General Description

Carapace with 2 mid-dorsal teeth including epigastric tooth and a longitudinal row of small teeth posterior to orbit. First leg subchelate (flat short claws ending in a finger fitting across an oblique palm); second legs much shorter than other legs. Third and fourth abdominal segments rounded dorsally. Mottled pale grey on top, like the sediments in which it lives, with white eyes, brilliant red posterior segments, three velvety black marks on the fifth abdominal somite, and sides and limbs purple, reddish or yellow. Up to 4.5 cm long.

Biology

Sand shrimps differ from all other caridean shrimps in having flat short chelipeds ending in a finger fitting across an oblique palm (rather than having two extended opposing fingers). This species was first reported in 1927 from Spencer Gulf, South Australia by Herbert Hale who described the colour as "exquisite", mottled pale grey on top, like the sediments in which it lives, with white eyes, brilliant red posterior somites, three velvety black marks on the fifth abdominal somite, and sides and limbs purple, reddish or yellow.

Habitat

Intertidal, to 10 m depth.

Soft substrates

Coastal shores

Distribution guide

Southern temperate oceans, including south-eastern Australia.

Species Group

Prawns, shrimps, lobsters › Shrimps

Depth

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

Water Column

On or near sea floor

Max Size

4.5 cm

Diet

Organic matter

Commercial Species

No

Global Dispersal

Native to Australia

Conservation Status

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