A shrimp is a type of crustaceans with a particular built of body. It is different from a prawn. The body of a shrimp has gills and plates that cover the front as well as the back of its body. A shrimp has segmented bodies. It owns 5 legs around the thorax region, another 5 pairs of legs for swimming and 3 pairs of feeding teeth around the abdomen. There are many kinds of shrimp that lives in the Oceans in the World. They can either thrive in waters that are cold or warm. Here are 17 Types of Ocean Shrimp that you have to know because shrimps are important to nature and humans.
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1. Ghost Shrimp
The Ghost shrimp is a species of shrimp that prefers to live in the muddy areas of the ocean. Around 95% of this shrimp species live in the shallow parts of the waters. The others like to live 2.000 metres below the surface of the sea. This shrimp is often used as a bait for fishing.
According to fossil record of Ghost shrimp, the species have existed ever since the Jurassic era. Moreover, this shrimp also likes to make burrows in the sand.
2. Alaskan Pink Shrimp
The Alaskan Pink shrimp lives in the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean. This particular shrimp thrives in cold water. Also it prefers that the bottom part of the ocean to be quite muddy but soft. Apparently it lives up to 1.330 metres deep in the water.
The Alaskan Pink shrimp is often harvested for food purposes since there is an abundance of its population in the ocean. Other than that, its enzyme is also useful for improving the quality of soil in the case of organic farming.
Read more: Unique Characteristics of Indian Ocean
3. Skeleton Shrimp
The Skeleton shrimp is easily found in most of the world’s oceans. It either lives in great depths of the water or it hangs around areas with a lot of eelgrass.
On the other hand, the Skeleton shrimp has a small, thin body. That feature makes it easy for the species to hide among the plants in the oceans such as the seaweed.
Furthermore, when the Skeleton is aiming for its prey, it can remain motionless until it reaches the right time to devour its prey.
4. Chinese White Shrimp
The Chinese White shrimp is most often found in the coast of China. The Chinese like to harvest this species of shrimp between the months of September and October.
Read more: Decomposers of the Ocean
This shrimp can grow to quite a large size. Additionally, its shell is translucent. For consumption, the shrimp is often labelled according to quality. The meat of this shrimp is mild and fragile.
Also read: Threats to Aquatic Biodiversity
5. Rock Shrimp
The Rock shrimp lives in the waters around the Gulf of Mexico. The size of this shrimp is medium. The species can live up to 6 metres deep in water. However, people like to harvest this shrimp at a more shallower level of water.
The reason why this shrimp is named as Rock shrimp is because of its shell. The shell of the Rock shrimp is tough and usually cracked before it is sold to the public. The meat of Rock shrimp tender. In conclusion, this type of shrimp is edible to eat.
6. Japanese Skeleton Shrimp
The Japanese Skeleton is found in the shallow water areas of Japan. The species can also be found in the waters of New Zealand, North Pacific and North Atlantic. However, in those places the shrimp is considered as an invasive species. The Japanese Skeleton shrimp can be quite long.
Its body resembles the body of a skeleton, it is very slender and upright. Its body colour can be red, blue, cream, purple, orange or green. That’s why it recognized as shrimp which different with other.
7. Pacific Cleaner Shrimp
The Pacific Cleaner shrimp is found in most oceans with a lot of Ocean Coral Reef. It lives in the depths of water between 5 and 40 metres. The shrimp is named as such due to its nature. It is able to consume parasites that linger around the water.
Moreover, it also likes to eat the dead tissue from fish. The colour of this species is pale with white and red bands on its body. The Pacific Cleaner shrimp has a very peaceful nature while in the ocean. That’s why this type of shrimp has an aesthetic color compare to other shrimp.
8. Sakura Shrimp
The Sakura shrimp species mostly lives in the coastal area of Japan, specifically the Suruga Bay. It can also be found in the waters of Taiwan or even New Guinea but the population is quite scarce. The species is medium in size. It can live up to 2.400 metres deep inside the ocean water.
The colour of this species is light pink that is quite transparent, thus the name Sakura which is cherry blossom. The Sakura shrimp is harvested a lot in Japan to be consumed.
Read more: Types of Stingrays in the Great Barrier Reef
9. Whiteleg Shrimp
The Whiteleg shrimp also goes by the name of Pacific White shrimp. This species is found mostly in the Pacific ocean, specifically from Sonora to Peru. The species lives in the deep water, almost reaching 72 metres deep. The Whiteleg shrimp prefers to live in warm oceans.
It can only tolerate living in waters with a temperature above 20° Celcius. The species is often caught wildly in the ocean for consumption or used for baits in fishing.
Also read: Endangered Species in Pacific Ocean
10. Northern White Shrimp
The Northern White shrimp lives in the waters of North America and Gulf of Mexico. This species of shrimp was actually once of the first shrimps to ever be massively harvested in the United States fishery.
Furthermore, this species is similar to the previous species of shrimp,which is the Whiteleg shrimp. The Northern White shrimp also needs warm water to survive.
Its body cannot tolerate if the temperature goes down below 3° Celcius. The Northern White shrimp grows best in water with a temperature of at least 20° Celcius.
11. Fire Shrimp
The Fires shrimp is found in the waters of the Indo-Pacific. It is also known as the Blood shrimp due to its appearance. The body of the Fire shrimp has a very dark red colour. Moreover, there are also white spots on its body.
The colour of the shrimp is very vibrant and easily catches your attention. The Fire shrimp prefers to live in areas with a lot of rocks since the species likes to hide among them.
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12. Pink Shrimp
The Pink shrimp thrives in cold waters around the world. The size of an average Pink shrimp is medium. The species prefers to live in the deep seabed of the ocean. The Pink shrimp is very well known for its ability to produce quickly.
Thus, it helps to increase its own population to a healthy amount since this species of shrimp is frequently harvested by the fishing industries through trawling. This type of shrimp can not be easily found in ocean or marine surface
13. Tiger Pistol Shrimp
The Tiger Pistol shrimp species is found in the waters of Indo-West Pacific. The shrimp prefers to live in areas with a lot of sand and also muddy. The Tiger Pistol shrimp is able to dive deep into the water up to 20 metres. Another thing about the shrimp, it looks a bit like a lobster.
As for the colour of its body, it is commonly pale yellow, deeply pigmented yellow or even red. One of the limbs of this shrimp is able to release a sonic wave that could kill its prey.
Also read: Ways to Reduce Overfishing
14. Deepwater Rose Shrimp
The Deepwater Rose shrimp is found among the waters of the eastern Atlantic up to the West Atlantic. It can be found within the depths of 20 metres up to 700 metres. The Deepwater Rose shrimp likes its habitat to be muddy.
On the other hand, the Deepwater Rose shrimp comes in various colours. They could be white, green, pink, orange or red.
The colour of the Deepwater Rose shrimp changes depending on its various stage towards maturity. The colour deepens as it grows up.
15. Aesop Shrimp
The Aesop shrimp can be found in the waters of the Arctic Ocean, the British Isles, Greenland and Iceland. Also, unlike the other species of shrimps that love the muddy environment, the Aesop shrimp prefers its habitat to consist of hard materials.
It likes to live among rocks and gravels but some still loves to move around in sandy areas of the ocean. It can swim in deep waters up to around 700 metres. The colour of the Aesop shrimp is dominantly red.
16. Harlequin Shrimp
Most species of the Harlequin shrimp thrives in the Pacific Ocean and the Indian Ocean. To be more specific, the Harlequin shrimp prefers to hang around the coral reefs.
Also read: Facts About Starfish
This species has spots on its body that could either be purple or brown. Also, the Harlequin shrimp often swims in pairs. The species feed on some types of starfish namely the crown-of-thorns starfish but it also likes to feed on smaller types as well.
17. Grey Shrimp
This last species of shrimp is called the Grey shrimp. The shrimp is found in the waters of the Irish Sea, the North Sea, the Baltic Sea, the Black Sea and the Mediterranean Sea. The Grey shrimp is actually a common shrimp. The size of this shrimp is medium. Moreover, the colour is very light brown and it changes according to its habitat.
The Grey shrimp is a nocturnal creature. Additionally, during the day it burrows in the sand and sleep away its predators only to come alive during the night.
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Now you know most of the shrimps in the oceans. A lot of these shrimps are crucial in keeping the ocean clean. Other than that, shrimps are also consumed by the marine creatures and humans too.