FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes Western

Penaeidae 915
Penaeus esculentus Haswell, 1879
Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.
FAO names: En - Brown tiger prawn; Fr - Crevette tigrée brune; Sp - Camarón tigre marrón.
anterior plate
distolateral
projection
lateral plates
thelycum
(after Dall, 1957)
ventral costa
Diagnostic characters: Carapace with grooves and crests distinct, rostrum
generally armed with 5 to 7 upper teeth (including those on carapace) and 3or
4 lower teeth; postrostral crest well developed and reaching nearly to posterior
margin of carapace, without a distinct median groove; adrostral crest at most
extending to last postrostral tooth; gastrofrontal crest absent; hepatic crest
short, not extending behind antennal crest and slightly sloping anteroven- petasma (ventral view)
trally. Fifth leg bearing an exopod (somewhat hidden beneath carapace).
Petasma of males with distomedian projections overhanging distal margin of (after Dall, 1957)
costae. Thelycum of females formed by 2 suboval lateral plates with tumid lips; anterior process rounded
and with lateral edges somewhat raised, posterior process convex and partly inserted between lateral
plates. Telson without lateral spines.Colour: body brownish and covered with mud-yellow cross bands;
eyes light brown with many black dots; rostral teeth reddish brown; antennal flagella alternated with white
and brown bands; both legs and pleopods reddish and with some white markings on basal segments;
distal half of uropods brown with red margins.
Size: Maximum body length 23.5 cm (females) and 19 cm (males), commonly between 15 and 20 cm.
Habitat, biology, and fisheries: On the continental shelf from the coastline to a depth of 200 m, but usually
between 10 and 20 m, on mud, sandy-mud or coarse bottoms. Juveniles inhabit shallow waters in estuaries,
or are associated with seagrass beds, and sometimes found on the top of coral reef platforms. Feed
primarily at night and are caught then by demersal otter trawls or beam trawls. Fished commercially in
Australia, with a catch of
about 3 300 t (together with
Penaeus semisulcatus) in the
Northern Prawn Fishery during
the annual period of
1989/1990. Most of the catch
is exported (mainly to Japan)
and packed as frozen whole
“green” (uncooked) prawns.
Distribution: Endemic to
Australia from Sharks Bay
(Western Australia) to Wallis
Lake (New South Wales).