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A summary of some regulations and historical catch and effort data from the commercial lobster 

 fishery in Maine, 1930 through 1968. 



traps as reported in "Maine Landings" (Fig. 1). 

 Apparently the catch in pounds has increased 

 with increasing minimum size regulations in 

 1933, 1942, and 1957. Of course, the generally 

 higher corresponding number of traps (assum- 

 ing more trap-hauls) by year could account 

 for the higher catches, whereas Dow (1969) 

 advocated the influence of mean ocean tem- 

 perature on the catch. Another factor, varying 

 recruitment, could cause fluctuations in the 

 catch from year to year. 



With this amount of conjecture, it is obvious 

 that we need more detailed information on the 

 fishery before we can hope to demonstrate 

 these types of cause and effect. 



The Lobster Trap: Description 

 and Ramifications 



We have described and measured the traps 

 presently in use (Fig. 2) not only because of 

 the influence of gear selectivity on the size 

 composition of the catch but also because 



of the possible effect of alterations in this 

 gear on catch-per-unit-of-effort values. That 

 is, if changes occur in the future and there 

 is a continuous survey of the fishery, then we 

 can make a determination concerning the in- 

 fluence of these factors when compared with 

 the present set of conditions. 



The intent of the above concept could be 

 applied partially to an informational leaflet 

 "The Maine Lobster Pot," mimeographed in 

 1948 by the Maine Department of Sea and 

 Shore Fisheries. That paper described two 

 basic designs of traps, (1) the "double-header" 

 and (2) the "parlor." The measurements were 

 not detailed on trap dimensions, mesh sizes, 

 and lath spacings. Nevertheless, we used the 

 information to determine if there has been a 

 change in the basic design of traps. 



For the present study on traps, we selected 

 two areas from each of seven coastal counties, 

 with the exception of Sagadahoc where we 

 sampled only one area. In each area, we 

 measured and noted the design of four traps 



