Impact of Hypoxia on Shrimp Catch to Inform Resource Management Efforts
In the April issue of the Marine Pollution Bulletin, scientists from the National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science confirmed a relationship between decreased shrimp catch and hypoxic conditions in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Previous studies have shown that there is a negative relationship between the size of summer hypoxic zones and the annual brown shrimp catch for the states of Louisiana and Texas (combined) for the study years 1985-1998. The new analysis extended this work to cover the years 1985-2004 and substantiated the relationship between the size of the hypoxic zone and the shrimp landings.
Hypoxia is a condition where there is a low level of oxygen in the water that can severely impact aquatic ecosystems, causing loss of plants, animals and habitats. Hypoxia research yields important information for coastal and fisheries managers concerned with the shrimp fishery, habitat loss, and ecosystem changes.
Related NCCOS Center(s): CCMA
Related Region(s): Gulf of Mexico, Louisiana, Texas
Shorter web link for sharing: http://coastalscience.noaa.gov/news/?p=1182
