King, tiger and Atlantic shrimps. Shrimp in nature Eating

Shrimp are crustaceans, which are representatives of the order of decapods. They are widely distributed throughout all bodies of water in the world's oceans. The length of an adult shrimp does not exceed 30 centimeters and weighs 20 grams.

Science knows more than 2,000 individuals that live, including in fresh waters. Taste qualities shrimp resulted in them becoming an object industrial production. Today, the practice of shrimp cultivation is widespread throughout the world.

Features and habitat of shrimp

Shrimp are unique animals in terms of their body structure. Features of shrimp lie in their anatomy. Shrimp are one of the rare crustaceans that shed and change their shells.

Her genitals and heart are located in the head area. The digestive and urinary organs are also located there. Like most crustaceans, shrimp breathes using gills.

The gills of the shrimp are protected by a shell and are located next to the walking legs. Normally, their blood is light blue in color; when there is a lack of oxygen, it becomes discolored.

Shrimp live in almost all large bodies of water in the world. Their range is limited only to the harsh Arctic and Antarctic waters. They have adapted to life in warm and cold, salt and fresh water. Largest number shrimp species are concentrated in equatorial regions. The further from the equator, the smaller their population.

Character and lifestyle of shrimp

Shrimps play an important role in the ecosystem of the seas and oceans. They clean the bottom of reservoirs from the remains of tubifex worms, aquatic insects and fish. Their diet consists of rotting plants and detritus - black silt formed as a result of the decomposition of fish and algae.

They lead an active lifestyle: they surf the bottom in search of food, crawl along the leaves of plants, cleaning them from snail leeches. Shrimp maneuverability in water is provided by walking legs on the cephalothorax and abdominal swimming legs, and the movements of the caudal peduncles allow them to quickly jump back and scare off their enemies.

Aquarium shrimp perform the functions of a nurse. They rid the reservoir of fouling by lower algae and feed on the remains of their dead “brethren.” Sometimes they can attack sick or sleeping fish. Cannibalism among these crustaceans is rare. It usually only appears in stressful situations or in conditions of prolonged hunger.

Types of shrimp

All famous sciences Shrimp species are divided into four groups:

Warm water;
Cold water;
Brackish water;
Freshwater.

The habitat of warm-water shrimp is limited southern seas and oceans. They are caught not only in natural environment habitats, but also cultivated under artificial conditions. Science knows more than a hundred species of warm-water shrimp. Examples of such shellfish are black tiger and white tiger shrimp.

The photo shows a white tiger shrimp

Cold-water shrimp are the most common of the known subspecies. Their habitat is wide: they are found in the Baltic, Barents, North Seas, off the coast of Greenland and Canada.

At description of shrimp It is worth mentioning of such individuals that their length is 10-12 cm, and their weight is 5.5-12 grams. Cold-water shrimp cannot be artificially propagated and develop only in their natural habitat.

They feed exclusively on environmentally friendly plankton, which has a positive effect on their quality. The most famous representatives of this subspecies are the northern red shrimp, northern chilim shrimp and red comb shrimp.

Pictured is chilim shrimp

Shrimp, common in salty waters seas and oceans are called saltwater. So, in Atlantic Ocean Reds live king prawns, northern white, southern pink, northern pink, serrated and other individuals.

The photo shows serrated shrimp

On the South American coasts you can find Chilean shrimp. Waters of the Black, Baltic and Mediterranean seas rich in herbaceous and sand shrimps.

The photo shows a grassy shrimp

Freshwater shrimp are predominantly found in Southeast and South Asia, Australia, Russia and post-Soviet space. The length of such individuals is 10-15 centimeters and weighs from 11 to 18 grams. Most known species— troglocar shrimp, Palaemon superbus, Macrobachium rosenbergii.

Shrimp food

The basis shrimp nutrition consists of dying aquatic plants and organic remains. In their natural habitat they are scavengers. Shrimp will not refuse the pleasure of feasting on the remains of dead fish or even juvenile fish.

Among plants, they prefer to feed on those with fleshy and succulent leaves, for example, ceratopteris. In the process of searching for food, shrimp use the organs of touch and smell. Turning your antennas to different sides, she looks around the area and tries to find prey.

In search of vegetation, certain species of shrimp that live closer to the equator dig up the soil of the reservoir. They run around its perimeter until they run into food, and then, approaching it within a centimeter, they suddenly attack it. Blind individuals living at the bottom of the Black Sea feed on silt, grinding it with their mandibles - excellent developed jaws.

For shrimp grown in aquariums, specially developed feed is produced, enriched with nutrients and iodine. It is not recommended to feed them perishable vegetables.

As food you can use lightly boiled carrots, cucumbers, zucchini, dandelion leaves, clover, cherries, chestnuts, and walnuts. A real feast for a shrimp is the remains of an aquarium shrimp or its fellow shrimp.

Reproduction and lifespan of shrimp

During puberty, the female shrimp begins the process of forming eggs that resemble a green-yellow mass. When the female is ready to mate, she releases pheromones into the water - substances that have a specific odor.

Sensing this smell, males become more active in search of a partner and fertilize her. This process takes no more than a minute. Then the shrimp produces caviar. The norm for an adult female is a clutch of 20-30 eggs. Embryonic development of larvae lasts from 10 to 30 days depending on temperature environment.

During the process of embryogenesis, larvae go through 9-12 stages. At this time, changes occur in their structure: at the beginning the jaws are formed, a little later - the cephalothorax. Most of the hatched larvae die due to unfavorable conditions or the “work” of predators. As a rule, 5-10% of the brood reach maturity. At shrimp farming in the aquarium it is possible to preserve up to 30% of the offspring.

The larvae lead a sedentary lifestyle and are not able to obtain food, feeding on the available food. Last stage The development of these mollusks is called decapodite. During this period, the larva leads a lifestyle no different from an adult shrimp. On average, life cycle shrimp life lasts from 1.5 to 6 years.

Shrimp (lat. Caridea) - belong to the infraorder of crustaceans from the order Decapoda. In total there are about 250 genera and of these there are 2 thousand species of shrimp. The size of the shrimp varies. Adults can be from 2 to 30 centimeters. The body consists of the cephalothorax, abdominal and caudal sections, compressed laterally. Shrimp in nature is a very important step in food chain. Without it, almost all marine life could not exist.

The shrimp's external skeleton, also known as the carapace, consists of chitin and minerals. The last segments of the abdomen (uropods) are wide plates that form a tail fan with which the shrimp can make sudden swimming movements. The shrimp has long antennae (whiskers) - these are the organs of touch and smell. Under the antennae there are organs of chemical sense - antenules.

Features of shrimp

How many legs do shrimp have? The answer seems to be obvious, but not all shrimp limbs are legs. Five rear pairs of thoracic legs are used for locomotion. The thoracic limbs have eight pairs, three of which are jaws for capturing food and self-defense. The other five pairs of thoracic limbs are used when moving. The legs located on the abdomen (pleopods) are used for swimming and for bearing eggs. The first pair of legs in males evolved into a copulatory organ. The lifespan of different types of shrimp can range from 1-2 years for dwarf shrimp and up to 10 years for long-claw shrimp.

Where do shrimps live?

Shrimp have spread widely throughout the world's oceans; many species have colonized and fresh waters. Tropical seas have greater species diversity. In Russia, shrimp live on Far East, where their fauna comprises more than 100 species. Also found in Ukraine in the Azov and Black Seas.

Lifestyle and behavior

What do shrimp eat?

Shrimp mainly feed on plankton, parts of algae, small invertebrates (insect larvae, worms), and quickly completely consume dead fish. Shrimps of the Palaemon species, less commonly Macrobrachium, can also prey on juvenile fish if they are hungry.

Shrimp breeding

Shrimp are dioecious. Many species are protandrous hermaphrodites, meaning they change sex from male to female during life.

Shrimp lay up to 150 thousand eggs. From them the zoea larva appears; in primitive shrimps, the nauplius. Shrimp larvae are small planktonic organisms that serve as food for other animal species. Larvae are very sensitive to external environment.

Natural enemies in nature

A large number of young individuals die at the larval stage, and only a small percentage of them survive to adulthood. Whales, whale sharks and other planktivores feed on small shrimp. They also become prey for other marine animals, from bottom fish to mollusks, seabirds and mammals.

How is it used by humans?

Shrimp meat is rich in proteins and amino acids. Like other seafood, they are high in iodine. They contain all fat-soluble vitamins: K, A, E, D, vitamins C ( ascorbic acid), B1 (thiamine), B2 (riboflavin), B9 (folic acid), PP (niacin), B-carotene. This real natural treasure contains calcium, potassium, sodium, magnesium, iron, phosphorus, manganese, cobalt, copper, molybdenum, fluorine, sulfur, zinc. The only drawback of shrimp is its high cholesterol content.

The mantis crab is also a shrimp. Its length can reach 2 meters!

In science, there is no species of “king” shrimp; this is the conventional name for all large shrimp. The largest type of shrimp is the black tiger shrimp, reaching 36 cm in length and 650 grams in weight.

Every year, over 3.5 million tons of shrimp worth 10 billion dollars are caught in the seas and oceans. Bottom trawling for shrimp destroys their habitat for up to 40 years.

Most large and giant thirty centimeter shrimp are grown on special farms. Due to such production, mangrove swamps and coral reefs. Farmed shrimp are filled with chemicals such as urea and superphosphate. If these farms are located in the sea, then the tides carry production waste into the sea.

By the way, researchers found 162 species of microbes in a batch of shrimp that were resistant to 10 different antibiotics.

Aquarist with shrimp

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Shrimps(from lat. Caridea) belong to the infraorder Crustaceans, a type of arthropod. They are common in the seas of almost the entire world, and some types of shrimp also live in freshwater bodies of water. According to its size different types shrimp are different from each other. So, an adult can be only 2 cm in length, but can reach 30 cm.

Shrimp are low in calories: 100 g contains only 94.5 kcal. However, they are very nutritious due to their high protein content. Their composition is so rich and varied that to maintain good health and vigor, it is enough to eat only a handful of this seafood.

Origin

As mentioned above, shrimp are freshwater and marine, but by their origin they all come from the World Ocean. Most shrimp live in equatorial zone, which gives reason to assume that this is where their real homeland is. The farther from the equator in both directions, the fewer species shrimp and other crustaceans.

Shrimp are creatures of different sexes: females are larger, they have a wide tail and convex sides. Once the female reaches puberty, eggs appear under the tail of the female; the smell of their pheromones attracts males, who fertilize these eggs. After 4-6 weeks, larvae are born, which have to go through about 12 more instar stages before turning into adults.

Nutritional value

Shrimp is called one of the most healthy products nutrition. The concentration of vitamins and microelements in shrimp is 50 (!) times higher than in meat, and their composition is truly diverse.

Thus, shrimp contain a lot of potassium, calcium, zinc, iodine, sulfur, phosphorus, as well as Omega-3 polyunsaturated acid. This seafood is also rich in vitamins: E, C, PP, A, H, B vitamins. By the way, a large amount of vitamin B12 contained in shrimp promotes the production of hemoglobin and nourishes nervous system. In addition, eating shrimp is very important when losing weight: the product contains practically no sugar and fat, but at the same time it perfectly satisfies hunger due to its high protein content.

Use in cooking

Most often, shrimp are added to salads, soups, pastas and risotto; this seafood is also included in some sauces. King and tiger prawns are sometimes served as independent dishes: for example, in the form of kebabs or simply fried in a frying pan. As a rule, such shrimps are not eaten boiled: their meat becomes “rubbery” and almost tasteless.

Small shrimp, on the contrary, are delicious when cooked. They are prepared in boiling salted water with the addition of dill, parsley, caraway seeds, bay leaf or pepper until the shrimp float to the surface of the water (about 3-5 minutes). To make the shrimp more juicy and tasty, you can leave them in the broth for 10-15 minutes after cooking.

Application in medicine and cosmetology

Thanks to the content large quantity minerals, trace elements and nutrients Shrimp help the human body to grow and develop correctly and fully. If you eat this product regularly, the likelihood of colds, respiratory diseases, immunity increases, and the risk of allergies decreases. In addition, eating shrimp is recommended for people with cancer.

Contraindications

Shrimp are considered such a safe product that they have virtually no contraindications. This healthy seafood can be given even to children. However, we should not forget about such a phenomenon as an allergy to seafood. Unfortunately, you shouldn’t eat shrimp in this case either.

Interesting facts
It is important to know how to choose the right shrimp. In this case, it is necessary first of all
pay attention to them appearance. Seafood tends to change color
when temperature changes. Therefore, if you see pale pink shrimp in front of you
color, it is likely that they were thawed and re-frozen.
Of course, in this case the product loses all its beneficial properties.

Pay attention to the color of the shrimp heads. Green heads should not cause concern:
this color only indicates that the shrimp fed on plankton. Here are the black shades
shrimp heads should make you wary: most likely, this is of poor quality
product, for a long time was in a defrosted state.

Oleg, it’s easy to get lost in all the diversity of the shrimp world. How many types of shrimp are there and how do they differ?
There are about 2000 species in nature shrimp. They can all be divided into two groups - cold-water and warm-water. Externally, they differ in size - cold-water ones are much smaller.

Are cold-water shrimp our usual shrimp?
You can say that. The most common shrimp we see are northern red shrimp, with northern chilim and red comb shrimp also common. By the way, they are red even when raw. These shrimps are boiled alive in sea water and after cooking they are immediately frozen. Distinguish boiled shrimp from a raw one you can follow the tail: in a boiled one it curls, but in a raw one the tail is straight. But here it is important to know that northern shrimp are supplied to Russia only boiled frozen, and such shrimp have a straight tail - a sign that the shrimp was already boiled and dead.

Interesting point - Russian fishermen shrimp caught, but delivered to the USA, South Korea and Japan, and we buy shrimp caught by the Danes and Canadians, they say it is profitable from an economic point of view.

Another nuance concerns the size or “ caliber» shrimp. On the packaging you can find the following numbers - 50/70 ( pieces per kilogram - approx. ed.), 70/90 and 90/120 Than larger number, the smaller the shrimp. So, cold-water shrimp are small, and size 70/90 is already rare for them. Therefore, I advise you to buy shrimp of 90/120 caliber, for all others more ice than meat.

So we have to be content with the smallest shrimp?
Small doesn't mean bad. On the contrary, the smaller the shrimp, the juicier their meat and the brighter their taste. For this reason, I like northern shrimp much more than tropical ones. Moreover, cold-water shrimp are caught in their natural habitat, and warm-water shrimp in industrial scale grown on farms.

Are you saying that warm water shrimp are inferior?
I would say that they are not for everyone, and besides, it is really easy to get confused when choosing them. For example, " royal» Shrimp do not exist in nature. All large warm water bodies are united under this name. shrimps, with the exception of tiger ones, so named because of the specific color of the shell.

IN different countries their own king prawns - there are white Pacific, Indian, Chinese, Japanese sweet shrimp, Atlantic red and even giant freshwater shrimp, living in southeast asia. But only 20% of the total king prawns are caught in their natural habitat. The remaining 80% comes from farms where shrimp are bred in special ponds.

Where do king prawns come from in Russia?
We mainly source shrimp grown in China, India and Bangladesh. Farmed shrimp are always larger than wild shrimp, and the manufacturer's packaging should indicate that this is a product of aquaculture. Boiled frozen king prawns are sold in three types - uncut, with the shell without a head, or completely peeled. By the way, despite its impressive size - 25-30 cm in length, the meat in a king prawn is only 30% of the total weight, the rest is the head.

Are tiger shrimp farmed too?
To a lesser extent than king shrimp, but farmed tiger shrimp are supplied to Russia. Blacks are brought from India and China tiger shrimp, and from Indonesia and Thailand - ordinary. They differ in color - ordinary ones have dark stripes on a light carapace, while black ones have the opposite.
The size of tiger prawns is even larger than that of king prawns - 30-35 cm, and meat is 50% of the total weight. These shrimp are sold raw, with or without heads. They look very impressive with the head on, and are often used to decorate dishes.

What's so scary about farmed shrimp?
Some people don't like the taste it gets. shrimp, grown on artificial feed. Some are afraid that they are being bred using stimulants, dyes and antibiotics. I just like northern shrimp more - they are tastier and useful substances there is much more in them. But all this is true only if the shrimp is fresh.

What should fresh shrimp taste like?
Fresh shrimp must be properly frozen. The coloring should be even, the ice glaze should be thin, and the tail should be pressed against the belly. White spots on the shell or snow flakes in the packaging mean that shrimps defrosted several times. Pay attention to the shrimp's head, if there is one. Pregnant shrimp have a brown head; their meat is the most delicious and healthy. A green head indicates that the shrimp was feeding on algae and special kind plankton. But a black head indicates a serious illness; eating such a shrimp is dangerous to health. Black spots on the shell are also unacceptable.

We eat this sea creature, and what do we know about him? Today we will tell you how he lives shrimp V sea depths, where it lives, what species exist and much more.

Description of shrimp

Shrimp is a mollusk belonging to the decapod crayfish, with a body length of only 10-12 cm (a maximum of some individuals reach 30 cm) with a body weight of 20 grams. Life cycle of a shrimp varies from 1.5 to 6 years.

Did you know that the mollusk is a unique creature? These creatures are able to shed their shell, replacing it with a new one. But the most interesting thing is that the heart of the sea dweller and the genital organs are located in the head area, where the digestive and urinary organs are also located! Like all crustaceans and fish, the shrimp is breathing with the help of gills, which are located next to the walking legs and are protected by a shell. By the way, no matter how surprising it may be, shrimp blood is in normal condition blue color! And only from a lack of oxygen does it become discolored. These creatures live in almost any body of water in the world, except for the Arctic and Antarctica, focusing on the equator regions.

Types of shrimp

Scientists identify more than 2,000 species, which they divided into subspecies:

1. Freshwater

2. Cold water

3. Warm water

4. Brackish water

HABITAT, REPRODUCTION AND NUTRITION OF SHRIMP

Shrimp habitat

Did you know what exactly shrimp play an important role in the ecosystem of seas and oceans? These small creatures clean the bottom of reservoirs from various tubifex worms, fish and aquatic insects. Looking for food sea creature leads a fairly active lifestyle, constantly moving around bodies of water. Little cleaners cleanse the body of dead brothers and small algae, sometimes attacking big fish, but only on sleeping or sick people.

Of course, everyone species of shrimp lives in different places. Warm water, for example, live only in the southern oceans and seas, and there are about a hundred species of them. Cold water found in the Baltic and North Seas, in the Barents Sea, near the coasts of Canada and Greenland. By the way, this is one of the most common types of shrimp. You probably already realized that brackish water mollusks are inhabitants of salty seas and oceans. Freshwater They also live in Russia, Australia, the countries of South and South East Asia. Chilean inhabit the South American coasts, the Black, Baltic and Mediterranean Seas, and our beloved king prawns in the Atlantic Ocean.

What do shrimp eat?

Basis of shellfish nutrition – organic matter and endangered aquatic plants. Among plants, preference is given to succulent varieties, such as ceratopteris. These creatures resemble scavengers who will not disdain to feast on dead shellfish and even young fish. In shrimp There are organs of touch and smell that perfectly help in finding food - these are kind of antennas on the head. Residents closer to the equator even dig up the soil in search, running around the perimeter until they stumble upon food. As soon as mollusk found what he was looking for, he instantly and greedily pounces on food. And only blind individuals of the Black Sea eat silt with their mandibles (jaws), and cold-water ones with pure plankton.

At home, we can add to the diet animal dandelion and clover leaves, cucumbers, boiled carrots, zucchini, walnut, chestnut, cherry.

Shrimp breeding

As soon as the female is ready to lay eggs, she secretes a yellow-green mass with a specific smell, to which the males flock like bees to honey. Once the couple has chosen each other, they begin mate, which lasts no more than a minute. One female can lay 20-30 eggs, which develop from 10 to 30 days, depending on the environment. During the moment of formation, the shrimp in the caviar changes from 9 to 12 times! First, the legs are formed, and only then the head with all the organs located there. About 10% of the young animals die from predators, but in the aquarium you will be able to save 30%. That's all because they are not able to obtain food, eating only the available food.