...and clear ....i am getting a few to fix and use when we camp ...your right 30 bucks is alot to spend on alot of traps cha ching ....

[capt. ron]

sometimes during bad weather the traps roll twisting the rope around the trap and pulling the cork underwater.  Sometimes other boaters run over the corks.  If there is a lot of boat traffic at night or large boats (tugs)  they don't care and run over them anyway.

Same here.  Bad weather rolls the traps, pulls the cork under and its not until the low tides during winter until we find them. I cut my ropes at 30' just for that purpose and only fish in 15' water.

If we find a cork that we recognize we'll pull the trap and give the owner a call.
N.T.I.  Nothing to it

Ronnie

[R D]

Just so you know djay,it is a felony to mess with those traps without it being a approved clean up through the FWC,if you would like to get involved call Kyle Miller at (850) 922-4343 as he is in charge of trap retrievals and trap debris clean ups.

[CrabDog]

RD,

you were crabbing up around there were you?..........   

[ILLSWIMHOME]

Just so you know djay,it is a felony to mess with those traps without it being a approved clean up through the FWC,if you would like to get involved call Kyle Miller at (850) 922-4343 as he is in charge of trap retrievals and trap debris clean ups.

Is that still the case if there are no floats or any markings to tell who the owners are?

Can anybody just call and be part of the cleanup?

[R D]

Is that still the case if there are no floats or any markings to tell who the owners are?

Can anybody just call and be part of the cleanup?

It is the case,we developed criteria that must be met in order for it to be trap debrie,just missing a float or tag doesn't qualify,that makes it a functional trap and can only be cleaned up during the scheduled closures and in a organized FWC approved cleanup.The trap debrie cleanups can be done anytime and yes if you call they will put you in contact of whom ever is organizing it.We did it that way because if a boat cuts off one of my pots I don't need to see it on somebodys boat at the ramp because he just "found" it saves lots of problems.   

[ILLSWIMHOME]

Makes sense. I could see how that could turn into a iffy thing.  I'm always thinking of things like the world is honest.  I could see guys "finding" pots all over the place now. 

[R D]

Makes sense. I could see how that could turn into a iffy thing.  I'm always thinking of things like the world is honest.  I could see guys "finding" pots all over the place now. 

Me too,if one of mine gets cut in shallow water I will find it at some point in time,it might be in the winter when the tide go low but I know where it's at,don't need somebody hauling off a $30 pot saying look what I found.

[robc22]

By law we cannot touch any ghost lobster gear in MA......The stuff can become a real pain in the butt, wrapping up with your own gear and causing all kinds of problems.....someone should come up with a solution to this problem...........

[crabboner]

If it looks like trash, and smells like trash, it's probable trash.
 Clean Up in isle Sassafras

[Crabslayer]

If it looks like trash, and smells like trash, it's probable trash.
 Clean Up in isle Sassafras

Could also be considered an artificial reef.. You'd be suprised as to how much marine life can grow on a pot. 

[DEReeves]

Commercial crabbers get the blame for ghost traps, true enough in some cases. Overlooked is the sport fishermen who are allowed to set 6 traps here in Texas. I personally picked up 12 of them this year during cleanup, they just left them I watched them for 6 months, no one tended them. Another problem is with thieves, I do not set in channels or where there is lots of boat traffic, I do not want to obstruct anyone nor do I want floats cut off. Theives will pick up my traps, drift back over the channel while emptying it then throw it back in the deep channel sinking the float therefore a ghost trap. I think a little common sense all the way around would be the solution. At 30 dollars each I cannot afford to lose traps.

[gentlecowboy]

With the strong currents in our rivers here in Virginia, we always loose traps.  Last year the state offerered $300 to crabbers to dredge up old traps and we got almost 7000.  I've been out the past few days collecting abandoned pots from last year.

[flounderpounder]

With the strong currents in our rivers here in Virginia, we always loose traps.  Last year the state offerered $300 to crabbers to dredge up old traps and we got almost 7000.  I've been out the past few days collecting abandoned pots from last year.

how many of them had crabs in them ?

[trent]

Hi, I recently located my trap which was missing for a month and a half. Inside it had 3 stone crabs, 3 blue crabs and half a dozen sheephead. One of the blue crabs died before we got home 2 hours later so it had probably been in the trap for some time.

There was no bait in the bait box so I believe this trap had already killed some animals and the leftover parts were acting as bait.

It really was a suprise to see all those sheephead in there. Two of them would have been big enough to keep but i didn't think I caught them with a legal method.

trent

[R D]

Hi, I recently located my trap which was missing for a month and a half. Inside it had 3 stone crabs, 3 blue crabs and half a dozen sheephead. One of the blue crabs died before we got home 2 hours later so it had probably been in the trap for some time.

There was no bait in the bait box so I believe this trap had already killed some animals and the leftover parts were acting as bait.

trent

But you really don't know making that a uneducated guess which is what most do when it comes to this subject.

Over half of the blue crab traps we picked up on the first round of the clean up were recreational traps and in Sarasota and the surrounding area it was 90 percent.

[capt. ron]

RD
Last Friday I completed dumping 300 traps for my first set.  I noticed that I had one missing that I dropped only 3 days prior.  Over the weekend it seams that I have lost another 6 to tugs, sport boats or thieves.  This makes 7 traps in 2 weeks that I've lost at $30 each.
Now no one should blame me if they catch one of my traps in their trawl.  I didn't run over nor leave my trap on the bottom.
What do you think if I took a 10' 3/4" pipe and welded some rods to it and drag the bottom?  Do you think I might me able to snag one?

Ronnie

[R D]

I keep a grappling hook on the boat for deeper water so I get them back,it's the 9 out of 35 I put up a river last week that are gone I might not get back as the water is gin clear and under 12 ft deep.

[BLUE SEAS]

I am  alongliner the best way to fish and keep it clean . up here in the banks off nw england we all work together when laying out lines. Boats from jersy,nc.,s.c,mass. r.i. . Its wild and weird on the banks we run across lobster guys and the high flyers a nd for the most part we all respect another mans or womans.gear!!! COMMONS SENSE IS NOT THAT COMMEN!!!!   Mark your floats and you will get a radio contact from another boat At least thats what happens here up north. Good life to all 

[home grown crabber]

bottom line......clean up trash...30 dollars is not worth loosing wildlife period.our rivers are dying because of neglect! sorry guys

[genecrabman]

North Carolina Did a study about Ghost Pots a few years ago..........There conclusion is Ghost Pots have just as many benefits as they do bad things..Wildlife thrives in these ghost pots..Small crabs and fish go in and out of these things, shrimp feed in them..Oysters attach to them in crazy numbers..In a few years they can even produce a Oyster rock...You guys watch too much Discovery Channel...You sound like a bunch of Tree Huggers....