PORT PHILLIP BAY


Sponge Shrimp 

Strahlaxius plectrorhynchus (Strahl, 1861)

View scientific description and taxonomy

Scientific Details

Rostrum spinose, apically bifid. Eye usually pigmented. Article 1 of antenna 1 peduncle as long as article 2. Propodus of pereopods 3 and 4 broadened. Pereopod 4 coxa more or less flattened. Pleuron of abdominal somite 1 not produced. Abdominal somite 2 twice as long as 1. Pereopods 2-4 and abdominal somites with some setal-rows. Male pleopod 2 endopod foliaceous with small appendix masculina attached mesially. Exopods of pleopods 2-5 laterally lobed. Uropodal endopod triangular.

Source: Poore, G.C.B. (2004) Marine decapod Crustacea of southern Australia. A guide to identification (with chapter on Stomatopoda by Shane Ahyong). CSIRO Publishing, Melbourne, 574 pp.

Taxonomy

Phylum:
Arthropoda
Subphylum:
Crustacea
Class:
Malacostraca
Subclass:
Eumalacostraca
Superorder:
Eucarida
Order:
Decapoda
Suborder:
Pleocyemata
Infraorder:
Thalassinidea
Family:
Strahlaxiidae
Genus:
Strahlaxius
Species:
plectrorhynchus

Other Names

  • Slow Shrimp

General Description

Rostrum spinose, spines of medial lobe distinct from one at end of lateral lobe. Antenna 2 acicle simple. Pleopods 1 of male with 3 articles. Pleurobranchs 5-7 absent. Telson as wide or wider than long, dorsally smooth. Uropodal exopod U-shaped, widest at midpoint, without transverse suture. Carapace up to 2.5 cm length.

Biology

This species is more commonly encountered intertidally in southern Australia than any axiid shrimp but no species is frequent.

Habitat

Reef and coral, intertidal-13 m depth.

Reefs

Distribution guide

Indonesia and East Indo-west Pacific Oceans, including southern Australia

Species Group

Prawns, shrimps, lobsters › Ghost and mud shrimps

Depth

Shore (0-1 m)
Shallow (1-30 m)

Water Column

On or near sea floor

Max Size

25 mm

Diet

Organic matter

Harmful

Not harmful but a nip from large claws could be painful

Commercial Species

No

Global Dispersal

Recorded in Australia

Conservation Status

  • DSE Advisory List : Not listed
  • EPBC Act 1999 : Not listed
  • IUCN Red List : Not listed

Author

article author Taylor, J.

Dr. Jo Taylor is the Sciences Collections Online Coordinator at Museum Victoria.

Author

article author Poore, G.C.B.

Dr. Gary Poore is Principal Curator Emeritus at Museum Victoria.

citation

Cite this page as:
Taylor, J. & Poore, G.C.B., 2011, Sponge Shrimp, Strahlaxius plectrorhynchus, in Taxonomic Toolkit for marine life of Port Phillip Bay, Museum Victoria, accessed 25 Feb 2025, http://136.154.202.208:8098/species/5530

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