Ancylomenes luteomaculatus
Translucent, glass-like shrimp on anemones in Maluku, Indonesia. Warm reefs 25-31C, an uncommon but rewarding macro find year-round.
Small, glassy, near-transparent shrimp with scattered yellow spots and faint white markings along a slender, curved body. It perches openly on the tentacles of its host anemone rather than hiding in the folds, with long thin walking legs and antennae that are often the first thing a diver's torch beam picks out. Body length stays modest, so most divers spot it only once they know to look closely at anemones rather than scanning wide.
Found riding on the tentacles of a host anemone, usually motionless or making small sideways steps as it works the surface for scraps and parasites. It tends to stay put when a torch or camera comes close, relying on the anemone's stinging tentacles for cover rather than fleeing, which makes it a patient macro subject once located. Divers typically find it during slow, close-focus passes over anemone fields rather than on open reef swims.
Like many anemone shrimp, it likely functions as a cleaner, picking parasites and debris off its host and occasionally off fish that pause nearby, though it isn't as reliably interactive with divers as dedicated cleaner shrimp species.
Sightings show no detectable seasonal pattern, and warm water in the 25.3 to 31.3C range sits comfortably within Maluku's year-round conditions, so there's no particular month to chase for this one.
Reef neighbours a diver could mistake it for. Use the identification notes above to tell them apart.
Every logged sighting in the data comes from Indonesia, with Maluku standing out as the region's stronghold for this species. If you're planning a macro-focused trip through the Coral Triangle, Maluku's anemone-rich reefs are the place to build in dedicated search time for it.
Mapping where Yellow-spotted Anemone Shrimp is logged…
Recorded sightings are concentrated in Indonesia, particularly Maluku, where it turns up on anemones across multiple dive sites. It's a species worth searching for specifically on Coral Triangle macro dives rather than something you'll stumble on everywhere.
There's no detected season for this species, and it's found in warm water year-round, so any time you're diving Maluku is fair game for a search.
Look for a small, near-transparent shrimp with scattered yellow spots sitting openly on an anemone's tentacles. Its glassy body and thin legs make it easy to overlook unless you're scanning anemones closely with a torch.
Exact size data isn't confirmed, but like most anemone shrimp in this family it stays small, typically only a centimetre or two long, making close-focus macro gear useful for a good look.
No, it poses no danger to divers. It's a tiny, non-aggressive shrimp that relies on its anemone host for protection rather than any defence of its own.
Site and sighting data is aggregated from diver logs, iNaturalist and GBIF. For taxonomy and conservation status:
Freshwater Shrimp
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