Macrobrachium

Macrobrachium
Macrobrachium americanum, the type species
Macrobrachium rosenbergii, the giant freshwater prawn, a commercially important species
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Clade: Pancrustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Decapoda
Suborder: Pleocyemata
Infraorder: Caridea
Family: Palaemonidae
Genus: Macrobrachium
Spence Bate, 1868
Type species
Macrobrachium americanum
Bate, 1868 
Synonyms
List
    • Cryphiops Dana, 1852
    • Cryphiops (Cryphiops) Dana, 1852
    • Bithynis Philippi, 1860
    • Eupalaemon Ortmann, 1891
    • Palaemon (Eupalaemon) Ortmann, 1891
    • Palaemon (Macrobrachium)
    • Palaemon (Parapalaemon) Ortmann, 1891
    • Parapalaemon Ortmann, 1891
    • Macroterocheir Stebbing, 1908
    • Pseudopalaemon Sollaud, 1911
    • Bithynops Holthuis, 1973
    • Cryphiops (Bithynops) Holthuis, 1973
    • Allobrachium Jayachandran, 2001

Macrobrachium is a genus of freshwater prawns or shrimps characterised by the extreme enlargement of the second pair of pereiopods, at least in the male. The genus is cosmopolitan, found throughout the tropical, freshwater and estuarine ecosystems of both the Old and New Worlds.

The genus has a difficult taxonomic history due to morphological conservation between its species (plesiomorphy), and conversely, variations within a single species (polymorphism), leading to the discovery of cryptic species which were only revealed through genetic analysis and morphometry. This polymorphism may be especially apparent among males, where it is termed heterogeneous individual growth (HIG); in males, this determines the size and morphology that they may grow into, as well as their physiology and behavior.

Many species of Macrobrachium are of high commercial value, especially the larger species such as those from the M. rosenbergii species group; these are both shrimped and cultivated throughout the world. Escapees of aquaculture operations have been found to have established breeding populations, though their ecological impact is little studied.

In addition to their commercial value, these crustaceans are thought to provide various ecosystem services to humans: a study in the Senegal River basin found that large dams have been implicated in the spread of schistosomiasis, a disease caused by Schistosoma flatworms carried by snails. In general, dams inhibit the reproduction and migration of various riverine species, including Macrobrachium spp.; as these prawns are "voracious" predators of snails in all life stages, damming has been linked to marked increases in human schistosomiasis around dammed areas. It is estimated that restoration of Macrobrachium populations could benefit around 300 million people, one third to one half of the at-risk population.

Species

The family Palaemonidae has been revised extensively in the 21st century, including the genus Macrobrachium. Using molecular phylogenetics, some genera of palaemonid shrimp were found to be both polyphyletic and within the clade of Macrobrachium.

The following cladogram is based on a 2021 phylogenetic analysis using partial DNA fragments of palaemonid shrimp:

⊞Macrobrachium + Cryphiops
⊟

Palaemon spp.

Usually, the oldest name still in use is prioritized (Principle of Priority), which would make Macrobrachium 1868 the junior synonym of Cryphiops 1852. Out of the interest of nomenclatural stability and to prevent taxonomic confusion, it was proposed to conserve the more speciose genus Macrobrachium, invoking ICZN Article 23.9.3.

The following cladogram is based on a 2025 phylogenetic study using sequenced genes of palaemonid shrimp:

⊞Palaemon spp.
⊟
⊞Palaemon spp.
⊟

Palaemon concinnus

As of 2025, the genus contains these species:

References

  1. ↑ J. W. Short (2004). "A revision of Australian river prawns, Macrobrachium (Crustacea: Decapoda: Palaemonidae)". Hydrobiologia. 525 (1–3): 1–100. Bibcode:2004HyBio.525....1S. doi:10.1023/B:HYDR.0000038871.50730.95.
  2. ↑ "Macrobrachium Spence Bate, 1868". DecaNet. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2026-02-15.
  3. ↑ Charles Spence Bate (1868). "On a new Genus, with four new Species, of Freshwater Prawns". Proceedings of the Zoological Society of London: 363–368.
  4. ↑ Bowles D, Aziz K, Knight C (2000) Macrobrachium (Decapoda: Caridea: Palaemonidae) in the contiguous United States: A review of the species and an assessment of threats to their survival. Journal of Crustacean Biology 20(1): 158–171. DOI link
  5. 1 2 Zelada-Mázmela, Eliana; Reyes-Flores, Lorenzo E.; De Stefano-Beltrán, Luis (20 January 2025). "Phylogeny of Macrobrachium spp. (Decapoda, Pleocyemata) from Peru based on mitochondrial and nuclear data reveals a species complex comprising M. digueti (Bouvier, 1895) and M. transandicum Holthuis, 1950" (PDF). ZooKeys (1224): 1–28. Bibcode:2025ZooK.1224....1Z. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1224.130537. PMC 11773351. PMID 39881667. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  6. ↑ Mota, Thaís Arrais; Da Silva, Ana Carla Soares; De Santana Neves, Lucas Jhones; Alencar, Carlos Eduardo Rocha Duarte; Carvalho, Fabrício Lopes (October 2025). "Geometric Morphometrics Reveal Body Shape Variation in Freshwater Shrimps of the Genus Macrobrachium Lacking a Mandibular Palp (Formerly Pseudopalaemon Sollaud, 1911) (Decapoda: Palaemonidae)". Acta Zoologica azo.70014. doi:10.1111/azo.70014.
  7. ↑ Ibrahim, Salifu; Zhong, Zhenxiao; Lan, Xuan; Luo, Jinping; Tang, Qiongying; Xia, Zhenglong; Yi, Shaokui; Yang, Guoliang (16 May 2023). "Morphological Diversity of Different Male Morphotypes of Giant Freshwater Prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii (De Man, 1879)". Aquaculture Journal. 3 (2): 133–148. doi:10.3390/aquacj3020012.
  8. ↑ "Macrobrachium rosenbergii (De Man, 1879) Giant river prawn". SeaLifeBase. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  9. ↑ "Macrobrachium rosenbergii FAO Aquaculture Production of Macrobrachium rosenbergii (t)". SeaLifeBase. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  10. ↑ "crustaceans-shrimp". Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  11. ↑ "Macrobrachium rosenbergii Crustaceans-Shrimp giant Malaysian prawn, giant river prawn". Smithsonian Environmental Research Center. Retrieved 15 February 2026.
  12. ↑ Roberts, J. K.; Kuris, A. M. (19 April 1990). "Predation and control of laboratory populations of the snail Biomphalaria glabrata by the freshwater prawn Macrobrachium rosenbergii". Annals of Tropical Medicine & Parasitology. 84 (4): 401–412. doi:10.1080/00034983.1990.11812486. PMID 2260905.
  13. ↑ Sokolow, Susanne H.; Lafferty, Kevin D.; Kuris, Armand M. (April 2014). "Regulation of laboratory populations of snails (Biomphalaria and Bulinus spp.) by river prawns, Macrobrachium spp. (Decapoda, Palaemonidae): Implications for control of schistosomiasis". Acta Tropica. 132: 64–74. doi:10.1016/j.actatropica.2013.12.013. PMC 4280914. PMID 24388955.
  14. ↑ Sokolow, Susanne H.; Jones, Isabel J.; Jocque, Merlijn; La, Diana; Cords, Olivia; Knight, Anika; Lund, Andrea; Wood, Chelsea L.; Lafferty, Kevin D.; Hoover, Christopher M.; Collender, Phillip A.; Remais, Justin V.; Lopez-Carr, David; Fisk, Jonathan; Kuris, Armand M.; De Leo, Giulio A. (2017-04-24). "Nearly 400 million people are at higher risk of schistosomiasis because dams block the migration of snail-eating river prawns". Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences. 372 (1722) 20160127. The Royal Society. Bibcode:2017RSPTB.37260127S. doi:10.1098/rstb.2016.0127. ISSN 0962-8436. PMC 5413875. PMID 28438916.
  15. 1 2 Mantelatto, Fernando L.; Pileggi, Leonardo G.; Pantaleão, João A. F.; Magalhães, Célio; Villalobos, José Luis; Alvarez, Fernando (1 Jul 2021). "Multigene phylogeny and taxonomic revision of American shrimps of the genus Cryphiops Dana, 1852 (Decapoda, Palaemonidae) implies a proposal for reversal of precedence with Macrobrachium Spence Bate, 1868". ZooKeys (1047): 155–198. Bibcode:2021ZooK.1047..155M. doi:10.3897/zookeys.1047.66933. PMC 8266795. PMID 34267596.
  16. ↑ Mota, Thaís A.; De Grave, Sammy; Carvalho, Fabrício L. (September 2025). "Multigene analysis reveals that Pseudopalaemon Sollaud, 1911 is a junior synonym of the widespread genus Macrobrachium Spence Bate, 1868 (Decapoda: Caridea: Palaemonidae)". Crustacean Biology. 45 (3) ruaf048. doi:10.1093/jcbiol/ruaf048.
  17. ↑ "Macrobrachium Spence Bate, 1868". DecaNet. World Register of Marine Species. Retrieved 2026-09-23.
  18. 1 2 3 4 5 Luis M. Mejía-Ortíz & Marilú López-Mejía (2011). "Freshwater prawns of the genus Macrobrachium (Decapoda, Palaemonidae) with abbreviated development from the Papaloapan River Basin, Veracruz, Mexico: distribution and new species". Crustaceana. 84 (8): 949–973. Bibcode:2011Crust..84..949M. doi:10.1163/001121611X579754.
  19. ↑ Antonina dos Santos, Liliam Hayd & Klaus Anger (2013). "A new species of Macrobrachium Spence Bate, 1868 (Decapoda, Palaemonidae) M. pantanalense, from the Pantanal, Brazil". Zootaxa. 3700 (4): 534–546. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.3700.4.2. PMID 26106741.
  20. ↑ Saengphan, Nukul; Panijpan, Bhinyo; Senapin, Saengchan; Suksomnit, Auaree; Phiwsaiya, Kornsunee (2020-10-29). "Morphology and molecular phylogeny of Macrobrachium saengphani sp. nov. (Decapoda: Palaemonidae) from Northern Thailand". Zootaxa. 4868 (4): 531–542. doi:10.11646/zootaxa.4868.4.4. ISSN 1175-5334. PMID 33311381.