Several years ago when we first began shrimping we would always empty our nets into a big metal tub. After a few cast you would end up with water in the bottom of the tub and it was actually enough water that the shrimp were able to swim around and move rather quickly. My dad was reaching in to pick out the shrimp and put them in the cooler. He was chasing the last few around the bottom and in the process drove the Shrimp’s rostrum (the pointy thing on the front of the shrimp) into his hand and unknown to him a piece broke off in his hand. It took several weeks before he was able to get the infection out of his hand. We now use a Rubbermaid basket that allows all of the water to drain out. While my dad is an experienced boater and fisherman, I told this story to illustrate just how easy it is for something like this to happen and even more likely to happen to someone who is not experienced.
As we were shrimping the other night I realized that many times people that go shrimping with their friends and family may not really be familiar with the creatures of the sea. I can remember catching some shrimp in a net one day and a guy I knew from Greenville staring at the shrimp in the net, asking, “what are those?” Growing up in Charleston, around the water, it never really occurred to me that there were people that had never seen shrimp before. This thought came to me when my older brother, Vasco, who does not fish, picked up a Mantis shrimp from the bottom of the basket and asked what it was. He was a little surprised when I got a little excited and yelled, “put that thing down or throw it out of the boat”. He had no idea that these little critters have the nickname “thumbsplitters” for the nasty reminder they can leave you about not picking them up. Last year we all had a good laugh when he picked up a small squid and it clamped onto his finger. It suprised him and he shook ink all over the boat getting that rascal to let go of him. We now have a rule on the boat, if you do not know what it is, do not pi