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The rectum is the home! This is a Pentagonal Urchin Shrimp - Echinoecus pentagonus, very difficult to find and even more difficult to take proper picture of, for several reasons :<br />
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1. It lives inside the rectum of the Sea Urchin, thus you have to flip the Sea Urchin to find them.  They are rarely seen outside.<br />
<br />
2. As its host is a Sea Urchin and will keep moving if you flips them, you have to be careful not to get your hand/fingers stung by the Sea Urchins.<br />
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According to Wikipedia, this Crab is a parasite. Echinoecus pentagonus,Geotagged,Pentagonal Urchin Shrimp,Philippines,Shrimp,Spring,Urchin Shrimp,malapascua Click/tap to enlarge Species introCountry intro

The rectum is the home!

This is a Pentagonal Urchin Shrimp - Echinoecus pentagonus, very difficult to find and even more difficult to take proper picture of, for several reasons :

1. It lives inside the rectum of the Sea Urchin, thus you have to flip the Sea Urchin to find them. They are rarely seen outside.

2. As its host is a Sea Urchin and will keep moving if you flips them, you have to be careful not to get your hand/fingers stung by the Sea Urchins.

According to Wikipedia, this Crab is a parasite.

    comments (2)

  1. Haha, I recently overheard that in a documentary: one of the main challenges for marine life is to prevent others from living in your ass. Posted 8 years ago
    1. Yes, its a nightmare indeed! Ha ha! Posted 8 years ago

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The "sea urchin crab" ''Echinoecus pentagonus'' is a species of crab in the family Pilumnidae found from the Red Sea and East Africa to French Polynesia and the Hawaiian Islands. This crab is a parasite that lives in the rectum of a sea urchin. In Hawaii, it chooses only ''Echinothrix calamaris'', leaving few of these urchins unpopulated. Its curved and pointed carapace reaches only 0.5 inches in width.

Taxonomic synonyms of ''E. pentagonus'' include:
*''Echinoecus klunzingeri''.. more

Similar species: Decapods
Species identified by Albert Kang
View Albert Kang's profile

By Albert Kang

All rights reserved
Uploaded Dec 6, 2016. Captured Apr 7, 2016 10:27 in Unnamed Road, Daanbantayan, Cebu, Philippines.
  • DSC-RX100
  • f/8.0
  • 1/250s
  • ISO200
  • 37.1mm