Langoustes et scyllares des petites Antilles

Crayfishing is not particularly organized in the French islands as their population is not fond of large crustaceans. However, young crayfishes, about the size of the European scampi are ordered by rich Creoles for receptions or family gatherings. But lobsters, heavier than 0.750 to 1 kilo are eaten only by Europeans.Any fisherman who is asked to provide 10 kilos of crayfish catches them very quickly with a brass snare or a hook placed underneath the rocks. Some artisans gather the crustaceans in large rectangular baskets made of wire mesh and called "gardes", to wait for the potential customer. There is no specific pot for this type of fishing whereas Creole wicker makers worked hard on the creation of tools both complex and difficult to make to catch small morays; a fish which does not have a great commercial value.Consequently, it is impossible to precisely assess the importance of the exploitable large crustacean stock based on the catches of the Creole fishermen. If the performances of some crayfish boats from Douarnenez, using Mauritanian nets on the banks of St-Martin, can be considered as extremely satisfactory, it is not the case of other attempts. A whole study has to be undertaken. This note is only the beginning of a larger work focusing on the natural history of the crayfishes and Spanish lobsters in the waters of the arc of the Petites Antilles.