shrimp

a kind of animal – salt & fresh water – crustacean (= soft-bodied water animal with no backbone, but with a hard outer cover) — large head part with large round black compound eyes, two long antennae, 5 pairs (10) of jointed legs on the thorax, 3 pairs (6) feeding organs on the abdomen, a fan-like tail; size: (varies widely) from ¼ of an inch to 9 inches long (some species grow to the length of 1 foot, and the world record is 1½ feet), the weight: (varies widely) from 30 grams to 175 grams; feeds on (eats) {adults are filter feeders, i.e. they take in water into their feeding organs and filter the very small plant or animal matter in them and let out the water) plankton and zooplankton (= tiny plant and animal matter in water) (some large species feed on small water animals, including shrimp); lives for, on average, 2 years (depending on the species – 1-6 years); about 2000 species, found in all the waters of the world

[The lifecycle of a shrimp is, technically, – egg, nauplius, zoeae, myses, sub-adult and adult.]

{A group of shrimps is called a ‘school’.}

For an interesting article on the differences between a ‘prawn’ and a ‘shrimp’, please click here.

Special Features:

The shrimp, along with the other related crustaceans, have been a major food source not only for people but also for other water animals.

Unlike other crustacean – lobster, crab, etc. – which crawl on the bottom of the sea, the shrimp is a free-swimming crustacean with 5 pairs (10) jointed legs.

The Jewish people do not eat shrimp.

In Britain very small ones (just about 1 cm) are called ‘shrimp’ and larger ones are called “prawns”; in the States, however, the shrimp and prawn varieties are all called ‘shrimp’!

These days shrimps are harvested (grown) on huge farms.

Some species of shrimps are kept in fish tanks as pets!

The ‘fairy shrimp’ is a small one measuring only 0.4-1 inch in length, and swims upside down!!

The ‘pistol’ shrimp is an amazing shrimp.  This small shrimp has two front claws of different sizes, one much larger than the other, and by snapping the larger claw, it produces a loud sound, like that of a pistol shot, which sends out a bubble of water, with which stuns or even kills its prey, mostly other kinds of shrimps!!

[There are some sea animals that look-like and are called ‘shrimp' but do not belong to the “true shrimp”, e.g. ‘mantis shrimp’ and ‘brine shrimp’.]

Figures of Speech:

1.

shrimp (noun)  =

(a)  a person who is below average height and weight; an under-sized child or adult; a small person (an insulting word; not to be used in formal situations)

(b)  a person regarded as unimportant

2.

until shrimps learn to whistle [said to mean ‘a distant time in the future’]

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