LIFE HISTORY OF THE COMMON SHRIMP 
11 
distant from the Gulf in a direct line and much farther by the winding bayous and 
canals through which the shrimp would have to pass if, as seems probable, they were 
spawned at sea. Also during 1932 these young shrimp have been found in similar 
localities near Beaufort, N.C., and Aransas Pass, Tex., consequently records are now 
on hand for these young from the four States in which the investigations are in 
progress. The habitat of the post-larval young up to about 50 mm seems to be on 
the inside and appears to be characterized by shallow water, muddy bottoms, lugh 
temperature, and moderate to very low salinity. A more detailed study of the 
physical characteristics of the localities in which young shrimp are found is in prog- 
Figuke 7.— Frequency distributions of the immature and maturing females of the common shrimp in Georgia waters during the 
spawning season of 1931. Solid lines represent distribution of female shrimp with ovaries composed exclusively of undeveloped 
eggs and broken lines indicate distribution of shrimp with maturing eggs. 
ress. These bayous, creeks, and lake margins are also nursery grounds for many 
species of fish, the larvae and young of which are taken while seining for the young 
shrimp. While Crago, the shrimp of the North Sea, differs in many respects from 
Penaeus, the young also make their early growth far from the sea (Ehrenbaum 1890). 
SPAWNING 
What is the origin of these very young, apparently just emerged from the larval 
state, some of which can be found from April through September? We naturally 
turn to the larger group which we have said was present at this time. If we classify 
the large shrimp by the observed state of the gonad, we have the following picture. 
In Georgia, in 1931 from the middle of April to the end of July, some degree of matu- 
rity was observable in the ovaries. The members of the small group appearing in 
July were without exception immature. Some scattering representatives of the 
