The blind shrimp and the macaroni goby

      Gobies belong to one of the most speciose fish families consisting of around 2000 members. Most of the gobies are rather small and have very little direct defence against predators. Thus, most gobies in reef areas live in close association with animals such as wire corals, branching Read more

By Bent, ago

Commensal Bryaninops gobies

For some reason certain animals are on the “cool” list that everyone wants to see and photograph and others are placed on the “not so cool” list and get ignored by most divers and photographers. Scarcity and cuteness seems to be two important factors determining the popularity of an animal. Read more

By NAD Lembeh, ago

Symbiosis and commensalism

On my day job part of my time is used to teach ecology for undergraduates in biology. Maybe not such a surprise, many of the best examples of interactions between species that I use in my teaching come from marine ecosystems. This is especially true when dealing with symbiosis theory. Read more

By NAD Lembeh, ago

Creature Feature: Emperor Shrimp

The Emperor Shrimp (Periclimenes imperator) is a commensal shrimp and a member of the Palaemonidae. Sounds strange, but looks really beautiful: Characteristic is its attractive red, white and purple colouration and its commensalism. The Emperor Shrimp can be found on several species of Sea Cucumbers and Nudibranchs (for example Risbecia Read more

By NAD Lembeh, ago