Lysmata amboinensis cleans mouth of a Moray eel

Cleaner shrimp is a common name for a number of swimming decapod

crustacean Crustaceans (Crustacea, ) form a large, diverse arthropod taxon which includes such animals as decapods, seed shrimp, branchiopods, fish lice, krill, remipedes, isopods, barnacles, copepods, amphipods and mantis shrimp. The crustacean group can ...

s, that clean other organisms of

parasite Parasitism is a close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the host, causing it some harm, and is adapted structurally to this way of life. The entomologist E. O. Wilson has ...

s. They belong to any of three

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

Hippolytidae Hippolytidae is a family of cleaner shrimp, also known as broken-back shrimp or anemone shrimp. The term "broken-back shrimp" also applies to the genus ''Hippolyte'' in particular and "cleaner shrimp" is sometimes applied exclusively to ''Lysmata ...

(including the Pacific cleaner shrimp, ''Lysmata amboinensis''),

Palaemonidae Palaemonidae is a family of shrimp in the order Decapoda. Many species are carnivores that eat small invertebrates, and can be found in any aquatic habitat except the deep sea. One significant genus is ''Macrobrachium'', which contains commercia ...

(including the spotted '' Periclimenes magnificus''), and Stenopodidae (including the

banded coral shrimp ''Stenopus hispidus'' is a Caridea, shrimp-like Decapoda, decapod crustacean belonging to the infraorder Stenopodidea. Common names include coral banded shrimp and banded cleaner shrimp. Distribution ''Stenopus hispidus'' has a pan-tropical dis ...

, ''Stenopus hispidus'') . The last of these families is more closely related to lobsters and crabs than it is to the remaining families. The term "cleaner shrimp" is sometimes used more specifically for the family Hippolytidae and the genus ''

Lysmata ''Lysmata'' is a genus of shrimp in the infraorder Caridea, the caridean shrimp. The genus belongs to the family Lysmatidae. ''Lysmata'' are popular ornamental shrimp in the marine aquarium trade for their bright color patterns, interesting be ...

''. Cleaner shrimp are so called because they exhibit a

cleaning symbiosis Cleaning symbiosis is a mutually beneficial association between individuals of two species, where one (the cleaner) removes and eats parasites and other materials from the surface of the other (the client). Cleaning symbiosis is well-known amon ...

with client fish where the shrimp clean parasites from the fish. The fish benefit by having parasites removed from them, and the shrimp gain the nutritional value of the parasites. The shrimp also eat the mucus and parasites around the wounds of injured fish, which reduces infections and helps healing. The action of cleansing further aids the health of client fish by reducing their stress levels. In many

coral reef A coral reef is an underwater ecosystem characterized by reef-building corals. Reefs are formed of colonies of coral polyps held together by calcium carbonate. Most coral reefs are built from stony corals, whose polyps cluster in groups. C ...

s, cleaner shrimp congregate at

cleaning station A cleaning station is a location where aquatic life congregate to be cleaned by smaller creatures. Such stations exist in both freshwater and marine environments, and are used by animals including fish, sea turtles and hippos, referred to as cli ...

s. In this behaviour cleaner shrimps are similar to

cleaner fish Cleaner fish are fish that show a specialist feeding strategy by providing a service to other species, referred to as clients, by removing dead skin, ectoparasites, and infected tissue from the surface or gill chambers. This example of cleaning ...

, and sometimes may join with cleaner wrasse and other cleaner fish attending to client fish. Shrimp of the genus ''

Urocaridella ''Urocaridella'' is a genus of shrimps comprising the following species: *''Urocaridella antonbruunii'' *''Urocaridella cyrtorhyncha'' *''Urocaridella degravei'' *''Urocaridella liui'' *''Urocaridella pulchella'' *''Urocaridella urocaridella ...

'' are often cryptic or live in

caves A cave or cavern is a natural void in the ground, specifically a space large enough for a human to enter. Caves often form by the weathering of rock and often extend deep underground. The word ''cave'' can refer to smaller openings such as sea ...

on the reef and are not associated commensally with other animals. These shrimp assemble around

s where up to 25 shrimp live in proximity. When a potential client fish swims close to a station with shrimp present, several shrimp perform a "rocking dance," a side-to-side movement. Frequency of rocking increases with hunger. This increase in frequency suggests

competition Competition is a rivalry where two or more parties strive for a common goal which cannot be shared: where one's gain is the other's loss (an example of which is a zero-sum game). Competition can arise between entities such as organisms, indiv ...

between hungry and sated shrimp. To avoid

with other cleaners during the day, the shrimp '' Urocaridella antonbruunii'' was observed cleaning a sleeping fish at night. Cleaner shrimps are often included in

saltwater Saline water (more commonly known as salt water) is water that contains a high concentration of dissolved salts (mainly sodium chloride). On the United States Geological Survey (USGS) salinity scale, saline water is saltier than brackish water, ...

aquaria partly due to their cleansing function and partly due to their brightly colored appearance.

References

{{reflist Decapods Symbiosis