Statewide Pacific ocean shrimp, Pandalus jordani, landings

totaled 3,400,191 lb, down from the 1975 record catch of

4,992,233 lb but well above the 10-year (1966-1975) mean of

2.6 million lb. Landings from Areas A (Eureka-Crescent City)

and B-1 (Fort Bragg) were 2.7 and 0.7 million lb, respectively.  Only negligible amounts were landed in Areas B-2 (Bodega Bay) and C (Avila-Morro Bay). In Areas A and B-1 catch per hour trawled by single-rig vessels ranged from 294 to 1,803 lb while catch per hour by double-rig vessels ranged from 431 to 3,428 lb. Two-year-old (1974 year class) shrimp dominated the catches during the first part of the season, but 1-year-old (1975 year class) shrimp dominated the catches from August to October. The outlook for the 1977 season in Areas A, B-1 and B-2 is good because of the strong showing of the 1975 year class.  (15pp.

Dahlstrom, Walter A.

Schultz, Steven A.

Warner, Ronald W.

English

Aquatic Commons

C 
4 
Sta te  of C a l i f o r n i a  LIfRARY 
I The Resources Agency Landing Marine LaboratoiicL. 
DEPARTMENT OF FISH MD GAME p, 0. b x  223 
I Wlosj Lmdlng, Caltf. 95039 
OCEAN SHRIMP REPORT 
1976 SEASON I 
Ronald W. Warner 
Steven A. Schul tz  
and 
Walter A .  Dahlstrom 
TWENTIETH ANNUAL SFIRIMI? REPORT 
MARINE RESOURCES 
Administrat ive Report No .  77-12 
May 1977 
OCEAN SHRIMP REPORT 
1976 SEASON 1/ 
- 
Ronald W. Warner 2/ 
Steven A. ~chultzj/ - 
and 
Walter A. ~ahlstrom4/ - 
TWENTIETH ANNUAL SHRIMP REPORT 
ABSTRACT 
Statewide Pacific ocean shrimp, PandaZus jordani,  landings 
totaled 3,400,191 lb, down from the 1975 record catch of 
4,992,233 lb but well above the 10-year (1966-1975) mean of 
2.6 million lb. Landings from Areas A (Eureka-Crescent City) 
and R-1 (Fort Bragg) were 2.7 and 0.7 mill-ion lb, respectively. 
Only negligible amounts were landed in Areas B-2 (Bodega Bay) 
and C (Avila-Morro Bay). In Areas A and B-1 catch per hour 
trawled by single-rig vessels ranged from 294 to 1,803 lb 
while catch per hour by double-rig vessels ranged from 431 to 
3,428 lb. Two-year-old (1974 year class) shrimp dominated the 
catches during the first part of the season, but 1-year-old 
(1975 year class) shrimp dominated the catches from August: to 
October. The outlook for the 1977 season in Areas A, B-1 and 
B-2 is good because of the strong showing of the 1975 year 
class. 
1/ Marine Resources Administrative Report No. 77-12, May 1977. 
- 
2/ Marine Resources Region, 619 2nd St., Eureka, CA 95501. 
- 
31 Marine Resources Region, c/o Dept. Parks and Recreation, 
- 
Star Route, Mendocino, CA 95460. 
4 /  Marine Resources Region, 411 Burgess Dr., Menlo Park, CA 
- 
94025. 
C a l i f o r n i a ' s  1976 ocean shrimp l and ings  t o t a l e d  3,400,191 l b .  I n  1975, 
4,992,233 l b  were landed,  a r eco rd  s t a t ewide  ca t ch .  S ta tewide  landings  f o r  
1976 were w e l l  above t h e  10-year (1966-1975) mean of 2.6 m i l l i o n  l b .  
Based upon recommendations of t h e  Department of F i sh  and G a m e ,  t h e  Com- 
mission removed t h e  quotas  i n  a l l  a r e a s  i n  1970. The f i s h e r y  was managed on 
t h e  b a s i s  of  year  c l a s s  composi t ion,  count  pe r  pound, and c a t c h  per  u n i t  of 
e f f o r t  c r i t e r i a  t h a t  a r e  used t o  i n d i c a t e  t h e  s t a t u s  of t h e  shrimp s tocks .  
Had r e source  problems a r i s e n  t h e  f i s h e r y  could have been c losed  wi th  48 
hours '  n o t i c e .  
AREA A 
Area A (Eureka-Crescent C i ty )  l and ings  f o r  1976 were 2,673,819 l b ,  con- 
s i d e r a b l y  l o v e r  than  t h e  previous  season ' s  l and ings  of 3,395,178 l b .  
The season  opened A p r i l  16 and f i s h i n g  commenced A p r i l  18  a f t e r  a p r i c e  
s e t t l emen t  of 1 6 ~  p e r  l b .  Heavy concen t r a t ions  of s m e l t  (Osmeridae) ham- 
pered f i s h i n g  e f f o r t  and t h e  p r i c e  jumped t o  1 8 ~  p e r  l b  May 4. A s t r i k e  
from May 1 8  t o  May 23 brought  t h e  p r i c e  t o  20C per  l b  where i t  remained 
throughout t h e  remainder of t h e  season.  
Poor grade and volume p reva i l ed  dur ing  June and many f ishermen l e f t  t h e  
a r e a  t o  f i s h  shrimp o f f  F o r t  Bragg and t h e  Oregon c o a s t .  By mid-July, f i s h i n g  
improved wi th  good ca t ches  occurr ing  over  t h e  e n t i r e  bed from t h e  Oregon 
border  t o  p a t r i c k ' s  Po in t .  The grade w a s  v a r i a b l e  b u t  by e a r l y  August a low 
grade of shrimp dominated t h e  ca t ches .  One company stopped buying shrimp 
and d a i l y  l i m i t s  of 2,500 t o  3,000 l b  pe r  b o a t  were imposed. 
E f f o r t  remained low throughout September, b u t  i n  e a r l y  October v e r y  
dense concen t r a t ions  of shrimp were found i n  t h e  Redding Rock a r e a  and heavy 
f i s h i n g  e f f o r t  wi th  extremely h igh  volume c a t c h e s  took p l a c e  up t o  and 
inc lud ing  t h e  las t  day of t h e  season ,  October 31  (Figure 1 ) .  
Catch pe r  hour f o r  t h e  season  of 11 s i n g l e - r i g  and 7 double-ri 'g v e s s e l s  
averaged 678 and 1,644 l b  r e s p e c t i v e l y  (Table 1 ) .  
Two-year-old, 1974 yea r  c l a s s  shrimp dominated t h e  c a t c h  by weight  from 
A p r i l  through J u l y ,  b u t  t h e  ve ry  s t r o n g  1975 y e a r  c l a s s  was most abundant 
dur ing  t h e  remainder of t h e  season  and comprised 89.6% of t h e  ca t ch  i n  
October (Table 2 ) .  Primary females were f i r s t  noted i n  August and by 
October represented  18.5% of t h e  samples (Table 3 ) .  
I n  May, average carapace  l e n g t h s  of 1975 yea r  class shrimp were con- 
s i d e r a b l y  sma l l e r  than  those  of 1-year-olds i n  1975; however, growth was 
r a p i d ,  showing a ga in  of 4.3 rnm dur ing  t h e  season.  Two-year-old shrimp were 
l a r g e r  and exh ib i t ed  f a s t e r  growth than  t h e  same age group i n  1975 (Table 4 ) .  
P a c i f i c  
Ocean 
5 Miles  
* 
\ 
\ - - -  .- --. 
42" 00' 
C c -  
\ 
\ 
- 
C a l i f o r n i a  
E I 
"I I 0 4 
0 1 e4 rl 2 
\ 
'\ 
\ 
\ 
\ 
L 
\ 
\ 
Crescent  C i ty  
FIGURE 1. Area A ocean shrimp, PandaZus jordani,  ca t ch  l o c a t i o n s ,  1976. 
TABLE 1. Area A Monthly Catch and E f f o r t  Data ,  1976 ( C a l i f o r n i a  P o r t s  Only) 
Pounds E f f o r t  Pounds 
Month landed  (hours)  p e r  h r  Vesse l s  T r i p s  
S ing le - r ig  v e s s e l s  
91,490 185.7 493 5 A p r i l  32 
June 123,114 330.6 372 6 48 
J u l y  249,380 438.6 569 11 70 
August 355,276 .570.8 622 10  113  
September 173,228 204.2 848 9 4 6 
October 
T o t a l s  1,488,515 2,195.1 678* 11+ 411 
Double-rig v e s s e l s  
A p r i l  
May 
June 
J u l y  
August 
September 
October 
T o t a l s  
A l l  v e s s e l s  
Season T o t a l s  2,673,819 2,916.1 917" 1 8+ 490 
* Mean. 
+ T o t a l  v e s s e l s  which made l and ings .  
$ T o t a l  e f f o r t  n o t  r epo r t ed .  
TABLE 2. Area A Count P e r  Pound and Year C la s s  Composition of  Shrimp, 
1976 Season 
Age c l a s s  Age c l a s s  
Count pe rcen t  by number p e r c e n t  by weight  
Month p e r  l b  0 I I1 I11 0 I I1 I11 
A p r i l  1 2 1  - 5 . 1  76.7 18 .1  - 2.4 68.3 29.3 
June 154 - 47.0 52.2 0.7 - 23.6 74.7 1 . 8  
J u l y  172 - 67.5 31.4 1.1 - 45.1 52.0 3.0 
August 156 - 7 6 . 0 .  23.5 0.5 - 56.8 41.7 1 .5  
September 163  - 85.5 13.9 0.6 - 71.8 26.4 1.8 
October 147 - 89.6 1 0 . 1  0;3 - 80.6 18.6 0.9 
TABLE 3. Year C la s s  and Sex Composition of Area A Shrimp by Month, 1976 
Season (Percentages)  
Males T r a n s i t i o n a l s  Females 
Month 0 I I I I I1 I I I I11 
A p r i l  - 2.6 9.4 - 51.0 - 13.6 18.2 
June 
Ju ly  
August - 60.2 - 14.9 10 .0  0.9 13.5 0.5 
September - 63.6 - 17.8 8.4 4.2 5.5 0.6 
October - 67.4 - 3.7 0 .1  18 .5  10.0 Oi3 
TABLE 4 .  Average Carapace Length (mm) of Area A Shrimp, 1975 and 1976 
Seasons 
I I I I11 
Season 1975 1976 1975 1976 1975 1976 
(Year Class)  (1974) (1975) (1973) (1974) (1972) (1973) 
A p r i l  - 12.0 - - 18.0 - 21.9 
June 14.7 12.8 18.8 19.0 22.4 23.3 
J u l y  15.6 14.4 19.7 19.8 23.3 23.7 
August 16.2 15.0 20.1 20.3 23.6 23.8 
September 16.3 15.4 20.4 20.8 24.2 23.9 
October 16.3 16.3 20.4 21.2 24.4 24.1 
AREA B-1 
Area B-1 (For t  Bragg) shrimp landings  f o r  t h e  1976 season t o t a l e d  
720,549 l b ,  more than double l a s t  y e a r ' s  ca t ch  of 347,832 l b  and t h e  second 
h ighes t  landings  i n  h i s t o r y .  The record  is  799,722 l b  landed i n  1961. 
F ish ing  began on A p r i l  28. No F o r t  Bragg based v e s s e l s  en tered  t h e  
f i s h e r y .  F ish ing  e f f o r t  was increased  due t o  t h e  voluntary  f i s h e r y  c l o s u r e  
i n  Area B-2 (Bodega Bay) because of smal l  shrimp, and occas iona l  poor ca t ches  
and grade i n  Area A p r imar i ly  dur ing  June and Ju ly .  Eleven v e s s e l s  engaged 
i n  t h e  f i s h e r y  compared t o  f i v e  dur ing  t h e  previous  season. 
P r i c e  followed t h a t  of Eureka, beginning a t  16C per  l b  and inc reas ing  
t o  1 8 ~  pe r  l b  on May 4. Fishermen t i e d  up on May 18 f o r  a b e t t e r  p r i c e ,  
s e t t l i n g  a t  2 0 ~  per  l b  on May 23 f o r  t h e  remainder of t h e  season. 
During A p r i l ,  f i s h i n g  e f f o r t  was between Abalone Poin t  and Cottaneva 
Creek i n  68 t o  8C fm (Figure 2) .  During t h i s  pe r iod ,  eulachon,  ThaZeichthys 
pac i f i cus ,  concent ra t ions  hampered f i s h i n g  ope ra t ions .  S ix  tows o f f  Bruhel 
_---*- 
Mistake Point 
taneva Creek 
Abalone Point 
Bells Point 
Pacific Ocean Bruhel Point 
FIGURE 2 .  Area B-1 ocean shrimp, PandaZus jordani, catch locations, 1976. 
P o i n t  produced only an e s t ima ted  50 l b  t o t a l .  I n  May, t h e  f i s h e r y  expanded 
and moved f a r t h e r  n o r t h  t o  o f f  Mistake Po in t  i n  70 t o  80 fm. Eulachon con- 
c e n t r a t i o n s  were temporar i ly  avoided b u t  soon appeared i n  t h i s  a rea '  too.  
Seventy percent  of t h e  t o t a l  e f f o r t  was spen t  i n  June and J u l y  f i s h i n g  
from B e l l s  P o i n t  t o  Usal Rock i n  60 t o  80 fm. Eulachon concen t r a t ions  
lessened  by June 12  and by t h e  end of t h a t  month ceased t o  be  a problem. 
However, a t  t h e  end of June,  s t r o n g  c u r r e n t s  adve r se ly  a f f e c t e d  t h e  f i s h e r y  
through August. On J u l y  7 t o  10 ,  f ishermen agreed t o  t i e  up t o  a l l ow t h e  
shrimp bed t o  r e s t  due t o  t h e  previous  week's poor ca t ch  rates of only  
431 l b  pe r  h r .  On J u l y  17 ,  Eureka based v e s s e l s  r e tu rned  t o  Area A and t h e  
fo l lowing  week t h e r e  was rough weather.  
The August f i s h e r y  was d iv ided  between o f f  U s a l  i n  70 t o  80 fm and o f f  
Hardy Creek t o  K i b e s i l l a h  i n  55 t o  70 fm (Figure 2) .  The l a t t e r  a r e a  ind i -  
ca t ed  a southern  s h i f t  of t h e  shrimp popula t ion  i n t o  a p rev ious ly  unproduc- 
t i v e  a r ea .  
Two double-r ig  t r a w l e r s  f i s h e d  dur ing  September and October ,concentrat-  
i ng  t h e i r  e f f o r t  between K i b e s i l l a h  and ~ a + e  Vizcaino i n  54 t o  65 fm. They 
landed t h e i r  ca t ches  i n  Eureka. 
Eight  s i n g l e - r i g  t r a w l e r s  made 113 t r i p s  i n  Area B-1, averaging  575 l b  
p e r  h r ,  wh i l e  t h r e e  double-r ig  t r a w l e r s  made 1 5  t r i p s  (u sua l ly  c o n s i s t i n g  
of 3 f i s h i n g  days)  averaging  989 l b  pe r  h r  (Table 5 ) .  
Two-year-old shrimp dominated t h e  ca t ch  i n  numbers du r ing  A p r i l  through 
June and equaled 1-year-olds i n  J u l y .  One-year-olds dominated t h e  ca t ch  i n  
~ u g u s t  and September (Table 6 ) .  Except f o r  August, 2-year-old shrimp domi- 
na ted  i n  weight.  No samples were ob ta ined  from t h e  October landings .  
TABLE 5. Area B-1 Catch and E f f o r t  Data, 1976 ( C a l i f o r n i a  P o r t s  Only) 
Pounds E f f o r t  Pounds 
Month landed (hours)  per  h r  Vessels  T r ips  
S ingle- r ig  v e s s e l s  
Apr i l  11,840 23.3 508 2 4 
June 327,919 507. l* 647 8 6 2 
J u l y  78,504 198.0 346 8 3 3 
August 13,725 .36.8 37 3 2 5 
September 4,691 9.9 474 1 1 
October - - - - - 
T o t a l s  480,809 836.7 575+ 8$ 113 
Double-rig v e s s e l s  
June 
J u l y  
August 25,758 35.0 736 2 2 
September 138,660 103.0 1,346 2 6 
October 11,316 20.5 552 2 2 
3* T o t a l s  239,740 242.3 989 + 15 
A l l  v e s s e l s  
Season T o t a l s  720,549 1,079.0 668 + 11 $ 128 
* Nine l o g s  were missing - e f f o r t  was prora ted .  
+ Mean. 
$ T o t a l  v e s s e l s  which made landings.  
TABLE 6 .  Area B-1 Count Per Pound and Year Class Composition of Shrimp, 
1976 Season 
Age class Age class 
Count percent by number percent by weight 
Month per lb 0 I I1 111 0 I I1 I11 
April 119 - 19.2 71.9 8.9 - 6.9 '78.7 14.4 
June . 15 2 - 40.7 56.2 3.1 - 19.8 74.5 5.7 
July 14 6 - 48.6 49.0 2.4 - 28.6 66.8 4.6 
August 162 - 70.2 26.3 3.4 - 49.3 43.6 7.1 
September* 163 - 84.2 15.3 0.5 - - - - 
* Hand tabulated. 
Two-year-old females steadily decreased through the season to 11%, the 
opposite of what was found in the 1975 season. The fishery was dominated by 
the increasing number of 1-year-old males which increased to 58% in September 
(Table 7). 
TABLE 7. Year Class and Sex Composition of Area B-1 Shrimp by Month, 1975 
Season (Percentages) 
Males Transitionals Females 
Month 0 I I I I TI I I1 I11 
April - 19.2 16.3 - 17.0 - 38.6 8.9 
June - 41.5 5.9 2.3 18.0 - 29.5 2.9 
July - 42.4 0.9 5.8 23.4 0.5 24.7 2.4 
August - 46.7 17.8 6.8 5.7 19.6 3.4 - 
September* - 58.1 14.9 4.7 11.2 10.7 0.5 - 
-- 
* Hand tabulated. 
Average carapace  l e n g t h s  by year  c l a s s  (Table 8 )  f o r  1976 were l e s s  
than  those  of 1975 shrimp. One-year-old shrimp dur ing  J u l y  through 
August 1976 grew a t  a comparable r a t e  b u t  averaged 1 .3  mm less carapace  
l e n g t h  pe r  month than  t h a t  of t h e  same per iod  i n  1975. The 1975 f i s h e r y  did 
n o t  begin  u n t i l  J u l y  16; t h e r e f o r e  spawning d a t a  a r e  no t  a v a i l a b l e  f o r  t h a t  
season. Th i s  season ,  dur ing  t h e  f i r s t  week (Apqil 25-May I ) ,  49% of t h e  
females sampled were ovigerous.  Bad weather stopped f i s h i n g  from May 2 t o  
May 8 ,  b u t  from May 9 t o  May 15  sampling i n d i c a t e d  12.2% of t h e  females 
remained ovigerous.  May 16  t o  May 22 had bad weather and no ovigerous 
females were found dur ing  t h e  fo l lowing  week's samples,  a l though some were 
n o t i c e d  i n  t h e  landings .  D i f f e r e n t i a l  annual  spawning and/or  l a r v a l  
s e t t l i n g  pe r iods  may account  f o r  t h e  s i z e  d i f f e r e n c e s  noted.  
TABLE 8.  Average Carapace Length (mm) of Area B-1 Shrimp, 1975 and 1976 
Season 
I I I I11 
1975 1976 1975 1976 1975 1976 
A p r i l  13.6 18.9 21.5 
June 13.8 19.2 21.8 
J u l y  15 .8  14.6 19 .1  19.4 21.6 21.8 
August 16.6 15 .3  19.9 20.0 22.3 21.9 
September 17.3 15.7* 20.5 20.0" 22.6 22 .O* 
October 17 .1  20.3 22.6 
*   and t abu la t ed .  
AREA B-2 
Area B-2 f ishermen spen t  2 days of exp lo ra to ry  f i s h i n g  (Apr i l  19  
and 22) b u t  were unable t o  f i n d  marketable  shrimp i n  q u a n t i t y .  O n l ~  
495 l b  were landed. Small shrimp were loca t ed  between F o r t  Ross and S a l t  
Po in t  i n  55 fm. One f isherman caught shrimp i n  one tow a t  a r a t e  of 6,000 
l b  pe r  hr. However, t h e  f isherman decided t o  l e a v e  them a lone .  Two of t h e  
v e s s e l s  depar ted  f o r  Area B-1 and t h e  remainder r e tu rned  t o  bot tomfish  f i s h -  
ing .  A record 1,187,719 l b  were landed i n  1975. 
Sampling of t h e  c a t c h  revea led  a s t r o n g  1975 y e a r  c l a s s  (1-year-olds) 
which averaged 75.8% by number. Average heads-on count pe r  l b  was 171. 
Percent  composition by number was: I - 75.8, I1 - 19.7, I11 - 4.5. Only 2 
of 115 females  were ovigerous (1.7%). 
AREA C 
Only 5,328 l b  were landed i n  t h i s  a r e a  i n  most ly i n c i d e n t a l  ca t ches  dur- 
i n g  t r awl ing  f o r  s p o t  prawns i n  t h e  Santa Barbara a r ea .  I n  1975, 62,009 l b  
were taken  o f f  Po in t  San Luis  and landed i n  t h e  Morro Bay-Avila a r ea .  
OUTLOOK 
The out look  f o r  t h e  Area A f i s h e r y  i s  good based on t h e  l a r g e  c a t c h e s  
and s t r o n g  showing of  t h e  1975 yea r  c l a s s  i n  September and October. This  
year  class is now of marketable  s i z e  and should dominate t h e  1977 f i s h e r y .  
The s t r e n g t h  of t h e  1976 yea r  c l a s s  w i l l  n o t  be known u n t i l  sampling is con- 
ducted dur ing  t h e  1977 season.  
The out look  f o r  Area B-1 i n  1977 is very  good based on t h e  p roduc t ive  
a r e a s  f i s h e d  dur ing  t h e  1976 season  and t h e  v e r y  s t r o n g  1975 yea r  c l a s s  
(84.2% i n  September) which should c a r r y  t h e  1977 f i s h e r y .  The s t r e n g t h  of 
the 1976 yea r  c l a s s  is  unknown. However, i n  June and August fishermen 
r epor t ed  many young-of-the-year shrimp ranging from 3 . 2  t o  4 . 3  m carapace 
l e n g t h  which we d i d  no t  n o t e  i n  l a s t  y e a r ' s  ca t ch ,  p o s s i b l y  i n d i c a t i n g  a 
s t r o n g  1976 yea r  c l a s s .  
. The out look  f o r  Area B-2 looks  promising wi th  t h e  1975 yea r  c l a s s  
expected t o  be  s t r o n g  and of a s i z e  t o  produce marketable  s i z e  shrimp i n  
quan t i t y .  This  yea r  c l a s s  w i l l  b e  2 yea r s  o l d  i n  Apr i l .  
The s t a t u s  of t h e  shrimp s t o c k s  i n  Area C i s  unknown because of very  
l i t t l e  f i s h i n g  e f f o r t .  
We thank t h e  f ishermen and d e a l e r s  f o r  t h e i r  cont inued i n t e r e s t  and 
coopera t ion  i n  a s s i s t i n g  us  i n  ga the r ing  t h e  informat ion  conta ined  i n  t h i s  
r e p o r t .  W e  a l s o  thank John Geibe l ,  Bernice Hammer and Al ice  Bernard 
(Operat ions Research Branch) f o r  t h e i r  i nva luab le  a s s i s t a n c e  wi th  p u t t i n g  
t h e  sampling informat ion  i n t o  a usab le  form. 


Ocean shrimp report 1976 season

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Ocean shrimp report 1976 season

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