Foot-Long Invasive Shrimp Confirmed Off TX Coast; Carries 17 Viruses Dangerous To Native Species

[hatrack]

A truly jumbo shrimp is causing big worries about the future of the Gulf of Mexico's ecosystem. The Asian tiger prawn, a foot-long crustacean with a voracious appetite and a proclivity for disease, has invaded the northern Gulf, threatening prized native species, from crabs and oysters to smaller brown and white shrimp.

Though no one is sure what the ecological impact will be, scientists fear a tiger prawn takeover could knock nature's balance out of whack and turn a healthy, diverse marine habitat into one dominated by a single invasive species.

"It has the potential to be real ugly," said Leslie Hartman, Matagorda Bay ecoystem leader for the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department. "But we just do not know."

The tiger prawns from the western Pacific - which can grow up to 13 inches long - have been spreading along the Gulf Coast since 2006, but their numbers took off this year. Shrimpers pulled one from Texas waters for the first time in June.


EDIT

http://www.chron.com/news/houston-texas/article/Giant-shrimp-raises-big-concern-as-it-invades-the-2424242.php

[wtmusic]

1. They're going to have difficult PR with this fight

A couple of 13" shrimp with saffron rice and garlic butter sound heavenly.

[hatrack]

2. Know what you mean - when people finally see a jumbo shrimp that actually IS jumbo .. .

There's going to be only one question on their minds - "Where's the lemon?"

[Javaman]

3. But how does it grill?

that will be the first question asked by my fellow mouth breathing texans.

[friendly_iconoclast]

4. Fight these like they fight lionfish- with delicious recipes!

There's no season or bag limit, and by all accounts lionfish filets are very tasty...