• Fishing traps are designed to lure fish with bait and make it difficult for them to escape.fish image by arthur luhnev from Fotolia.com
  
  Fishing traps and pots are fishing methods that use bait to lure in fish and keep the fish trapped but alive until the fisherman retrieves his haul. Traps benefit both the environment and the fisherman. When placed on the water bottom, traps typically leave less of an impact on the sea floor and catch fewer undesired fish species.
  
  

Slat Traps

• A fisherman uses a slat trap when he wants to catch catfish. The slat trap can be shaped like a cylinder, rectangle or square, and is made out of slats. The trap cannot be longer than 6 feet long and 2 feet in diameter. On three sides of the contraption, at least two slats should be spaced, 1 inch apart from the next. The trap can have one or more entrances to lure in fish.
  
  

Basket Traps

• A fisherman has his choice of pots (constructed of wood, wire or plastic) or traps (constructed of netting, hoops and a frame) when he uses a basket trap to fish. Box-like basket traps are made with durable frames, whereas drum-like traps, sometimes referred to as drum nets, are made of nets and hoops. These types of enclosed traps and pots are efficient, because the basket design makes escape difficult for the trapped fish.
  
  

Crab Traps

• Crab traps are collapsible traps made of wire or netting and come in different shapes. When the bait in the trap attracts a crab, the fisherman pulls up on the cord of the trap so that the sides are pulled up, trapping the crab. If the fisherman does not pull the cord, the crab can eat the bait and move on freely.
  
  

Gill Nets

• Gill nets are big, rectangular nets made of mesh. They can float within a water column or be placed on the sea floor. Mesh sizes and shapes will vary, depending on the species the fishermen wishes to catch. When fish swim into the net, the mesh ensnares them by the gills. In survival situations, gill nets can be crafted from parachute suspension line and tied to trees on opposite sides of a river.