GULF OF MEXICO COMMERCIAL SHRIMP POPULATIONS 



345 



Figure 1. — Typical Gulf coast "inshore" shrimp trawler. (Such vessels are in the 30-ft. class, are single-rigged, and have 

 a very shallow draft. This particular vessel has been adapted to a commercial bait-shrimp fishing operation.) 



Distinct siibunits of the Gulf of Mexico shrimp 

 fisliery may thus be defined as follows: 



(1) Noncommercial fishery — composed of an 

 untold number of sport fishermen taking mostly 

 inunature shrimp for personal use from shallow 

 coastal waters. Fishing gear consists mainly of 

 small otter trawls pulled with outboard-powered 

 craft. 



(2) Commercial bait fisherj' — comprising a fairly 

 large number of professional fishermen taking im- 

 nniture shrimp, almost exclusively in inshore 

 waters, solely for the purpose of supplying bait 

 (live and dead) to a growing population of anglers. 

 E.xcept for the craft, which are inboard-powered 

 and slightly larger, the gear is similar to that de- 

 scribed for the noncommercial fishery (Inglis and 

 Chin, 1959). 



(3) Conmiercial fishery — representing the core 

 of the Gulf shrimp industry and composed of a 

 large number of professional fishermen who tradi- 

 tionally seek (1 ) the larger, mature shrimp inhabit- 

 ing all coastal offshore waters and (2) small, im- 

 mature shrimp in certain inshore waters. E.xcept 

 for a very small amount of j)rocessing waste which 

 is ground into meal, all of this fishery's harvest is 

 destined for human consumption, the larger shrimp 

 being processed for sale in a fresli or frozen condi- 

 tion, the smaller shrimp being dried or canned. 



CHARACTERISTICS OF COMMERCIAL SHRIMP 

 FLEET 



Trawlers (fig. 1) of very distinctive design and 

 similar construction comprise a large and iiighly 

 mobile shrimp Meet. Practically all units par- 



