Metapenaeus bennettae

Metapenaeus bennettae is a species of small prawn found in eastern Australia, where it is called the greentail or greasyback prawn.

For the greasyback shrimp of the Indo-Pacific, see Metapenaeus ensis.

Metapenaeus bennettae
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Suborder: Dendrobranchiata
Family: Penaeidae
Genus: Metapenaeus
Species:
M. bennettae
Binomial name
Metapenaeus bennettae
Racek & Dall, 1965

The prawns are covered in fine hairs, giving them a slippery feel when handled.[1] They are collected commercially and recreationally for food and form part of the catches known as bay prawns and school prawns.

Names

The term "bay prawn" may be listed as a common name for M. bennettae. Bay prawns most generally refer to mixed catch of small prawns from Moreton Bay and other Queensland fisheries. More particularly, bay prawn may be taken to mean M. bennettae and M. insolitus. (See #Commercial use.)

"School prawns" are small prawns netted in rivers and estuaries. These are primarily M. macleayi in eastern Australia and M. dalli west of Cape York. Consequently, those two species may be referred to as Eastern School Prawn and Western School Prawn. However, the term school prawn is also applied informally to other species, including M. bennettae.

Several species of Metapenaeus have fine hairs on their bodies, giving a slippery or greasy feel. The term greasyback has been applied to M. bennettae, M. insolitus, and M. ensis. M. bennettae is distinguished from the others as an "inshore greasyback prawn." Inshore greasybacks are harvested at depths less than 15 m; offshore greasybacks (M. ensis) are found at 18–30 m.[2]: 24 

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) designates the names greentail, emerald, and greasyback shrimp for M. bennettae, M. insolitus, and M. ensis respectively.[2]: 20, 22, 24 [lower-alpha 1]

M. bennettae has been misidentified in the literature as M. mastersii (Haswell), (a synonym of M. ensis), and as M. dalli.[2]: 20 

Life cycle

Juveniles are found in rivers up to 35 km from the sea, moving down to coastal lakes and estuaries as they mature. Whereas other penaeid prawns spawn offshore, the greentail prawn can reproduce in shallow lagoons. They reach sexual maturity at one year and spawn in summer around the time of full moon.[3]

Distribution

The greentail prawn is endemic to the east coast of Australia and has been found as a non-native species in New Zealand.

Its distribution in New Zealand is tracked as a "key" invasive or indicator non-indigenous species.[4]

Commercial use

They are collected commercially and recreationally for food. Marketable prawns are around 8–10 cm and 8 g, though they can grow to 13 cm.[5][3] They form part of the (500 t/yr) "bay prawn" catch in Queensland, primarily from Moreton Bay.[3] Bay prawns include M. bennettae, M. insolitus, school prawns (M. macleayi), and juveniles of larger species.[6][7] In New South Wales, the greentail is a secondary catch of trawling for school and king prawns and for squid in the Clarence, Hunter, and Hawkesbury Rivers.[8] From 1991 to 2009, the annual landing of greentail prawns in NSW varied between 10–60 t.[3] Together, M. bennettae and M.insolitus have the export code PWY "Prawns - Bay", distinct from PWS "Prawns - School" for M. dalli and M. macleayi.[9] The CAAB (Codes for Australian Aquatic Biota) species code is 28 711022.[3][10][lower-alpha 2]

Notes
  1. FAO provides names in English, French, and Spanish. For M. bennettae, these are literal translations of "green tail": "Greentail shrimp (En), Crevette queue verte (Fr), Camarón rabo verde (Sp)".
  2. Additionally, there are special codes for prawns that are undistinguished between, or a mixture of: M. bennettae and M.insolitus, 28 711901; M. macleayi and M. bennettae, 28 711903.

References
  1. "Prawns and Prawning". Fishing Australia. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  2. Holthius, L. B. (1980), Vol. 1, Shrimps and Prawns of the World: An annotated catalogue of species of interest to fisheries. (PDF), FAO Fisheries Synopsis No. 125 (FIR/S125), Rome: FAO
  3. Industry & Investment NSW (April 2010). "Greentail Prawn (Metapenaeus bennettae)" (PDF). Status of Fisheries Resources in NSW, 2008/2009. State of New South Wales. pp. 159–162.
  4. National Institute of Water & Atmospheric Research (2018). Long-term indicators for non- indigenous species (NIS) in marine systems (PDF) (Report).
  5. "Bay Prawn". Sydney Fish Market. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  6. "Wild Caught Bay Prawn". GoodFish Sustainable Seafood Guide. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  7. Agriculture and Fisheries (14 June 2011). "Trawl fishery target species". Business Queensland. Queensland Government. Retrieved 17 April 2022.
  8. Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities (November 2011). "Assessment of the New South Wales Estuary Prawn Trawl Fishery" (PDF). Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 17 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  9. Department of Agriculture, Water, and the Environment. "Fish product codes for EXDOC users". www.awe.gov.au. Commonwealth of Australia. Retrieved 17 April 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  10. "Codes for Australian Aquatic Biota (CAAB) Taxon Report: Metapenaeus bennettae Racek & Dall, 1965". CSIRO National Collections and Marine Infrastructure - Information and Data Centre. CSIRO.
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