About River Prawns
Western School Prawn facts
- Description – small (<190mm), uniform grey colour, large eyes, rostrum extended beyond eyes and long and flexible antennae
- Distribution – Indo-Pacific from south-eastern Java, down the west coast of Australia but only exists in estuaries below the 31°S parallel in WA.
- Habitat – sandy and muddy bottoms in rivers, estuaries and inshore coastal waters to 50m
- Diet – (night feeder) on small invertebrates and detritus (decaying organic material)
- Predators – black bream, mulloway, blowfish, jellyfish and humans
- Lifespan – Western School Prawns live for two years and reach maturity in their first year
- Western School Prawn fact sheet
Identifying prawns in the river
| Feature |
Western School Prawn (WSP) Metapenaeus dalli |
King Prawn (KP) Penaeus latisulcatus |
|---|---|---|
 |
 |
|
| Antennal filaments | Comparatively long and visibly bifurcate | Small, indistinct |
| The rostrum | Pale and straight. No spines | Ridges are dark brown. Visible spine at base of rostrum |
| Eyes | Eyes stalks are small and eyes held close to the head. Eyes are rounded and dark in colour | Eye stalks are long. Eyes are somewhat bean shape and appear compound (ie: 'fly-like') |
| Legs | Pale yellow-green | Light blue |