Biology of inshore shrimps

Inshore shrimps support major commercial fishery in India, \nthe penaeid shrimp production being nearly 2 lakh t and \nnon penaeids 2.1 lakh t during 2013-14. Trawl is the major \ngear that catch shrimps, besides the minitrawl are prevelant \nalong Kerala coast, thalluvalai along Tamil Nadu and trammel \nnet along Vizhinjam-Manakudy coast. Parapenaeopsis \nstylifera, Metapenaeus dobsoni, Metapenaeus monoceros, \nFenneropenaeus indicus are the major species landed along \nthe south-west coast. Along the south-east coast, Penaeus \nsemisulcatus dominate the fishery in Gulf of Mannar and \nPalk Bay and M. dobsoni supports commercial fishery \nalong the Chennai coast with 15-16 other species including \nMetapenaeopsis spp. and Trachypenaeus spp. M. monoceros \nis the dominant species along the Andhra coast. Along the \nMalabar Coast M. dobsoni, F. indicus and P. stylifera are the \nimportant species in the fishery. In the inshore waters of Cochin \nM. dobsoni is dominant followed by P. stylifera. P. monodon \nis the largest of the inshore shrimps (maximum recorded size \n350 mm). Fenneropenaeus indicus, F. pencillatus as well as \nP. semisulcatus also grow to large size.