Western King Prawn

Penaeus latisulcatus

Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Family: Penaeidae
Genus: Penaeus
Species: Penaeus latisulcatus

The western king prawn (Penaeus latisulcatus) is a large penaeid prawn with blue-tipped tail fan and legs, active on sandy bottoms at night. Its pale, cream to yellowish body makes the blue tips stand out.

It can grow to around 20 cm and is an important commercial species across the Indo-West Pacific. By day it buries in sand and mud, emerging at night to feed on small invertebrates and detritus.

In the Philippines it is found on sandy and muddy bottoms and is sometimes seen by night divers as it leaves its burrow to forage.

Photo: 呂一起(Lyu yi-chi), CC BY 4.0, via iNaturalist