Spot Prawns (Pandalus platyceros)  are the largest of the pandalid family, and are found along the west coast of North America from San Diego, CA to Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. This species typically inhabit rocky habitats along the seafloor from the intertidal zone to depths greater than 400 m (1,300 ft), but they can also be found among the soft sediments of the seafloor. Spot Prawns may live up to 6 years, reaching lengths of 25 cm (9.8 in)(NMFS 2010).

A commercial prawn fishery using pots has existed in Washington since the 1940s. Whereas, a directed fishery for Sp ot Prawns in Oregon was not established until 1993, when a California vessel came to Oregon and pioneered the fishery using trawling techniques. These techniques were similar to those that began the large-scale fishery in California when fishermen specifically targeted the species using trawls. With trawls, 82 t (182,000 lbs) of Spot Prawn were caught in 1974 leading to an increase in landings over the next seven years as more fishermen entered this new fishery. The fishery reached its peak with more than 170 t (375,000 lbs) landed in 1981 (Sunada 1984; Larson 2007).

The spot shrimp fishery on the West Coast of North America, extending from Alaska to California, has great potential to be an exception to the ecological and social destruction that typifies many shrimp fisheries. This potential is a function of several factors:

• the ecological sensitivity of spot prawns and their critical habitat has been recognized and reflected in most of the fishery’s management
• the fishery is primarily a community-based fishery, with a great deal of fisher involvement in management
• the high-value and expanding markets for spot prawn product lead to a greater “value” placed on the conservation and sustainability of the species
• managers commonly recognize that constant refinement and improvement of the management system is a prerequisite for long-term sustainability

(NMFS 2010)