Banded Coral Shrimp
Stenopus hispidus
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Arthropoda
- Subphylum
- Crustacea
- Class
- Malacostraca
- Order
- Decapoda
- Family
- Stenopodidae
- Genus
- Stenopus
- Species
- Stenopus hispidus
The banded coral shrimp (Stenopus hispidus), also known as the banded boxer shrimp, is a striking red-and-white banded cleaner shrimp with long white antennae and large claws. It holds its banded claws up like a boxer, which gives it its other common name.
It grows to about 5-6 cm and usually lives in pairs under ledges and in crevices. It acts as a cleaner, removing parasites and dead tissue from fish that visit its station, and it is found in tropical seas worldwide.
The banded coral shrimp is a common sight on reefs throughout the Philippines, often seen with its white antennae waving from a crack in the rock to attract fish.