Impacts on Aquatic Life for Indiscriminate Exploitation of Baby Shrimp (P. monodon) in the Coastal Area, South-Western Region of Bangladesh

Fishing for baby shrimp (Penaeus monodon post-larvae) is a major source of income for most fishermen in the coastal regions of the southwestern part of Bangladesh during during July, 2022 to June, 2023. These post-larvae collectors lack financial security and are socially regressive. Other aquatic species are destroyed by the indiscriminate exploitation of baby shrimp for aquaculture. According to the present study, about 98-99% of other larvae are destroyed to catch nearly 1-2% of indiscriminate exploitation baby shrimp in our study area where averagely 0.35% Penaeus indicus, 0.06% Penaeus merguiensis, 0.037% Metapenaeus Monoceros, 3.58% Other shrimp, 6.59% Fin-fish larvae, 5.95% Crab larvae, and 82.42% Small organisms. Actually, the government of Bangladesh already has declared a ban period and illegal baby shrimp catching. But to maintain the poor fisherman's livelihood, they are doing that continuously. Furthermore, because wild baby shrimp are said to have a far higher survival rate than baby shrimp raised in hatcheries, farmers prefer wild baby shrimp. For thousands of Bangladeshi coastal landless and jobless poor people, wild prawn baby shrimp fishing has created employment opportunities. This study describes the impact of wild baby shrimp fishing in coastal areas of Bangladesh.