FAO Species Identification Guide for Fishery Purposes Western

924 Shrimps and Prawns
Penaeus plebejus Hess, 1865 PNP
Frequent synonyms / misidentifications: None / None.
FAO names: En - Eastern king prawn; Fr - Crevette royale orientale; Sp - Camarón real oriental.
anterior process
distomedian
projection
lateral plates
thelycum
posterior
process
ventral
costa
Diagnostic characters: Carapace with grooves and crests very distinct, bearing
both gastrofrontal and hepatic crests; rostrum armed with 10 or 11 upper teeth
(including those on carapace) and 1 lower tooth, bearing distinct accessory
crest on blade also in adults; postrostral crest well developed, with a deep
median groove all along its length; adrostral groove extending almost to
posterior margin of carapace and distinctly wider than postrostral crest;
posterior end of gastrofrontal groove divided into 3. First leg without ischial
spine. Petasma of males with short distomedian projections not overhanging
distal margin of costae. Thelycum of females formed by 2 subrectangular lateral petasma (ventral view)
plates and with anterolateral angles diverging; anterior process bearing 2
minute, almost contiguous horns; posterior process somewhat triangular. Telson with 3 pairs of movable
lateral spines. Colour: body generally yellowish cream, abdominal segments with faint dark spots at
hinges and a faint dark vertical bar on each pleuron; rostrum dark brown with white tip; eyes deep
brown; antennal scale with dark brown outer margins and white tip, flagella whitish; postrostral crest
and dorsal crests of abdomen dark brown to red-brown; legs slightly pinkish; pleopods pinkish to slightly
yellowish; uropods of same colour as body but with pale blue margins and red-brown fringes.
Size: Maximum body length 30 cm (females) and 19 cm (males), commonly between 14 and 20.5 cm.
Habitat, biology, and fisheries: Found on sandy bottoms of bare and vegetated areas from depths of 2
to 220 m, with a migration pattern from estuaries to deeper marine waters northward along the coasts.
This prawn forms the basis of an important fishery in eastern Australia, with a catch of about 3 250 t in the
annual period of 1989/1990 (60% of the total commercial catch originating in southern Queensland).
Subadults and adults are mainly caught by trawlers offshore at depths below 60 m. Juveniles are caught
mainly within estuaries by trawling, set pocket, running netting, hauling, seining, and hand netting. Marketed
locally fresh, frozen, or cooked. Larger specimens are exported mainly to Spain and Japan as “green”
(uncooked), frozen, or headed prawns.
Distribution: Restricted to
eastern Australia, from southern
Queensland to Victoria
and Lord Howe Island.