Charted Waters
Hampton Roads · Coastal Harvest Guide
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Grass Shrimp

Palaemonetes spp.

A nearly transparent grass shrimp with young, in shallow Chesapeake Bay water

Photo by Brian Gratwicke, CC BY 2.5, via Wikimedia Commons.

Unverified

Drawn from a named source but not independently confirmed. Double-check before relying on it.

Identification/habitat via the Chesapeake Bay Program's own field guide, found via WebSearch synthesis.

Chesapeake Bay Program — Field Guide: Grass Shrimp · Last checked 2026-08-10

ShrimpBait Use Only — Not a Food Species Here

Legal status: Collected almost exclusively as live bait (a well-known producer for panfish, small drum, and speckled trout) rather than as a human food species in this region — no practical recreational food fishery exists for this species here.

A small (under 2 inches), nearly transparent shrimp, far smaller than white or brown shrimp, typically dip-netted from grass beds rather than targeted with shrimp gear.

Identification

  • Small size (usually under 2 inches) and near-total transparency.
  • Found in dense concentrations tight to submerged grass and marsh-edge structure, not open water.
Regional occurrence
Extremely abundant throughout Hampton Roads' tidal marshes, grass beds, and shallow creek edges — one of the most common invertebrates in the region's tidal shallows.
Habitat
Submerged aquatic vegetation, marsh edges, and shallow tidal creeks.
Food use
Not Typically Eaten

This page is educational and does not certify that any specific animal may be legally harvested at any specific time or place. Confirm current regulations, health-closure status, and access rights before harvesting.