🦐 Banded Coral Shrimp (Stenopus hispidus)
Bold Alternating Red-and-White Bands With an Iconic Boxer Stance • A True Cleaner Shrimp Visited by Even Large, Potentially Dangerous Fish • Reef Safe When Consistently Well-Fed
 
📋 The Banded Coral Shrimp, also known as the Boxer Shrimp or Barber Pole Shrimp, is one of the most instantly recognisable invertebrates in the marine hobby, sporting bold alternating red-and-white bands across its body and long, oversized front claws held out in a distinctive "boxer" stance.
It comes from an unusually wide natural range spanning the Indo-Pacific and Western Atlantic, including the Caribbean, a true cleaner shrimp in the wild, setting up cleaning stations that even large, potentially dangerous fish visit without incident, a striking example of natural reef symbiosis. Every Banded Coral Shrimp we ship is feeding well.
Naturally nocturnal and cave-dwelling, this species spends most of the day hidden in rock crevices, becoming more visible at dusk and during feeding. It won't typically consume coral outright, but it's known to walk across coral and anemone surfaces while foraging and may steal food directly from corals, and a hungry, underfed specimen is more likely to cause problems, so keeping it well-fed significantly reduces this risk. It's also strongly intolerant of other Banded Coral Shrimp and most other shrimp species, and is best kept singly or as an established mated pair. It reaches around 7.5cm body (up to 15cm including antennae), so a 115L tank suits it well.
 
💡 Highlights
🔴⚪ Bold Red and White Banding: Striking, unmistakable striped pattern
🦐 A True Cleaner: Sets up cleaning stations that fish will return to
🌙 Nocturnal Behaviour: Most active at dusk and after lights-out
⚠️ Reef Safe When Well-Fed: Won't eat coral, but may forage across it or steal food if underfed
🥊 Distinctive "Boxer" Posture: Oversized front claws held out defensively