SHRIMP, a name applied in general to the smaller Crustacea of the sub-order Natantia of the order Decapoda. The shrimps and their allies are distinguished from the larger macrurous Deca poda such as the lobsters and crayfishes, by greater development of the paddle-like limbs of the abdomen or tail, which are used in swimming. The abdomen is usually sharply bent between the third and fourth segments and has a characteristically humped appearance when straightened out.
The common shrimp (Crangon vulgaris) of northern Europe is found abundantly in shallow water wherever the bottom is sandy. It is 2 or Sin. long, slightly flattened, and with the rostrum or beak, in front of the carapace, very short. It is of a translucent greyisn colour, speckled with brown and closely resembles the sand in which it lives. On many parts of the coast the shrimp fishery is of considerable importance.
The larger shrimp-like Crustacea are generally known as "prawns," the name being especially applied in Britain to Leander serrates, which is highly esteemed for the table. In warmer seas many other kinds of prawns are caught for food. These are gen erally species of Penaeus, which are distinguished from all those already mentioned by having pincers on the first three, instead of only on the first two, pairs of legs. The large river-prawns of the
genus Palaemon (closely allied to Leander) found in most tropical countries are also often used as food. In the West Indies Palae mon jarnaicensis, and in the East Indies Pal. carcinus, attain almost the dimensions of full-grown lobsters. (W. T. C.) The annual catch of shrimps in the United States often exceeds 70,000,000 lb., most of which is taken along the southern coasts from North Carolina to Texas, especially in Louisiana, Florida, Georgia, and Mississippi. About 15,000,000 lb. of "dry" pack and "wet" pack shrimps are canned annually. The value of all types exported from the U.S.A. in 1937 exceeded $1,5oo,000.
In Japan, the annual catch ranges between 35,000,000 and so, 000,000 lb. The fishery is carried on chiefly in the southern half of the empire, in the inland sea and bays. Hand trawls and Jap anese trawls are used. The Gulf of California, Mexico, has at times been the centre of a considerable shrimp fishery, particularly along the coasts of Sinaloa.