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Anton Bruun's cleaner shrimp

Urocaridella antonbruunii

A graceful, transparent hovering cleaner shrimp from the Indo-Pacific, celebrated for engaging in fascinating cleaning symbiosis with local reef fish.

Taxonomy

Class:Malacostraca

Order:Decapoda

Family:Palaemonidae

Subfamily:Palaemoninae

Genus:Urocaridella

Species:Urocaridella antonbruunii

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Water Temperature

24 - 27 °C

pH Value

8 - 8.4

Water type

Marine

Invertebrate type

Marine shrimp

Adult size

4 cm

Minimum group

>= 2

8 - 12 dKH

Ecological role

Cleaner

Species description

Geographical Origin and Habitat:

This species is widely distributed across the tropical Indo-Pacific. It is commonly found along the coasts of East Africa, the Red Sea, the Seychelles, Indonesia, the Philippines, up to Hawaii and the Great Barrier Reef in Australia. It primarily inhabits marine caves, rocky crevices, and shaded reef walls at depths between 2 and 40 meters.

Taxonomy:

Belonging to the family Palaemonidae, Urocaridella antonbruunii is a small species of cleaner shrimp. It features a slender, highly transparent body with a long, upward-curved rostrum lined with small teeth. Its legs are extremely thin and delicate, adapted for picking parasites. It reaches an adult size of about 3-4 centimeters.

Social Behavior:

It is a social and gregarious species that lives in small groups within established cleaning stations. It exhibits a unique hovering behavior, swaying side to side to attract passing fish. When a fish approaches and signals readiness, the shrimp climbs onto its body to pick off parasites and dead skin.

Coloration and Sexual Dimorphism:

The body is almost entirely glass-like and transparent, marked with small red and yellow dots forming thin lines, and white patches on the leg joints. This transparency provides camouflage from predators while remaining recognizable to host fish. Mature females are slightly larger than males and carry eggs under their abdomen.

Care, breeding and tankmates

Tank Setup:

Requires a mature marine aquarium of at least 80 liters. The setup must feature shaded areas, caves, and rocky overhangs where the shrimp can establish its cleaning station. It is important that the water flow in these areas is moderate rather than turbulent, allowing the shrimp to hover and display naturally.

Diet and Feeding:

In addition to feeding on fish parasites, it must be offered fine frozen foods in the aquarium, such as copepods, baby brine shrimp, chopped mysis, and lobster eggs. It will also scavenge for high-quality micro-pellets that reach the bottom. Feed once daily, ensuring food reaches its shaded retreat.

Water Quality:

Requires stable, high-quality marine water: temperature between 24°C and 26°C, pH range from 8.1 to 8.4, specific gravity from 1.020 to 1.025, and KH between 8 and 12 dKH. It is highly sensitive to copper treatments (which are fatal) and requires proper iodine levels in the water to support successful molting.

Compatibility and Tankmates:

Completely reef safe and harmless to corals. It coexists peacefully with most reef fish, which actively seek out its cleaning services. However, due to its small size and fragile structure, it must never be housed with predatory fish like groupers, hawkfish, lionfish, or large wrasses that will eat it.

Aquarium Breeding:

Breeding in captivity is exceptionally difficult. Although females carry fertilized eggs under their tails until they hatch, the released larvae enter a highly delicate planktonic stage. They require microscopic live foods and are easily swept away and destroyed by standard aquarium filtration systems.

Risks and Diseases:

The main risk is associated with the molting process. If iodine, calcium, or magnesium levels are depleted, the shrimp can fail to shed its old exoskeleton and die. Sudden changes in salinity or temperature can also cause fatal osmotic shock. Slow acclimation using the drip method is mandatory.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Origin

Tropical oceans and reefsAfrica and MadagascarSouth and Southeast AsiaEast AsiaAustralia, New Guinea, and Oceania

Invertebrate profile

Diet: Omnivore
Ecological role: Cleaner
Shock sensitivity: High
Calcium and minerals: Medium
Molting: Yes
Reproduction: Oviparous
Compatibility & tankmates: Peaceful

Image gallery

Licensed images linked to the species or, when marked, to the closest representative taxon.

Related species

Recommendations grouped by close relatives, companion choices, and similar care.

Variants and close relatives

Same atlas type, nearby scientific identity, genus, or family.

Bumblebee Shrimp

Gnathophyllum americanum

Species description

Care, breeding and tankmates

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Origin

Invertebrate profile

Image gallery

Related species

Variants and close relatives

Bumblebee Shrimp

Emperor shrimp

Holthuis's Anemone Shrimp

Magnificent Anemone Shrimp

Sarasvati Anemone Shrimp

Starfish Shrimp

Urchin Shrimp

Sargassum Shrimp

Feeble shrimp

Pederson's cleaner shrimp

Spotted cleaner shrimp

Harlequin shrimp

Peacock anemone shrimp

Chocolate / Red rusty shrimp

Lake Inle shrimp

Daggerblade Grass Shrimp

Recommended companions

Blue Chromis

Grape caulerpa

Caulerpa prolifera

Caulerpa taxifolia

Chaetomorpha macroalgae

Dead man fingers algae

Halimeda macroalgae

Red gracilaria

Allen's blenny

Ambon Chromis

Axelrod's blenny

Black combtooth blenny

Bundoon blenny

Yelloweye Combtooth Blenny

Striped fangblenny

Peacock tail algae

Similar care

Grabham's cleaner shrimp

Kuekenthal's cleaner shrimp

Slender-billed cleaner shrimp

Bahia Cleaner Shrimp

Anker's Cleaner Shrimp

Lipke's Cleaner Shrimp

Armed Snapping Shrimp

Bouvier's snapping shrimp

Anchisteus Cleaner Shrimp

Peppermint Shrimp var. multiscissa

Fine-striped Pistol Shrimp

Marble Shrimp

Saron Shrimp

Sharp-carinated Snapping Shrimp

Edwards' Snapping Shrimp

Lysmata prima shrimp