Bycatch of protected species, particularly small cetaceans, in gillnets is a worldwide concern. One hypothesis for this is that echolocating cetaceans entangle because they do not perceive conventional gillnets as impenetrable barriers, owing to the gillnet’s faint echo. A gillnet modified for improved acoustical visibility was tested in a first pilot trial in a commercial gillnet fishery targeting turbot (Scophthalmus maeoticus) on the Turkish Black Sea coast. This study is the first demonstration of the viability of using a gillnet equipped with small acrylic glass spheres to reduce bycatch of harbor porpoises in a commercial fishery and provides the basis for full-scale sea trials of the gear in commercial fisheries through a power analysis. In these pilot experiments, the focus lied on the handling of the gear and identification of requirements for a full-scale trial, but results include promising bycatch data for an endangered echolocating marine mammal (Phocoena phocoena) and no reduction in catch efficiency of a bottom-dwelling, vulnerable species (Raja clavata).

刺网中受保护物种，特别是小型鲸类的副渔获物是一个世界性的问题。对此的一种假设是，回声定位的鲸类会纠缠在一起，因为它们不认为传统的刺网是难以穿透的障碍，因为刺网的回声微弱。在针对大菱鲆（Scophthalmus maeoticus) 在土耳其黑海沿岸。这项研究首次证明了使用配备小型丙烯酸玻璃球的刺网减少商业渔业中的港湾鼠海豚兼捕的可行性，并通过功率分析为商业渔业中的渔具进行全面海上试验提供了基础。在这些试点实验中，重点在于渔具的处理和确定全面试验的要求，但结果包括对濒临灭绝的回声定位海洋哺乳动物 ( Phocoena phocoena ) 的兼捕数据和底部的捕获效率没有降低-dwelling，脆弱的物种（拉贾CLAVATA）。