''Lysmata grabhami'' is a

species In biology, a species is the basic unit of classification and a taxonomic rank of an organism, as well as a unit of biodiversity. A species is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate s ...

of saltwater

shrimp Shrimp are crustaceans (a form of shellfish) with elongated bodies and a primarily swimming mode of locomotion – most commonly Caridea and Dendrobranchiata of the decapod order, although some crustaceans outside of this order are refer ...

in the

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

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 ...

. It was first described by Gordon in 1935. It occurs in the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean and is a

cleaner shrimp Cleaner shrimp is a common name for a number of swimming decapod crustaceans, that clean other organisms of parasites. They belong to any of three families, Hippolytidae (including the Pacific cleaner shrimp, ''Lysmata amboinensis''), Palaem ...

, operating a

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 ...

to which fish come to have

parasites Parasitism is a Symbiosis, close relationship between species, where one organism, the parasite, lives on or inside another organism, the Host (biology), host, causing it some harm, and is Adaptation, adapted structurally to this way of lif ...

removed.

Description

''Lysmata grabhami'' can grow to a length of . Its appearance is distinctive; the antennae are white as are the third pair of maxillipeds; the body is yellow, with a continuous white dorsal stripe running from head to

telson The telson () is the posterior-most division of the body of an arthropod. Depending on the definition, the telson is either considered to be the final segment of the arthropod body, or an additional division that is not a true segment on accou ...

, bordered with a longitudinal red stripe on either side; the legs are yellow, and the external branches of the

uropod Uropods are posterior appendages found on a wide variety of crustaceans. They typically have functions in locomotion. Definition Uropods are often defined as the appendages of the last body segment of a crustacean. An alternative definition sugge ...

s have a white stripe on the outer edge.

Distribution

''Lysmata grabhami'' occurs in shallow water on either side of the tropical and sub-tropical Atlantic Ocean. It is typically found in reef environments. In the West Atlantic it is found on the coast of North America, the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico and around Bermuda. In the East Atlantic it occurs in the Canary Islands, Madeira and Cape Verde.

Ecology

''Lysmata grabhami'' is a

; in common with certain other shrimps and certain small fish, it has established behaviours involving

s to which larger fish come to have their external

removed. The shrimp waves its long white antennae to attract a fish, the fish poses, extending a fin or opening its mouth, the shrimp hops onto the fish and picks at the parasites until the fish disengages. The shrimp may occupy a single cleaning station for extended periods. Client fish include

grouper Groupers are fish of any of a number of genera in the subfamily Epinephelinae of the family Serranidae, in the order Perciformes. Not all serranids are called "groupers"; the family also includes the sea basses. The common name "grouper" is u ...

parrotfish Parrotfishes are a group of about 90 fish species regarded as a Family (biology), family (Scaridae), or a subfamily (Scarinae) of the wrasses. With about 95 species, this group's largest species richness is in the Indo-Pacific. They are found ...

es and

tangs TANGS is a department store located on Orchard Road in Singapore, owned by C.K. Tang Limited. The store is regarded as a principal shopping destination in the city, comparable to Bloomingdale's in New York City and Selfridges Selfridges, a ...

. This is a symbiotic arrangement, the client fish benefits from having its parasites removed and the shrimp benefits from the extra nutrition it receives. Six species of shrimp from three different

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. Ideall ...

have developed this practice, a case of

convergent evolution Convergent evolution is the independent evolution of similar features in species of different periods or epochs in time. Convergent evolution creates analogous structures that have similar form or function but were not present in the last com ...

In aquaria

''Lysmata grabhami'' is sometimes kept in a

reef aquarium A reef aquarium or reef tank is a marine aquarium that prominently displays live corals and other marine invertebrates as well as fish that play a role in maintaining the tropical coral reef environment. A reef aquarium requires appropriately ...

, but its sister species from the Pacific, ''

Lysmata amboinensis ''Lysmata amboinensis'' is an omnivorous shrimp species known by several common names including the Pacific cleaner shrimp. It is considered a cleaner shrimp as eating parasites and dead tissue from fish makes up a large part of its diet. The spe ...

'', is seen much more often in the trade. Both species will clean other fish in the aquarium.

References

External links

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q2551374 Alpheoidea Crustaceans described in 1935 Crustaceans of the Atlantic Ocean