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July 9, 2014Gulf departures don’t dampen independent spirit
July 9, 2014
As the 2014 spring shrimp season draws to a close, unusually high prices at the docks remain.
But while fishermen appear to be making some profit, they note that smaller catches are cause for concern.
Pounds of shrimp caught during the month of May, new federal figures show, were far fewer than caught during that same month in previous years. In Louisiana and other Gulf states, the numbers show, the catch has been smaller than that of May 2010, during which the fishery suffered a partial shutdown due to the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.
“Weather may have played a big role,” said Louisiana SeaGrant agent Alan Matherne, noting that the season also got a late start, because state officials were worried about the size of shrimp since winter had been so late and so cold.
“We caught a lot last Friday said Montegut shrimper Mitzie Bourg. “More than 900 pounds. We didn’t catch much the rest of the weekend though.”
Other fishers have reported similar results – spotty good catches and longer stretches with lower poundage – throughout the season, during which brown shrimp are the primary target.
Higher prices are in part due to a shrimp blight in Asian aquaculture ponds, which increases demand for the US wild-caught product on global markets and particularly within the US.
Early this week fishermen said they were seeing more small white shrimp in their nets, a sign that the season would likely close soon.
State officials said a closure of the season later this week is possible.
The white shrimp season opens in August – at a date to be determined by the state’s Wildlife and Fisheries Commission.
And how might that season shake out once nets are wet?
“I don’t know,” said state shrimp biologist Marty Bourgeois. “It’s far too early to break out the crystal ball.”
