BULLETIN OF THE UNITED STATES FISH COMMISSION. 149 



a standard article of food in Charleston. The greater part of Uie 

 catch is sold at home, only a few hundred bushels being shipped away 

 annually. 



Georgia. — The shrimp and prawn fishery of Georgia is of great extent 

 and value, and during the height of the season gives employment to 

 about 400 men. The season is the same as for the South Carolina coast. 

 Many shrimp are sent every year from Savannah to the New York 

 markets. 



Florida. — Prawns appear in the shallow water about Fernandina, and 

 elsewhere along the Florida coast, about the full moon in March, and 

 enter the bays, rivers, and creeks in large numbers, as it is thought, 

 to spawn. About May or June they are succeeded by the shrimp, which 

 remain until December, or, if the winter be very mild, until the following 

 spring. The best shrimping season is during September and October. 

 The fishing grounds are on both muddy and sandy bottoms, in from 6 

 inches to 4 feet or more of water; and the fishing is done mainly during 

 the night, when the shrimp or prawns are more abundant than in the 

 daytime. Cast-nets only are used, as they are preferred to the seines. 

 They measure from 10 to 15 feet in diameter. Two men go in each 

 boat — one to row, the other to manage the net. The average daily catch 

 per boat for the entire season would amount to about two bushels. Be- 

 fore shipping, the shrimp are washed clean, boiled about 10 minutes in 

 a very thick brine, and then allowed to steam in a covered basket or 

 barrel, after which they are spread out and dried on a platform of 

 boards. 



The shrimp fishery was well inaugurated at Fernandina several years 

 prior to 1880; but for the want of patronage it did not succeed, and was, 

 therefore, soon abandoned, not, however, from a lack of material, which 

 is said to be exceedingly abundant and easy to obtain. Successful ship- 

 ments have been made to New York, Philadelphia, and many Southern 

 cities, but now the fishery is limited to supplying the home demand. 



A small shrimp fishery is carried on at Saint Augustine, Fla., during 

 the months of July, August, September, and October. The men use cast- 

 nets, measuring from 4 to 5 feet long, and with a half-inch mesh, and 

 make about three trips weekly, fishing at low tide during the night, or at 

 early dawn. An average daily catch per boat is about 4 bushels. The 

 entire season's catch, which in 1880 amounted to about GOO bushels, is 

 used locally, either for food or bait. The price is about 10 cents per quart, 

 in the beginning of the season, but at a later period it falls as low as 15 

 cents per peck. 



Gulf coast. — The shrimp fishery of the Gulf coast is mainly confined 

 to Louisiana and Texas, although shrimp may possibly occur in equal 

 abundance in other sections. The greater part of the supplies come from 

 Barataria Bay, Louisiana, and Matagorda and Galveston Bays, Texas. 

 Both seines and cast-nets are used by the shrimpers, who station them- 

 selves along the shores in the shrimping region. The season extends, 



