Here's a closer look at the little shrimps with a red bar between the eyes. It is commonly seen on many of Singapore's shores.
Like miniature blown-glass ornaments, these tiny transparent shrimps are sometimes seen in large numbers. Often, all that is at first visible are their little beady eyes.
They are regularly seen on other animals in the reef. These ones were well spaced out around the outer edge of this little hard coral.
There were countless little shrimps tucked in the nooks and crannies of this branching hard coral. I saw them only because my torchlight was reflected in their beady little eyes.
They are also found in large numbers on seaweeds, such as this brown Mermaid's fan (Padina sp.)
Here's a closer look at them.
Wow, there's sure a LOT of them when you take a closer look. This is why it's important not to step on seaweeds!
They are also found in dense groups in shallow sandy pools left behind at low tide.
If you take a closer look, you can see the pretty patterns on some of them.
Some have longer pincers, and some have red noses while others don't.
They are quite easy to photograph as they don't panic and run away. Especially if you walk gently and see them at night.
These little shrimps are probably Periclimenes sp, Family Palaemonidae which includes many more famous commensal shrimps. Inferring from the photos on Lim et. al. in Rhythm of the Sea: The Life and Times of Labrador Beach: the males are long and slim, transparent with long pincers. While the females are fatter with more opaque markings. And from what we've seen, these fat ones are the ones with the red bar between the eyes.
There's also photo of a Glass shrimp of the Family Palaemonidae on Tan, Leo W. H. & Ng, Peter K. L. A Guide to Seashore Life.
I can't seem to find photos of this abundant (but probably too boring) shrimp in the other guidebooks that I have.
There's certainly a lot to discover on Singapore's shores. And it's important to watch your step when you walk on the shore.
References
Lim, S., P. Ng, L. Tan, & W. Y. Chin, 1994. Rhythm of the Sea: The Life and Times of Labrador Beach. Division of Biology, School of Science, Nanyang Technological University & Department of Zoology, the National University of Singapore. 160 pp.
Tan, Leo W. H. & Ng, Peter K. L., 1988. A Guide to Seashore Life. The Singapore Science Centre, Singapore. 160 pp.
