Common Prawn vs Oriental prawn

Palaemon serratus compared with Palaemon macrodactylus

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Prawn	Oriental prawn
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Arthropoda (Arthropods)	Arthropoda (Arthropods)
Class same	Malacostraca (Crustaceans)	Malacostraca (Crustaceans)
Order same	Decapoda (Decapoda)	Decapoda (Decapoda)
Family same	Palaemonidae	Palaemonidae
Genus same	Palaemon	Palaemon
Species	Palaemon serratus	Palaemon macrodactylus

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Prawn and Oriental prawn share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Palaemon.

Conservation Status

Common Prawn

NE — Not Evaluated

Oriental prawn

NE — Not Evaluated

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Prawn	Oriental prawn
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Prawn

Habitat

Typically found in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden.

Oriental prawn

Habitat

Typically found in marine, freshwater, and terrestrial environments.

Range

Widely distributed across Asia (China, Taiwan), Europe (13 countries), North America (Canada, United States), Oceania and the Pacific (Australia), and South America (Argentina, Uruguay).

Common Prawn

The Common Prawn, <em>Palaemon serratus</em>, is a decapod crustacean in the family Palaemonidae, widely distributed along the Atlantic coasts of Europe, including the waters of Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Portugal, and Sweden. It inhabits shallow coastal waters, estuaries, rock pools, and seagrass meadows, typically sheltering among algae, rocks, and submerged vegetation during the day and foraging more actively at night. <em>Palaemon serratus</em> is an omnivorous opportunist, typically consuming algae, small invertebrates, detritus, and organic particles. The species is transparent to pale greenish-brown with distinctive reddish-brown banding on the antennae and legs. It is an important prey item for coastal fish species and seabirds, and supports small-scale artisanal fisheries across its European range. The species plays a role in benthic nutrient cycling through its feeding activity. It reproduces seasonally, with females carrying eggs attached to the pleopods until hatching. The Common Prawn is currently Not Evaluated on the IUCN Red List, meaning a formal assessment of its conservation status has not yet been completed. Biological traits such as average lifespan, body size, and specific dietary preferences remain poorly documented for this species.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 4 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇳🇴 Norway 🇵🇹 Portugal 🇸🇪 Sweden