At a glance the quick version
Looks how to spot one
Exoskeleton with one oversized snapping claw
A sturdy shrimp with a yellow to yellowish-white body marked with symmetrical tiger-like patches in light brown, purple-brown or orange-brown. The legs are banded and the antennae red. Its right claw is much larger than the left and is used to make a loud snap.1
Personality what they are like
Peaceful but busy. It keeps to its burrow and relies on a goby partner to warn it of danger.1
Daily activity how busy a day looks
Highly active digger that spends much of the day shifting sand and gravel to maintain its tunnels.1
Grooming and care the hands-on bits
Needs a sandy bottom it can rearrange freely and is best paired with a compatible goby. Expect some rearranging of loose sand and rubble.1
Home where they are happiest
A marine aquarium with a deep sand bed mixed with shell and rubble for building burrows. Wild animals live on sandy or muddy bottoms in shallow water down to about 20 m. Exact water parameters and minimum tank size were not given by the sources found.1
Food basics what goes in the bowl
Omnivorous scavenger that eats small invertebrates, detritus, algae and carcasses. In aquariums it accepts flakes, pellets and frozen mysis or brine shrimp.1
Company who they like around
Classic partner of burrowing gobies such as the yellow watchman goby (Cryptocentrus cinctus): the shrimp digs and keeps the den, while the goby stands guard.1
The story where it all began
The tiger pistol shrimp was described by Miya and Miyake in 1969. Its partnership with watchman gobies has made the pair a well-loved display in reef aquariums.21
Fun facts for the dinner table
- 1
Snapping its big claw shoots out a bubble faster than 100 km/h, which collapses with a crack that can reach about 218 decibels.1
- 2
The collapsing bubble briefly heats up to around 4,800 °C.1
- 3
It shares its burrow with a goby that acts as a lookout, and sometimes also with a porcelain crab.1
- 4
It reinforces its tunnels with bits of shell and coral.1
Recognised by the official bits
- Taxonomy (via SeaLifeBase)
- Described by Miya & Miyake in 1969; family Alpheidae (snapping shrimps).2
- SeaLifeBase
- Not evaluated by the IUCN and not listed under CITES or CMS.2
The care rhythm Furry Diary remembers it for you
A typical home-care rhythm for a Tiger Pistol Shrimp. It is our own starting plan, not a vet's advice, and you can change every line in the app.
- FeedingDepends on species, many feed from the light and the watervaries
- Salinity checkevery week
- Water testevery week
- Top-upTop up evaporation with fresh RO water, not salt waterevery day
- Water changeAbout 10 to 20% of the waterevery 2 weeks
- Light checkevery month
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Where this comes from
Every breed page shows where each fact comes from. If we got something wrong, sorry, we are pet people, not a science magazine. Tell us at [email protected] and we will fix it.
- Alpheus bellulus (Wikipedia) en.wikipedia.orgused for names, range, size, appearance, habitat, goby symbiosis, snapping claw, diet, fun facts
- Alpheus bellulus, SeaLifeBase sealifebase.seused for author and year, max length, distribution, conservation status
Checked 2026-09-30. Text is written in our own words from these sources.