Harlequin Shrimp

SCIENTIFIC NAME:
Hymenocera picta

🇪🇸 Common name (ES): Camarón payaso / Camarón arlequín

🇺🇸 Common name (EN): Harlequin Shrimp

CLASSIFICATION

Phylum:

Arthropoda

Class:

Malacostraca

Order:

Decapoda

Family:

Hymenoceridae

Genus:

Hymenocera

Species:

Hymenocera picta

DISTRIBUTION IN COSTA RICA

●  1 – Murciélago
●  2 – Papagayo
●  3 – Catalinas
●  4 – Osa
●  5 – Golfo Dulce
●  6 – Isla del Coco

DEPTH RANGE

General: 2–30 m (7–98 ft)

Common: 5–20 m (16–66 ft)

    

 

HABITAT

🪨 Rocky Reefs

🪸 Coral Reefs

◼️ Crevices

🕳️ Cavities

⭐ Sea Stars Always closely associated with its prey.

 

HOW TO IDENTIFY IT

  • Size up to 5 cm, commonly 2–4 cm.
  • White or cream-colored body with rounded purple or pinkish spots with clearly defined borders.
  • Legs and pincers with symmetrical bands and markings, giving it its characteristic “harlequin” appearance.
  • Large, flattened claws with wavy edges.
  • First pair of legs shaped like paddles, used for display and communication.

 

SIMILAR SPECIES

  • Elegant Harlequin Shrimp (Hymenocera elegans): Smaller and more numerous spots, with a more pinkish or reddish coloration. Very similar body pattern.

 

SIGHTING FREQUENCY

  • ●●○○○ Occasional

 

 

REPRODUCTION

  • Sexual maturity: Between 6 and 12 months, when they reach approximately 1.5–2 cm.

  • Oviparous with internal fertilization. The female carries approximately 100–500 eggs per clutch.

  • Incubation lasts around 14–20 days, depending on water temperature.

  • The larvae pass through several planktonic stages before settling. Females may reproduce several times per year.

  • 🥚 Egg-laying (Oviparous)

 

 

BEHAVIOR

  • Shy and slow-moving.
  • Usually lives in pairs or small groups.
  • It often hides in its shelter close to its host sea star.
  • More active at dusk and during the night.

 

DIET

  • ⭐ Sea Stars
  • Feeds exclusively on sea stars (Asteroidea), from which it consumes soft tissues and body fluids.
  • It particularly prefers species of the genus Linckia.