Prawn King (Penaeus latisulcatus) lives in coral Reef across Southeast Asian Waters. It feeds on small crustaceans & plankton. Its conservation status is Least Concern.
Fascinating facts about the Prawn King
- Western king prawns live on the seafloor, favoring sandy bottoms where the water is salty enough to match their physiological needs. Young prawns grow up in the mix of sand and mud found in intertidal zones, especially where mud-flats meet mangrove roots, giving them a nursery rich in food and shelter.
- During daylight hours western king prawns dig shallow burrows, emerging only when night falls. Their nocturnal foraging spikes even more during dark moon phases. This rhythm shows how lunar light cues can dictate the timing of a crustacean's feeding.
- In South Australia the species fuels three single-species fisheries, Spencer Gulf, Gulf Saint Vincent, and the West Coast, and makes up 40 to 60 percent of the Western Australian harvests from Shark Bay, Broome, and Exmouth Gulf. Sharing the nets with coral, brown tiger, endeavour and banana prawns.
- Internationally the western king prawn is listed under FAO code "WKP". These standardized codes let scientists, regulators and exporters speak the same language, ensuring that data on catches, trade and conservation are accurately linked across borders.
- Western king prawns carry the scientific label Penaeus latisulcatus, yet taxonomists now slot them into the subgenus Oleopenaeus alongside P. (O.) hathor and the eastern king prawn P. (O.) plebejus.
Sources
Every fact above was checked against these pages, and kept only where one of them states it.
At a glance
RangeSoutheast Asian Waters
HabitatCoral Reef
DietSmall crustaceans & plankton
About the Prawn King
In the sun-drenched waters of the Indo-Pacific, the Prawn King, a majestic crustacean, reigns supreme, its translucent form undulating as it navigates the coral reef with effortless ease. With each swift, sideways scuttle, it weaves through the intricate labyrinth of sea fans and branching corals, its acute senses on high alert for the slightest whisper of prey or predator. As it moves, its iridescent shell shimmers like a fleck of molten silver, casting a mesmerizing glow across the seafloor, a testament to the underwater kingdom it inhabits.
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