This is how shrimps (prawns) are caught off La Paz in the Sea of Cortez, Mexico.
Whether a trawl net is small, like this one, or large, the design is similar worldwide: two steel doors help keep open the maw of the net as a boat drags it along. Such a design is hugely effective, catching shrimps but also everything else in its path. As it drags along the bottom, it also destroys whole communities, including the corals and sponges that provide habitat for so many other animals and which may take years to grow back.
USA
Brian is a photojournalist specialising in marine wildlife and underwater environments. He's the author of 10 books and has lectured at venues such as the World Economic Forum in Davos (Switzerland), The National Press Club in Washington, DC, and the Sydney Opera House in Australia. He has held solo exhibitions in cities such as Perpignan, Geneva, Barcelona, Lisbon, Shanghai and Washington, DC. In 2014 he was named a National Geographic Photography Fellow.
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