Fishermen's caution also grows from competition. Goudey works mostly on improving fishing gear. Salvador works with Maine fishermen to develop gillnets and lobster fishing gear that will be less likely to entangle whales. According to Salvador, presenting fishermen with a problem and asking them to help develop the solution is likely to get cooperation. The inherent differences between fish harvesting and data collection are another source of conflict between fishermen and researchers.
Fishermen pride themselves on their ingenuity in continually finding better ways to catch fish.
Scientific researchers say they emphasize uniformity and repetitive methods so that different batches of data can be compared to one another, and have sometimes characterized fishermen's experiences as anecdotal and not indicative of real trends. Fishermen, meanwhile, frequently describe scientific research as too far removed from real life to provide information that makes sense on the water. But as they spend more time working together on research projects, fishermen are growing to appreciate scientific methods while researchers are recognizing the value of fishermen's experience. Maine lobstermen participate in the University's annual Penobscot Bay lobster sampling program that last year drew a record 160 participants, said Steneck. Government researchers participated in last year's sampling as well, offering fishermen a treasured opportunity to show them first-hand what they see on the water.