Tum Pla Khao (Tum Lan, Isan Floor Trap) — a Birdcage-Like Trap on a Wire Frame, a Close-Woven Bamboo Floor, a Nga Wai Door, Staked Underwater

"The funnel is made of bamboo shaved into many slats with equally sharp points, tied with cord at their bases and middles at equal spacing, so the tips interlock crosswise like hands pressed together in a wai." (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author ทำนุ วรธงไชย (Thamnu Worathongchai), CC BY 4.0)

Weave the floor separately from thin bamboo strips, close-woven, round or square; on some traps the floor projects in front of the door as an apron (hence tum lan). Bend wire into hoops for the frame, weave the body from thin bamboo strips, tie the floor on underneath, and make the exit for the fish at the top.

Make a door at floor level in the front, square or triangular. Shave many bamboo slats with equal sharp points and tie cord at their bases and middles at equal spacing, so the tips interlock like praying hands. Tie the bases round the doorway with the tips pointing in. Tie another cord from the middle of the top slat to a small stick wedged above the door, to set the funnel slack, taut or just right.

Tie a cord about 30 cm long to the side of the trap, running to 2 sharp-pointed stakes, to keep the trap from toppling or being carried off by the current.

Photos of a real tum pla khao from the Nong Bua Khok Folk Museum (Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, author ทำนุ วรธงไชย (Thamnu Worathongchai), CC BY 4.0).

The old bait was rice-wine lees (sato) mixed with husk, or husk with bran; today coarsely torn castor leaves are put inside. Set it in the morning in water no deeper than your neck: dive and set the trap on the bottom, with the entrance facing away from the current, and stake the cords taut. Set several, marking each with a branch above the water. Check in the morning; it can be left overnight. You must dive to set it: never alone, and not in water deeper than your neck.

Tum pla khao are found in villages near ponds, often hung together under the house, the eaves or beside the granary. They were set in the flood season, August to November; today they are set all year. Villagers confirm castor leaves work better than the old bait. You must dive to set it: never alone, and not in water deeper than your neck. Source: Sirindhorn Anthropology Centre, Traditional Objects of Everyday Use database, "ตุ้มปลาขาว", author ทำนุ วรธงไชย (Thamnu Worathongchai), Nong Bua Khok Folk Museum, Buriram (CC BY 4.0 licence). **Limits** Tum pla khao vary in shape; the source gives no size for the body, door or stakes, and there is no listing for castor leaves, so they are named in the text.