Traps and pots are submerged three-dimensional wire or wood devices that permit organisms to enter the enclosure but make escape extremely difficult or impossible.
Bait is commonly secured in the trap to lure organisms inside, where they wait until fishermen return to retrieve the catch and re-bait the traps.
Most traps are attached by a rope to a buoy on the surface of the water. Traps can be set individually or in a long continuous series, called trawls, at depths up to 2,400 feet (730 meters). Gear size, configuration, and hazards to protected species differ depending on target species.
