THE STEINHART AQUARIUM - Gulf of Guinea Science ...

Banded Coral Shrimp
Stenopus hispidus (Stenopodidae)
Distribution: Worldwide tropical distribution.
Habitat: Coral reefs.
Appearance: Strikingly colorful with
contrasting red and white bands on body and
large pincers. Short spines cover the body
and are used for defense. Males smaller, more
slender than females.
Diet: A cleaner shrimp, it removes dead tissue,
algae and parasites from fish. Olfactory sensors
in the tentacles and pincers make it adept at
finding food.
Mortality/Longevity: Life span in captivity:
2–2.5 years.
Remarks: Like most cleaner shrimp species
on coral reefs, they congregate at cleaning
stations, waving their extremely long antennae
to advertise their services.
These “picky” eaters have been known to clean
under the fingernails of hands!
Look for molts in their tanks; all cleaner shrimp
molt every 3–8 weeks.
Candy Shrimp
Rhynchocinetes durbanensis (Rhynchocinetidae)
Distribution: Indo-Pacific.
Habitat: Lives deep in cracks and crevices of
coral reefs, often in large numbers.
Appearance: Transparent, with bold red and
white stripes. Long rostrum bears spines along
both the upper and lower edges. Males tend
to have larger claws than females. Max. size:
c. 5 cm.
Diet: Omnivore/scavenger. Mostly nocturnal.
Mortality/Longevity: Life span: up to 4 years.
Remarks: This species is not a cleaner shrimp.
Also called the “hinge-beak shrimp” as the
rostrum can be moved up and down independent
of the head. With these long, flexible beaks, they
can reach food not available to others.
Blue Crab
Callinectes sapidus (Portunidae)
Swimming Crabs
Distribution: North American coast, from
Nova Scotia south to Uruguay. Introduced
elsewhere.
Habitat: They live in brackish coastal lagoons
and estuaries, muddy shores, bays with low
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salinities, and occasionally in freshwater near
estuaries.
Appearance: The blue crab has sapphire-tinted
claws and a mottled brownish shell; females
have red highlights on their pincer tips.
Appendages include a pair pincers of large/
unequal size, three pairs pointed walking legs.
and the fifth pair flattened for swimming. The
carapace (shell) can be up to 10 cm long and 25
cm wide, and the crab may weigh up to 1 kg.
Like crabs in general, males and females are
differentiated by their abdomens—long and
narrow (male), wide and rounded (female).
Diet: Primarily molluscs, crustaceans and fish,
but will feed on almost anything, including
plants, carrion and smaller blue crabs.
Reproduction and Development: The female
mates only once after her final molt. She is
grasped by a pair of male appendages and
carried right side up under the crab, mating
for many hours. Able to store sperm for up to
a year, the female may spawn several times
after this single mating. The larvae hatch after
14-17 days, remain in the plankton, undergoing
complex molts for many weeks, and eventually
settle as minute crabs.
Mortality/Longevity: Life span in the wild is
1–3 years. Causes of mortality are predation,
disease and exploitation.
Conservation Status: Blue crabs are sensitive
to environmental changes, and play a key role
in managing their prey populations. Constant
over-harvesting has negatively affected their
ecosystems.
Remarks: Blue crabs are the Maryland State
crustacean, and are very heavily harvested.
Blue crabs have recently been found in San
Francisco Bay, where they may be a threat to
the native crab population. They have a prickly
disposition and are quick to use their sharp
front pincers.
Dungeness Crab
Cancer magister (Cancridae)
Distribution: Alaska, south to Pismo Beach or
perhaps Santa Barbara, California.
Habitat: Adults commonly on deep sandy
substrates, subtidal to 230 m; not abundant
below 90 m. Occasionally on soft bottoms;
remain buried in mud with only eyes and
antennae exposed. Juveniles in sandy bays.