Ancylomenes venustus (Graceful anemone shrimp)
Identification
Translucent with round white saddle with circular marking on abdominal hump, white speckling and blue to purple bands on claw arms and legs.
Status
Not yet assessed by the IUCN Red list, but commonly distributed in the tropics.
Habitat
West Indo Pacific to Papua New Guinea and Japan. It associates with stony corals and anemones, such as this Actinodendron arboreum.
Reproduction
–
Size
Up to 2,5cm.
Prey / Predation
They feed on parasites they clean from their hosts, algae and plankton.
Special features
This species was described only relatively recent in 1989 by Bruce, and formerly named Periclimenes venustus. It is a cleaner shrimp.
