The whiteleg shrimp is native to the Eastern Pacific coast from Sonora, Mexico in the North, through Central and South America as far South as Tumbes in Peru, in areas where water temperatures are normally >20 °C throughout the year. Penaeus vannamei live in tropical marine habitats. Adults live and spawn in the open ocean, while postlarvae migrate inshore to spend their juvenile, adolescent and sub-adult stages in coastal estuaries, lagoons or mangrove areas. Males become mature from 20 g and females from 28 g onwards at the age of 6–7 months. P. vannamei weighing 30–45 g will spawn 100 000–250 000 eggs of approximately 0.22 mm in diameter. Hatching occurs about 16 hours after spawning and fertilization. The first stage larvae, termed nauplii, swim intermittently and are positively phototactic. Nauplii do not feed, but live on their yolk reserves. The next larval stages (protozoea, mysis and early postlarvae respectively) remain planktonic for some time, eat phytoplankton and zooplankton, and are carried towards the shore by tidal currents. The postlarvae (PL) change their planktonic habit about 5 days after moulting into PL, move inshore and begin feeding on benthic detritus, worms, bivalves and crustaceans

Whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei, formerly Penaeus vannamei), also known as Pacific white shrimp, is a variety of prawn of the eastern Pacific Oceanfood. commonly caught or farmed for

Description

Litopenaeus vannamei grows to a maximum length of 230 millimetres (9.1 in), with a carapace length of 90 mm (3.5 in). Adults live in the ocean, at depths of up to 72 metres (236 ft), while juveniles live in estuaries. The rostrum is moderately long, with 7–10 teeth on the dorsal side and 2–4 teeth on the ventral side.

Distribution and habitat

Whiteleg shrimp are native to the eastern Pacific Ocean, from the Mexican state of Sonora as far south as northern Peru. It is restricted to areas where the water temperature remains above 20 °C (68 °F) throughout the year

Prepared By : Nesma Mohammed