METHODS 



Collection of Data 



To obtain information on areas fished, num- 

 ber of shrimp caught, number of boats, boat- 

 hours, and man-hours, I interviewed all known 

 Tampa Bay bait shrimpers and wholesalers 

 1 week before the survey began. Thereafter, 

 all bait shrimpers and wholesalers were 

 interviewed weekly. Catch-effort data per- 

 tained only to live shrimp and did not include 

 those that died during sorting, handling, and 

 holding. All shrimp were caught at night and 

 usually marketed the following day. 



Collection of Samples 



Samples for biological analysis were pur- 

 chased weekly from Tampa Bay shrimpers, 

 wholesalers, and retailers. Although the total 

 number of shrinnp purchased varied from 

 week to week, the sample from each supplier 

 contained at least 50 animals. The shrimp 

 were placed immediately on ice in a plastic 

 pan that had perforations to allow the melt- 

 water to pass through. The shrimp were 

 covered with cheesecloth to prevent them 

 from jumping out and then transported to the 

 laboratory in an ice chest. Shrimp from 



Old Tampa Bay and lower Tampa Bay-"- were 

 kept separate. 



Measurements of Samples 



The carapace length, the total length, and 

 the total weight were made on each shrimp 

 while it was fresh. The carapace length 

 extends from the posterior portion of the 

 orbital notch to the posterior edge of the 

 carapace (fig. 2). The total length extends 

 from the anterior end of the rostrum to the 

 posterior end of the telson. About one- third 

 of about 50 shrimp were measured and weighed 

 on the day of collection; of these, about 80 per- 

 cent were still alive at measurement. The 

 others were measured and weighed the follow- 

 ing day. All specimens were in excellent 

 condition; a few remained alive after being 

 on ice up to 24 hours. The carapace length 

 was measured to 0.1 mm. with vernier cali- 

 pers, and the total length to the nearest 

 0.5 mm. by the specially designed plastic tube 

 (Allen, 1963). 



Total weight of the shrimp was taken with 

 a direct-reading, single-pan Metter balance, 



•'■ Lower Tampa Bay refers to the area near the mouth 

 of Tampa Bay and adjoining Boca Clega Bay. 



2 Trade names referred to in this publication do not 

 imply endorsement of commercial products. 



-TOTAL LENGTH 



Figure 2. — Length measurements of a typical penaeid shrimp (modified from Voss, 1955). 



3 



