Biodiversity & Conservation

Common prawn - Palaemon serratus

Palaemon serratus

Image Mark Thomas - Side view of entire individual on rock. Image width ca XX cm.
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Distribution map

Palaemon serratus recorded (dark blue bullet) and expected (light blue bullet) distribution in Britain and Ireland (see below)

Why do the maps differ?

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Palaemon serratus is not listed under any importance categories.

Taxonomy icon Taxonomy Taxon English term
Phylum Arthropoda Arthropods, joint-legged animals, e.g. insects, crustaceans & spiders
Class Malacostraca Crabs, lobsters, sand hoppers and sea slaters
Authority (Pennant, 1777)
Recent synonyms None
Map icon Recorded Distribution in Britain and Ireland Probably present all around Britain and Ireland. See additional information below.
Habitat information icon Habitat information Present usually in groups, in crevices and under stones from intertidal pools to the shallow subtidal. Also found in estuaries and seagrass beds. Found from the intertidal to depths of 40 m.
Text page icon Description Palaemon serratus is a typical prawn with a cylindrical body composed of a carapace at the front and six abdominal segments. It has a large upturned rostrum in front of the eyes with distinctive dorsal and ventral teeth. Just below the large compound eye on each side is the antennule, which is divided into three parts. Below the antennule is the antenna, which is divided into two parts; the short flat segment (scaphocerite) and the long whip-like flagellum. Palaemon serratus is translucent with red/brown lines on the carapace and abdomen. The first two pairs of walking legs bear claws (chela) and have yellow and red banding.
Identifying features
  • Large round-bodied prawn up to 11 cm in length.
  • Translucent with variable markings but generally red/brown horizontal or oblique lines on the carapace and vertical on the abdomen.
  • First two walking legs (pereiopods) chelate with yellow and brown banding.
  • Head region covered by a carapace with a well developed rostrum with distinct upward curve.
  • Rostrum with 6-7 dorsal teeth, 2 of which are behind the eyesocket, and 4-5 ventral teeth.
  • Mandible with palp of 3 segments (requires microscopic examination).
Additional information icon Additional information Palaemon serratus could be mistaken for the similar species Palaemon elegans, Palaemon longirostris and Palaemon adspersus but can be separated by the shape of the rostrum and the number of dorsal and ventral rostral teeth.

British Isles Distribution
Recorded from Shetland and Orkney. Scarcely recorded on the northeast coast of Britain. Frequent on the west, south and south west coast of England and Wales and west coast of Scotland. Recorded from the west, south west, south and southeast coast of Ireland.

This review can be cited as follows:

Ken Neal 2008. Palaemon serratus. Common prawn. Marine Life Information Network: Biology and Sensitivity Key Information Sub-programme [on-line]. Plymouth: Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom. [cited 22/05/2012]. Available from: <http://www.marlin.ac.uk/speciesinformation.php?speciesID=4019>