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Shrimps generally belong to the family of decapod crustaceans because of their slender elongated bodies and loco-motor appendages attached to their narrow thorax.
As a marine species a shrimp has 5 pairs of fragile legs known as 'swimmerets or pleopods' which it uses to swim and perch.
Shrimps have extended antennae compared to their stubby, cylindrical abdomen.
There are more than 1,000 different species and broadly speaking they exist in abundance.
They feed around the sediment of the seafloor often living solitary for up to 7 years.
Their role in the food chain is immense. Shrimp meat is of great value as a food source for human consumption and other large animals.
There are three cleaner shrimp families and they all diet on parasites that live in, or on, fish and other organisms.
The camel shrimp species (hinge beak) with an angled beak is known by many different names such as the Candy Shrimp, Dancing Shrimp, and also commonly the Camel Shrimp.
One of the lesser known mantis shrimp facts is that they are marine crustaceans and members of Stomatopods. They are commonly found in the Indian and Pacific Oceans.
The squat anemone shrimp (Thor amboinensis) is one of the most photogenic of invertebrates found living in shallow reef ecosystems.
This section explains more about the symbiotic relationship that it has with sea anemones (Actiniaria), and why its captivating behaviour has earned it the curious nickname of 'sexy shrimp'.