Crangon crangon
Scientific classification
Kingdom:	Animalia
Phylum:	Arthropoda
Subphylum:	Crustacea
Class:	Malacostraca
Order:	Decapoda
Suborder:	Pleocyemata
Infraorder:	Caridea
Family:	Crangonidae
Genus:	Crangon
Species:	C. crangon
Binomial name
Crangon crangon (Linnaeus, 1758)
Synonyms
Astacus crangon (Linnaeus, 1758) Cancer crangon Linnaeus, 1758 Crago vulgaris (Fabricius, 1798) Crangon maculatus Marcusen, 1867 Crangon maculosa Rathke, 1837 Crangon rubropunctatus Risso, 1816 Crangon vulgaris Fabricius, 1798 Steiracrangon orientalis Czerniavsky, 1884

Crangon crangon is a commercially important species of shrimp fished mainly in the southern North Sea, although also found in the Irish Sea, Baltic Sea, Mediterranean Sea and Black Sea, as well as off much of Scandinavia and parts of Morocco's Atlantic coast. Its common names include brown shrimp, common shrimp and sand shrimp, while translation of its French name crevette grise sometimes leads to the English version grey shrimp.

Adults are typically 30–50 mm (1¼–2 inches) long, although individuals up to 90 mm have been recorded. The animals have cryptic coloration, being a sandy brown colour, which can be changed to match the environment. They live in shallow water, which can also be slightly brackish, and feed nocturnally. During the day, they remain buried in the sand to escape predatory birds and fish, with only their antennae protruding.

Over 37,000 tons of Crangon crangon were caught in 1999, with Germany and the Netherlands taking over 80% of this total.

[edit] As food

The common shrimp is a very delectable arthropod that is extremely prized for is subtle taste and its soft texture. One of the most famous culinary delights of France is the seafood platter, of which the shrimp plays a vital role. Among other attributes, the flavour of shrimp is ideally suited to sandwiches accompanied with a mayonnaise spread, and is commonly enjoyed by the English under the name of ‘ prawn mayonnaise sandwich’. Due to the shrimp’s diverse application of flavour, some say it is best enjoyed on its own as an hors d'œuvre, simply served with lemon. Furthermore brown shrimp are often prepared in the potted style in the UK. In Belgium, a typical dish is tomate-crevette: a tomato filled with shrimps in mayonnaise. In the coastal areas of Belgium, fresh unpeeled shrimp are often served as a snack accompanying beer (typically a sour ale such as Rodenbach).

[edit] References

• Crangon crangon from the FAO.
• Crangon crangon from ITIS
• Crangon crangon at ARKive

[edit] External links

• Further photographs of Crangon crangon