| Trachysalambria curvirostris | |
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| Trachysalambria curvirostris for sale at a market | |
Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Malacostraca |
| Order: | Decapoda |
| Suborder: | Dendrobranchiata |
| Family: | Penaeidae |
| Genus: | Trachysalambria |
| Species: | T. curvirostris |
| Binomial name | |
| Trachysalambria curvirostris (Stimpson, 1860) | |
| Synonyms[1] | |
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Trachysalambria curvirostris (formerlyTrachypenaeus curvirostris) is a species ofprawn that lives in shallow waters of the Indo-West Pacific. It is one of the most important species targeted byprawn fishery, with annual harvests of more than 300,000 t, mostly landed in China.
T. curvirostris is widely distributed across theIndo-West Pacific, fromEast Africa and theRed Sea toJapan andAustralia. It has also entered theMediterranean Sea as aLessepsian migrant, through theSuez Canal.[2] It lives at depths of 10–300 metres (33–984 ft) over sandy or muddy bottoms.[3]
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Trachysalambria curvirostris is a small prawn, with males reaching a total length of up to 81 millimetres (3.2 in), and females reaching 105 mm (4.1 in).[3] Theexoskeleton is "densely pubescent" (covered in thick down).[3] Therostrum is straight or slightly curved upwards, and bears 7–11 teeth on the dorsal (upper) side.[3] The last four segments of the pleon have a median crest, while the second segment has atubercle on the mid-line.[3]
T. curvirostris can be distinguished from similar species that occur in the same areas (such asMegokris sedili andMegokris granulosus) by the form of the petasma and thelycum (male and female reproductive structures), and by the colouration of theuropods; these are red or reddish brown, with conspicuous white margins inT. curvirostris, but yellowish with grey or brown margins and centre inM. sedili, and red or reddish brown with golden margins inM. granulosus.[3]
The biology ofT. curvirostris is poorly known; in the waters around Korea, mating takes place in June, July and August.[4] Females lay up to 100,000 eggs, each one around 223 micrometres (0.0088 in) in diameter, with the female'sfecundity being directly related to her body size.[5][4] Over the next 15 hours, the eggs grow to 400 μm (0.016 in) in diameter; at this point, they hatch into the firstnauplius larva.[5]
The nauplii have only three pairs ofappendages: two pairs ofantennae, and themandibles.[5] The larva passes through a further five naupliar stages byecdysis, with increasing numbers ofsetae (bristles) appearing on the appendages at each stage.[5] Around 41 hours after hatching, the larva moults into the first protozoea stage, by which time the body is 0.732 millimetres (0.0288 in) long. The body is now differentiated into acephalothorax and anabdomen, bears several thoracic appendages, and the larva now begins to ingest food.[5] After a further two protozoea stages, the larva hatches into the first mysis stage. This is typically 7 days after hatching, and the animal is typically around 2.2 mm (0.087 in) long.[5] There are a further two mysis stages before the first post-larval stage, at a length of around 3.4 mm (0.13 in).[5] In this stage, thepleopods (swimmerets; abdominal appendages) become functional, and the animal closely resembles the adult form.[5]
Females live for 14–15 months, and reachsexual maturity at acarapace length of 15–17 mm (0.59–0.67 in).[4][6] Males live for 13–14 months.[4] In Korean waters, the adults migrate into shallower water in April.[4]
Afishery forT. curvirostris was started in the mid 20th century, growing to over 300,000 t annually in the 21st century.[2] It is a commercially important species inKorea,Japan,China andTaiwan, and is also fished on smaller scales inMadagascar, theRed Sea, theGulf of Aden and theArabian Sea.[5] Although it is abundant around the coasts ofAustralia,T. curvirostris is too small to be commercially viable there.[5] The fishery forT. curvirostris is carried out withotter trawls,gill nets and as anartisanal fishery.[3] It is easier to catch at night, and is fished only in waters less than 60 m (200 ft) deep.[3]
Worldwide,T. curvirostris is one of the five most important single species targeted byshrimp and prawn fisheries, with most of the harvest being landed in China.[8] In Korea,T. curvirostris is the dominant species in the shrimp fishery, accounting for more than 50% of landings (other abundant prawn species in the area includePenaeus chinensis,Metapenaeus joyneri andMetapenaeopsis dalei).[4]
The species wasfirst described byWilliam Stimpson in 1860, as a species in the genusPenaeus, with atype locality ofShimoda, Shizuoka, Japan.[9] In 1901, Alcock erected a new genusTrachypeneus[10] (later emended toTrachypenaeus after a petition to theInternational Commission on Zoological Nomenclature byLipke Holthuis).[11] In 1934,Martin Burkenroad introducedTrachysalambria as a subgenus ofTrachypenaeus, assigningT. curvirostris as itstype species. This subgenus was in turn elevated to the rank of genus in 1997, byIsabel Pérez Farfante andBrian Kensley.[12]
Common names for the species include "cocktail shrimp",[4] "hardback prawn", "southern rough prawn", and the name preferred by theFood and Agriculture Organization, "southern rough shrimp".[2]
Media related toTrachysalambria curvirostris at Wikimedia Commons