Synalpheus herricki Coutière, 1909
Synalpheus herricki is a Caribbean snapping shrimp in the Gambarelloides species group within the genus Synalpheus, and has been reported from the Gulf of Mexico, Florida, and Belize.
Synalpheus herricki is a member of the Gambarelloides species group within the genus Synalpheus. Named after Dr. Francis H. Herrick Type locality: Anclote, Florida (Coutiere, 1909), types stored at the National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution (USNM). Holotype: USNM 38404, allotype: none.
Synalpheus herricki lives primarily in the interior canals of sponges (phylum Porifera) in and around coral reefs.
Associate of sponges (phylum Porifera), primarily the sponge species Hymeniacidon amphilecta, Hyattella intestinalis, and Aiolochroia (Pseudoceratina) crassa (Rios and Duffy 2007, Macdonald et al. 2006, Hultgren et al. in press).
Like most species in the Alpheidae family, Synalpheus herricki are typically found in equal sex ratios, living in heterosexual pairs or in groups with equal sex ratios; Coutiere (1909) reported "mysis" larvae.
Like most members of the Gambarelloides species group, Synalpheus herricki has a streamlined body adapted to living in sponge canals and a thick brush of setae on the minor chela (claw). Maximum body size (carapace length, or CL) of males is 5.3 mm; females, 5.7 mm (Rios and Duffy 2007). Color: Body translucent to whitish, with brown-tinged distal tips of major chela, ovaries and embryos pale green to drab olive (Belize); embryos green to brick red (Rios and Duffy 2007, Hultgren et al. in press).
Zuzalpheus herricki (Rios and Duffy 2007).
Synalpheus herricki is a member of the Gambarelloides species group within the genus Synalpheus. Monophyletic in the Western Atlantic (Morrison et al. 2004), this species group has been a model system for examining the evolution of social behavior (Duffy and Macdonald 2010).
Sequenced in Morrison et al. 2004 (as herrBE01); sequences available in GenBank for 16S mtDNA (AY344754 ) and COI mtDNA (AY344699).
Western Atlantic: Florida, Gulf of Mexico (Coutiere 1909, Dardeau 1984); Belize (Rios and Duffy 2007); Curacao (Hultgren et al. in press).