Lysmata grabhami

Lysmata grabhami is a species of saltwater shrimp in the family Hippolytidae. It was first written about by Gordon in 1935. They are often found in the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean. 

 Description 
Lysmata grabhami can grow to . It is easy to find because its antennae and third pair of maxillipeds are white, the body and legs are yellow, and the outside uropods have a white stripe.

 Distribution 
Lysmata grabhami is found in shallow water on both sides of the tropical and subtropical Atlantic Ocean. It is often found around reefs. In the West Atlantic it is found on the coast of North America, the Caribbean Sea and Gulf of Mexico and around Bermuda. In the East Atlantic it is found in the Canary Islands, Madeira and Cape Verde.

 Ecology 
Lysmata grabhami is a cleaner shrimp. Like other species, it has been seen creating cleaning stations for larger fish to have their outside parasites removed. The shrimp moves its white antennae to bring a fish, the fish reaches out a fin or opens its mouth, the shrimp gets onto the fish and takes off parasites until the fish leaves. The shrimp might stay at a cleaning station for a long time. It often cleans groupers, parrotfishes and tangs.

These interactions are called symbiotic. The larger fish has its parasites removed while the shrimp gets food. Six species of shrimp from three different families have seen doing this. This is called convergent evolution.

 In aquaria 
Lysmata grabhami is sometimes kept in a reef aquarium, but its sister species from the Pacific Ocean, Lysmata amboinensis, is kept more often. Both species will clean other fish in the aquarium.

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Category:Crustaceans