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The shrimp fishery is a major global industry, with more than 3.4 million tons caught per year, chiefly in Asia. Rates of bycatch are unusually high for shrimp fishing, with the capture of sea turtles being especially contentious.
A shrimper is a fishing vessel rigged for shrimp fishing.
Nomenclature
thumb|[[Shrimp Boys at Cromer by William Collins, 1815]]
The term shrimp, as used by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), covers all shrimp (Caridea) and prawns (Dendrobranchiata, comprising Penaeoidea and Sergestoidea) – a group formerly known as "Natantia". This nomenclature often differs from local use, in which the same species may be known by different names, or where different species may be known by the same name.
History
thumb|A traditional push net, to be operated by hand near the coast. In use in The Netherlands up to 1955.
Small-scale local fishery for shrimp and prawns has existed for centuries and continues to form a large proportion of the world's shrimp fisheries. Trawling increased in scale with the introduction of otter boards, which use the flow of water to hold the trawling net open, and the introduction of steam-powered vessels, replacing the earlier sail-powered boats.
Scale and distribution
thumb|right|[[Shrimp bycatch]]
In the United States, shrimp and prawn fisheries are second only to crab fishing in terms of importance. In the northern parts of the country, cold-water shrimp are targeted, while warm-water species are targeted along the south-eastern Atlantic coast, and in the Gulf of Mexico. Most of the production is of warm-water species, but this is dwarfed by the imports of shrimp, mostly from aquaculture.
Controversies
Shrimp fisheries produce unusually high levels of bycatch. Before the introduction of bycatch reduction devices in the 1980s, shrimp fishery had a bycatch ratio (ratio of the amount of non-target species caught to the amount of the target species caught) of 4.5–5.3:1. Since BRDs were introduced, the bycatch ratios may have been reduced by as much as 30%.
Species targeted
thumb|upright=1.4|Global capture of wild shrimp and prawn species in million tonnes, 1950–2010, as reported by the FAO
Shrimps are from all different types of bodies of water in the world. Fewer than 300 species of shrimp and prawns are of commercial importance, out of a total of 3000 species. The catch is dominated by six "species items", which collectively account for 82% of the global catch. These are given in the table below:
{| class="wikitable sortable"
|-
! Scientific name !! FAO name !! 2005 catch (t) !! Percentage of total
|-
| || Natantian Decapoda nei
| align="right" |
| align="right" | 26.0%
|-
| Acetes japonicus
| Akiami paste shrimp
| align="right" |
| align="right" | 19.5%
|-
| Trachysalambria curvirostris
| southern rough shrimp
| align="right" |
| align="right" | 12.6%
|-
| Pandalus borealis
| northern prawn
| align="right" |
| align="right" | 11.0%
|-
| Penaeus spp.
| Penaeus shrimp nei and are typically monitored in terms of the catch per unit effort (CPUE), rather than the complex models used for cold-water shrimp. Warm-water species (mainly Litopenaeus setiferus, Farfantepenaeus aztecus, and Farfantepenaeus duorarum) provide more than 85% of the shrimp fishery in the United States, and are caught in the Gulf of Mexico and adjacent parts of the Atlantic Ocean. Bycatch is a serious problem for warm-water shrimp fisheries, with inadvertent catches of sea turtles being among the most contentious issues.
Cold-water fisheries
thumb|[[Pandalus borealis, the most important cold-water shrimp species]]
The most important cold-water species is the "northern prawn", Pandalus borealis, which accounts for 12% of the total shrimp and prawn catch. Up to 70% of the catch is landed in Canada and Greenland.
Bycatch is typically managed in cold-water shrimp trawling, and rates of bycatch are accordingly low, Bycatch is mostly reduced by the use of Nordmøre grids, which reduce the numbers of cod, haddock, Greenland halibut and redfish caught during shrimp trawls. The Nordmøre grid was invented by the Norwegian fisherman Paul Brattøy, primarily as a means of excluding jellyfish from shrimp catches, and introduced in 1989.
Shrimp fishing on horseback
thumb|"Shrimp fisherman on horseback", a local method of shrimp fishing; painting by the Belgian painter Albert Crahay (1881-1914)
Shrimp fishing on horseback in Oostduinkerke is a traditional local method practiced by fishermen in the area. The technique has been passed down through generations and involves the use of Brabant horses to pull nets through shallow coastal waters under the guidance of fishermen.
This unique method has even been recognized by UNESCO as an Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity, highlighting its cultural significance.
See also
- List of harvested aquatic animals by weight
Notes
References
Citations
Sources
- Doeksen A (2006) "Ecological perspectives of the north Sea C. Crangon fishery: An inventory of its effects on the marine ecosystem" Thesis, Wageningen University.