Pistol Shrimp

Alpheidae spp.

Pistol Shrimp

Alpheidae spp.

Other Common Names
There are more than 700 species belonging to the Alpheidae family with different common names.

Connected Coasts

Other Common Names

There are more than 700 species belonging to the Alpheidae family with different common names.

At the Aquarium

Connected Coasts

Appearance

Pistol shrimp have a pair of asymmetrical claws, the larger of the two is a powerful weapon used in communication and combat. When the pistol shrimps rapidly close their large claw, they direct a strong water jet at a nearby opponent and produce a loud noise. The smaller claw is used for grasping items, foraging and burrowing. The claws are called chelae, the size of which varies among species.

Some pistol shrimp like those of the Alpheus genus have orbital hoods that covers their eyes. These hoods are theorized to protect themselves from the shock waves they produce when they snap their claws.

Color patterns varies among species.

Habitat

Commonly found in shallow waters of tropical and subtropical areas, especially on coral reefs.

Diet

Diet varies among species and their habitat, but generally they consume small invertebrates and detritus.

Life History

Pistol shrimps often have one mating partner with whom they defend and share a specific territory.

Males fertilize the eggs attached to the female’s pleopods. Pleopods are limbs attached to the abdomen. Once the eggs hatch, pistol shrimp larvae develop through several stages. Larval development varies between species but generally they float and drift with ocean currents before eventually settling to the bottom.

IUCN Status

Least Concern, Endangered

Ecosystem & Cultural Importance

Many pistol shrimp species live in symbiotic relationships with other marine organisms, such as sponges, corals, and crinoids. Many

Alpheidae shrimps also live in association with fish belonging to the genera of Gobidae. The shrimp constructs and maintains a burrow while the goby acts as a lookout and guards the burrow.

Pistol shrimp are also important in marine food webs as they are both prey and predator for a variety of organisms.

The Alpheidae family has a worldwide distribution in temperate and tropical seas.

This animal is not native to the Oregon Coast, however is found in the larger Pacific Ocean. It lives in the Aquarium as part of our Connected Coasts gallery.

Like most crustaceans, pistol shrimp are able to self-amputate, or drop, limbs when threatened. When the larger chela is lost, the smaller chela will transform into a large chela while the small chela is regenerated on the opposite side.

Citations & Other Resources

Sha, Z., Y. Wang, and D. Cui. 2019. The Alpheidae from China Seas : crustacea: decapoda: caridea. Springer.
Chow, L. H., S. De Grave, A. Anker, K.K.Y. Poon, K.Y. Ma, K.H. Chu, T.-Y. Chan, and L.M. Tsang. 2021. Distinct suites of pre- and post-adaptations indicate independent evolutionary pathways of snapping claws in the shrimp family Alpheidae (Decapoda: Caridea). Evolution, 75(11), 2898–2910. https://doi.org/10.1111/evo.14351
OpenCage, Alpheus distinguendus, CC BY-SA 2.5
Hultgren, K. M., C. Hurt, and A. Anker. 2014. Phylogenetic relationships within the snapping shrimp genus Synalpheus (Decapoda: Alpheidae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 77, 116–125. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2014.03.008
Barroso, D., D.F.R. Alves, R.C. Santos, and G.L. Hirose. 2021. Chemical and visual recognition in the association between the shrimps Salmoneus carvachoi Anker, 2007 (Caridea, Alpheidae), and Alpheus estuariensis Christoffersen, 1984 (Caridea, Alpheidae), and the fish Gobionellus stomatus Starks, 1913 (Perciformes, Gobiidae). Symbiosis (Philadelphia, Pa.), 85(3), 385–392. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13199-021-00810-3
Casaubon, A., K.M. Hultgren, C. Murray, R.J. Hanscom, and C. Hurt. 2023. Application of integrative taxonomy combining phylogenetic and geometric morphometric techniques in a snapping shrimp (AlpheusFabricius, 1798) species complex (Decapoda: Caridea: Alpheidae). Journal of Crustacean Biology, 43(4). https://doi.org/10.1093/jcbiol/ruad078
Ghizelli-Fraga B., R. C. Costa, and R. A. Pescinelli. 2021. Life History Traits of the Snapping Shrimp Alpheus carlae (Decapoda: Alpheidae) from the South-eastern Coast of Brazil. Zoological Studies, 60, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.6620/ZS.2021.60-62
Pescinelli, R. A., and R.C. Costa. 2022. Filling gaps in the life history of the snapping shrimp Alpheus petronioi: morphology of the first post-embryonic stages reared in laboratory. Marine Biology Research, 18(9–10), 589–598. https://doi.org/10.1080/17451000.2023.2173782
Cooney, P., C.A. Korey, and M. Hughes. 2017. Autotomy and recovery in the snapping shrimp, Alpheus angulosus McClure, 2002 (Caridea: Alpheidae). Journal of Crustacean Biology, 37(6), 701–708. https://doi.org/10.1093/jcbiol/rux082
Pereira, A., E. Tracey, P.C. Cooney, C.A. Korey, and M. Hughes. 2014. Post-autotomy claw regrowth and functional recovery in the snapping shrimp Alpheus angulosus. Marine and Freshwater Behaviour and Physiology, 47(3), 147–159. https://doi.org/10.1080/10236244.2014.928460

Pistol Shrimp

Pistol Shrimp

Other Common Names

At the Aquarium

Appearance

Habitat

Diet

Life History

IUCN Status

Ecosystem & Cultural Importance

Citations & Other Resources

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