Description

Also known as Alpheid Shrimp, Cauliflower Coral Shrimp, Coral Guard Snapping Shrimp, Coral Snapping Shrimp, Goby Shrimp, Lottini Pistol Shrimp, Pistol Shrimp, Pocillopora Shrimp, Snapping Shrimp, Spotted-claw Snapping Shrimp.

Found singly or in pairs, closely associated with Pocilloporid corals, in shallow waters of coral and rocky reefs.
They feed on algae, fish eggs, small invertebrates and coral tissue.
Length - 4.5cm
Depth - 0-60m
Widespread Indo-Pacific

Snapping Shrimps usually share their holes with various Gobies. While the shrimps dig out their holes the gobies stand guard, as the shrimps vision is poor they usually keep one antennae in contact with their goby partner.
Snapping Shrimps have a large claw, which they are able to snap, giving a load cracking noise and at the same time this produces a large jet of water, used in defence to either deter or to knock out their prey. Ref: x