A 3.2-mm mesh seine (3.5 m long 1.0 m deep) was used to collect
a sample of prawn from each pond every three weeks. Substrate materials
were not removed, and only open areas in the pond were seined.
Each sample was group-weighed (drained weight) to the nearest 0.1 g,
counted, and then returned to the pond. In the last two samples prior to
harvest, prawns were also individually weighed and classified into either
one of three female morphotypes: berried (egg carrying [BE]),
open (previously egg carrying [OP]), and virgin (VF); or one of three
male morphotypes: blue claw (BC), orange-claw (OC), and small (SM)
(< 20 g) as described by Cohen et al. (1981) and modified by D’Abramo
et al. (1989). For data presented here, BE and OP females were combined
into a composite group of mature females termed reproductive females
(RF).