THE EFFECT OF USING DIFFERENT BAIT TYPES TO CATCH BLUE SWIMMING CRABS USING TRAPS IN BETAHWALANG WATERS OF DEMAK REGENCY

The catching of blue swimming crabs in Betahwalang Village, Demak Regency was carried out using traps. The fishing process requires bait to lure the crab into the trap. In Betahwalang Village there is a crab processing plant which produces quite a lot of waste in the form of crab shells. This research was conducted to find out the difference between crab catches and Bubu fishing gear using petek fish, crab fish and crab carapace waste and to find out the width of the carapace of the caught crab. The method used in this study was experimental fishing, using 30 units of fishing gear. The baits used were ponyfish, bagrid catfish and swimming crab’s shell waste, 10 traps each. The conclusion of this study is that statistical analysis shows the differences in bait on trap fishing gear have no effect on blue swimming crab catches in Betahwalang Village, Demak Regency. This shows that the shell waste can be an alternative bait for catching blue swimming crabs, because the results are not different from those caught using ponyfish or bagrid catfish as baits. The width of the carapace of the blue swimming crab caught is 85 – 122 mm, 73.5% of which are > 100 mm in size which is in accordance with the Regulation of the Minister of Maritime Affairs and Fisheries (PERMEN KP) No. 16 Year 2022.