Tiger Prawn( Penaeus monodon)

Asian tiger prawns are a non-native species. It is unknown when and how tiger prawns were first introduced into the Gulf of Mexico. In 1988, a portion of a population of reared tiger prawns escaped from a facility on the East Coast. Approximately 1,000 adults were later recaptured as far south as Cape Canaveral, Florida. In September 2006, a commercial shrimp fisherman in Mississippi Sound near Dauphin Island, Alabama captured a single adult male. Reports from Alabama and Mississippi have been increasing ever since.

At this time, there is no evidence that tiger prawns feed on native Louisiana shrimp. Any potential impacts over competition for food and resources remain unknown.

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) is aware of and constantly monitoring the appearance of Asian tiger prawns in Louisiana waters. LDWF officials are asking local shrimp harvesters to report catches of tiger prawns to the Department. Reports help LDWF biologists monitor the distribution and relative abundance of these prawns and determine the possible presence of spawning populations.

To report catches of Asian tiger prawns please contact Bobby Reed at [email protected] or Jeffrey Marx at [email protected] or (337) 373-0037, with the date, location and size of capture. Photographs are encouraged.

Tiger prawns are easily identifiable by their large size, dark body color and white banding found along the head and between segments of the tail. Occasionally, red or yellow stripes are present as well. LDWF officials ask that harvesters retain the tiger prawns by freezing and contact the biologists listed above.