Marine Life
Harlequin Shrimp: The Jewel That Hunts Starfish
Some reef creatures hide. The harlequin shrimp just looks like it does, because surely nothing that extravagant could survive out in the open.
Picture a creature the size of a matchbox, cream-white, splashed with bold petal-shaped spots of blue, purple and rose, with flattened claws held up like oversized paddles. It looks less like an animal and more like a piece of jewellery that wandered off a shelf. And it’s one of the most sought-after finds on any Bohol dive.
Meet the harlequin shrimp, the reef’s beautiful little assassin.
A face only a macro diver could love (and we do)
Harlequin shrimp are small, usually two to five centimetres, and they spend their lives tucked into crevices and under ledges on rubble and reef. Those big flat claws aren’t for fighting. They’re sensory paddles, covered in receptors the shrimp uses to taste and feel its way around. The wild colour scheme, as with so many reef creatures, is a billboard that says “I’m not worth eating.”
The starfish hunters
Here’s the part that turns a pretty shrimp into a legend. Harlequin shrimp eat one thing and one thing only: starfish. Live ones. A pair will track a sea star by scent, then work together to flip the much larger animal onto its back so it can’t escape, and begin to eat it alive, starting at the soft tube feet. A single big starfish can feed a pair for days.
The genuinely grim, genuinely fascinating bit is that the shrimp often keep the starfish alive as long as possible, feeding on it slowly to keep the meal fresh. There’s a conservation angle too: harlequin shrimp will happily eat crown-of-thorns starfish, the coral-devouring pest that plagues reefs across the region. A healthy population of these shrimp is a tiny, gorgeous part of the reef’s own defence system.
Beautiful and ruthless, all in one little package.
Devoted to a fault
Harlequin shrimp are usually found in pairs, and those pairs tend to stick together for the long haul, defending a territory and hunting as a team.
Why they’re a trophy find in Bohol
You won’t see harlequin shrimp on every dive. They’re not rare exactly, but they’re cryptic, and finding one comes down to a guide who knows the reef intimately and knows where a resident pair has set up home. The rubble slopes around Panglao hold them, and it’s the same local knowledge that turns up frogfish, pygmy seahorses and the other small wonders Bohol is famous for. If macro is your thing, our guide to choosing wide-angle or macro for Bohol will help you do one justice.
Look, don’t touch
As with every treasure on the reef, the rule is eyes only. Don’t move a harlequin shrimp for a better shot, don’t relocate its starfish, and never handle it. It’s the same respect we talk about in our guide to Bohol’s beautiful animals you should never handle.
Come Meet the Reef’s Little Assassin
Want a shot at one of the reef’s most dazzling hunters? Come diving with us and put our guides’ local knowledge to work. We know where to look.
Dive Bohol With Us
