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Full Moon Brings Full Nets For Shrimpers
Fri, July 31, 2015
Farmed shrimp may be the convenient craze these days, but there is still a lot of "shrimp" in the sea - problem is you just got to know how and where to catch them. Today we met a group of veteran fishermen who know the exact spot to pull them in. Every year around this time fishermen flock to Buttonwood Bay to catch sea shrimp. We met with 2 fishermen who told us why they go out every year to the Northside and what their catch means for their survival.

Courtney Weatherbune reporting
A white cast net and an ice box: that's all Winston Lucairo needs to catch sea shrimp.

He is just one of the fishermen who have been out here since 6 this morning.

You would normally see them on the Southside catching shrimp but today they've tracked down these rare bottom feeders to the Northside of the city.

Winston Lucairo, Fisherman
"The next side kind of choppy, so I come on the northside here where it is calm, because the weather has shifted. The southside is rough right now, so I come on this side here where it is smooth. Basically, this is all we are doing right now for living. It depends on moon, because these kinds work with the moon too to catch them."

The distinct glare and positioning of the moon and the roaring sea - key variables to monitor in this business. It's quite a taxing process - not to mention standing hours beneath the sun throwing and hauling the net back in until you get a decent catch. But according to fisherman Albert Davis whose been coming here for about 6 years - it all about the hustle.

Albert Davis, Fisherman
"Normally, usually around this time they come. We just try to catch them to make a little extra money. Most of us out here are fishermen. We didn't go to sea, because this is a short distance and we don't burn too much gas and still make a little money off the shrimp. Right now we are getting like $10 per pound."

Courtney Weatherbune
"Now you will sell for like $10 per pound?"

Albert Davis, Fisherman
"Yes. Some of the guys will make about $200 for the day."

Davis caught only about 5 pounds this morning - which translates to $50. Like him, the others plan on staying all day until their sacks and buckets are full.

There is no longer a shrimp season because shrimp trawlers have put an end to the commercial shrimp trade. One of the residents told us the he hasn't seen so many fishermen in this area for a long time.

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