Primitive Technology: shrimp trap

Primitive Technology is a YouTube video channel produced by an Australian guy who goes into the jungle with nothing but the clothes on his back, and makes things like shelters, tools, and weapons. There are no words or text in the video, only the sounds of nature for a soundtrack. In this episode, he weaves a trap to catch shrimp, which he puts in an earthenware jug, and then cooks them over a fire he starts with friction.

Shrimp (and fish) traps are simple traps designed to catch aquatic life due to their shape. It consists of a simple basket with a funnel shaped entrance. Shrimp easily find their way into the trap as they are funneled in, but have difficulty finding the way out.

I wove the main body of the trap from lawyer cane then made the funnel from sticks with vines woven between them. The funnel was then inserted in the top of the basket and was complete.

I put the trap in the water under some tree roots without any bait. About 10 minutes later caught the first shrimp which I stored in a pot of water. I caught another one and made a fire.

I humanely killed the shrimp using the splitting method which destroys the central nervous system (boiling alive is more painful). Then I put them back in the pot with water. I collected some yams that I planted years ago from wild stock and put them in too.

I took 5 hot rocks from the fire and put them in the pot boiling the contents. The shrimps turned red after cooking. They were peeled and eaten. The yams were also peeled and eaten.

This method of catching shrimp is easy with the only skill needed being basketry. In practice, a long stretch of creek might have several traps collecting food each day without any effort on the part of the fisherman. Bait is not necessary to catch shrimp as they will be naturally be drawn to the fish trap out of curiosity. But scraps from previous shrimp may be used to bring in new ones (they are cannibalistic) or other fish like eels. The shrimp trap is easy to build and can be reused many times.