VARIATIONS IN MORPHOMETRIC TRAITS OF THE INVASIVE ASIAN BLACK TIGER SHRIMP, PENAEUS MONODON (FABRICIUS, 1798) IN THE COASTAL WATERS OF NIGERIA
Keywords:
Penaeus monodon, Asian Tiger prawn, morphometric variations, NigeriaAbstract
The present study aimed to assess the morphological variations of the invasive Asian tiger shrimp, Penaeus
monodon along the coastal waters of Nigeria. A total of 120 individuals were obtained from four locations (New
Calabar River, Andoni River System, Apapa Creek, and Ibeno Beach), from February to October 2019. A total of
14 morphometric traits were measured on each individual. The morphometric traits were subjected to Principal
Component Analysis using morphometric parameters to identify intra-specific morphological variation. P.
monodon exhibited high levels of morphometric variation and the PCA grouped the populations into at least two
clusters. It is concluded that environmental differences along the coastal waters and the possibility of multiple
pathways of invasion may account for the variations. There is a need to complement the result with DNA analysis.
