A recent report carried out by Argentina’s National Institute of Fishery Development (INDIDEP) found that the biomass of the country’s red shrimp resource has dropped this year, and that the species’ reproductive cycle appears to be delayed, causing concerns on overfishing of this lucrative species.
INIDEP researchers Paula Moriondo and Juan de la Garza presented their findings to government and private industry representatives, based on research carried out in March of this year, in the San Jorge Gulf.
The findings confirmed observations from researchers took at the end of 2018’s season in November, which suggested that the 2019 season would see a reduction in available biomass, with a noted reduction in shrimp size, according to a report in Revista Puerto.
“The abundance of the red shrimp in the 2019 season, expressed in the number of shrimps per area, is similar to the 2017 and 2018 seasons, but with significantly smaller sizes than the previous years”, the researchers and biologists said. The data showed a decrease in the resource density from 9.9 MT per nautical square mile in 2017, to 8.53 MT per nautical square mile in 2019.
The researchers concluded that “the greater presence of smaller individual shrimp could be a consequence of a seasonal shift in the reproductive cycle, which would result in a delay in the mating process.” Furthermore, the researchers found a higher concentration of mature and pregnant female shrimp in the northern area of the gulf.
This could mean that the breeding cycle, which usually occurs during December to January, is now taking place in March and April, which means different climatic conditions that could complicate the species survival rate.
The report did not make recommendations but concluded that an exhaustive monitoring of the fishing operations is needed in order to receive an early warning for any effects that could be brought on the resource.
The report also pointed out the increase in the number of boats which harvest this species – from 144 boats in 2011, to 302 boats in 2018.
