There is little information on the penaeid prawns of the inshore waters, backwater creeks and mangrove swamp areas of the Andaman Islands. This report records the occurrence of 16 species of penaeid prawns collected mainly during a survey conducted by one of the authors (E.G.S.) from the Middle Andamans. Thirteen out of 16 species collected, are new records for the Andaman-Nicobar Islands. The clinal differences observed in some of the species such as Metapenaeus dobsoni and Parapenaeopsis cornuta are discussed.