Genetic Differentiation Between Sympatric Crustacean Decapods Inhabiting the Mediterranean Sea: Implications to Avoid Larval and Adult Misidentification

ABSTRACT The conservation of species, especially those with high levels of exploitation and economic interest, relies on the knowledge of their biology and geographical distribution. In the marine realm, similar morphology between species is a common difficulty in identifying sympatric species, especially in early stages of development. Therefore, genetic identification of crustacean species has been shown to be the only way to identify the species. We used a 451‐bp fragment of the 16S rDNA gene to differentiate nine species of decapod crustaceans, five of which are sympatric and heavily exploited in the Mediterranean Sea: Aristeus antennatus (blue and red shrimp), A. virilis (stout red shrimp), A. varidens (striped red shrimp), Aristaeomorpha foliacea (giant red shrimp), Aristaeopsis edwardsiana (scarlet shrimp), Gennadas elegans (graceful blunt‐tail prawn), Gennadas valens (valuable blunt‐tail prawn), Parapenaeus longirostris (deep‐water rose shrimp) and Penaeus kerathurus (camarote prawn). Analysis of the 16S rDNA gene provides clear evidence of genetic differentiation to be used as an easy method to identify these species.