Eyestalk ablation

The aim of ablation under these circumstances is to stimulate the female shrimp to develop mature ovaries and spawn.

[2] The most commonly accepted theory of why eye ablation reduces this inhibition is that a gonad inhibitory hormone (GIH) is produced in the neurosecretory complexes in the eyestalk.

The effect of eyestalk ablation is not on a single hormone such as GIH, but rather affects several physiological processes.

[3] Besides the GIH evidence, another hypothesis suggests that eyestalk ablation also reduces light perception intensity and thereby induces ovarian maturation.

[14] Viable alternatives to the cutting include:[2][11][15] Non-ablated females have lower mortality rates and produce more robust offspring thereby reducing the need for chemicals and antibiotics.

The eyestalks of female shrimp are often removed (ablated) to improve reproduction.
The red dotted line indicates the location on a shrimp where the eye stalk is cut or cauterised during ablation.