July 1951 



COMEECIAL FISaSRISS R3VIErf 



13 



ing on fishery explorations in the Gulf of Mexico, left Pascagoula on May 23 and 

 returned on June 8. A few exploratory shrimp trawl drags were made at the be- 

 ginning and at the end of this cruise. 



Exploratory drags for shrimp were made on May 23 southeast of Pensacola in 

 depths up to 64 fathoms. On May 2? work was continued west of the mouth of the 

 Mississippi River off the coast of Louisiana. Here fishing was carried on for 

 red snappers using hand lines, electric reels, and traps (see table). 



The small population of very large brown-grooved shrimp (Peneus aztecus ) re- 

 ported in early May (report of cruise 8), southeast of Pensacola in 52 to 68 fath- 

 oms , was located again during the last week of May but in much reduced numbers . 

 This time also no brown shrimp at all were found in 30 to 50 fathoms east of Pen- 

 sacola. However, during the last week of May a scattering of very large brown 

 shrimp, some individual shrimp weighing as much as 55 ounces, were included in the 

 landings at Biloxi. These were said to have been taken in about 30 fathoms. Since 

 brown shrimp so large as these have not previously been noted in appreciable num- 

 bers in the north Ckilf, comparisons with catches in previous years cannot be made. 

 These shrimp are probably of commercial interest only as a spawning stock. 



Thirty trap sets were made for red snappers west of the Mississippi. Consid- 

 erable difficulty was encountered in finding good spots where current and bottom 

 conditions permitted traps to be set at all. Only ten of the sets caught snappers 

 and in each instance the rate of capture was very low in comparison with hand-line 

 fishing in the same area. Haphazard sets placed only in the general vicinity of 

 snapper bottom made no catches. 



Electric reels' were used with considerable success in hand-line fishing for 

 red snapper. The heaviest fish taken on a reel was a 114-pound warsaw (jewfish). 



