THE STRUCTURE AND FUNCTION OF KRAAL, A FISHING GEAR, IN A SRI LANKAN LAGOON

Prawn is the major fishery in the Rekawa lagoon and "Kraal " is the ma-jor fishing gear, which is a built-in fishing-trap made of plant materials operated in the shallow regions of the lagoon. The Kraals are of different types. Their structure, distribution and method of operation are given in the note. The Rekawa lagoon is a coastal lagoon, which has an area of about 197 ha. A belt of mangroves encircles the lagoon almost completely. Prawn fishery is the major fishery in the lagoon and 'Kraal', * a built-in fish-trap, is the major gear employed in the fishery. A map of the lagoon (Fig. 1) having been prepared based on aerial photographs provided by the Survey Dept (1982, 1983), the distribution of Kraals was marked based on actual measurements. Approximate duration of operation of each Kraal was recorded by observation. Information on raw material, building, operation and reparation of Kraals was collected. Catches were sampled on the spot and were later analysed in the laboratory. Prawns were identified following Kurian and Sebastian (1982) and fishes were identified following Munro (1955), and their lengths and weights were measured. Structure of the Kraal: Kraal is an unbailed fishing trap built in shallow areas of the lagoon. The major parts of the Kraal are the fencing portion and the enclosure; the fencing diverting the animals to the enclosure, where they are trapped. Different types of Kraals are reported from different parts of the world (Day 1981, Kurian and Sebastian 1982, Zaouali 1984). Kraals in the Rekawa lagoon has three major components, namely guides, walls and skeletal poles. Walls supported by skeletal poles form the basic structure of the Kraal and they do most of the fencing and trapping of animals. Guides, besides doing the function of fencing, expand the size'of the Kraal (Fig. 2). Guide is a long straight fence made of mangrove twigs implanted in the shallow regions of the lagoon (Fig. 2). It is built either perpendicular to th