THE SHRIMP FISHERY 



161 



Minor quantities of sea bobs, Xiphopeneus kroyeri, are landed, nearly 

 all from shallow waters in Louisiana. They are small in size and are 

 usually dried or canned. Royal Red shrimp, Hymenopenaeus robustus, a 

 deep water variety, entered the catch to a small degree in the 1950's. 

 They occur in water 175 to 300 fathoms deep, and as a consequence they 

 are costly to catch. It is possible that if demand becomes great enough 

 and if fishing costs can be lowered, this variety may achieve significant 

 commercial importance. 



American boats fishing in Central America and South America catch 

 a second species of white shrimp, Penaeus schmitti, and a third grooved 

 shrimp, P. brasiliensis, in addition to pink shrimp. 



The California, Oregon, and Washington fisheries produce mostly the 

 ocean pink shrimp, Pandalus jordani, which accounts for about 3 to 5 

 per cent of the total U.S. landing. In Alaska three pandalids are landed 

 in quantity; the pink shrimp, Pandalus borealis; the side-stripe, Pandalop- 

 sis dispar; and the coon-stripe shrimp, Pandalus hypsinotus. 



The relative commercial importance of the different kinds of shrimp 

 in 1958 and 1960 is shown in Table 12.1. 



Table 12.1. Catch by Species, 1958 and 1960 



Location 



The major shrimp fishery of the U,nited States is located in eight 

 southern states and extends from Beaufort, North Carolina to Browns- 

 ville, Texas. A smaller industry is based in the four Pacific Coast states, 

 while minor quantities of shrimp are landed in Maine, Massachusetts, 

 New York, and New Jersey, mostly for bait. 



In the South, fishing is continuous from Bull Bay, South Carolina to 

 the St. Johns River, Florida and in scattered areas north and south of 

 there. These grounds, and those of Louisiana and Mississippi, are the 

 oldest exploited in this country. Late in 1949 the Tortugas grounds west 

 of Key West, Florida were opened up by north Florida fishermen. 



