Two new species of snapping shrimps from the Indo-Pacific, with remarks on colour patterns and sibling species in Alpheidae (Crustacea : Caridea)

Alpheus tricolor, and Alpheus fasqueli, two morphologically very close, but differently coloured species of snapping shrimps are described and illustrated. Descriptions are based on specimens imported from Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Both new species belong to the A. edwardsii group, and can be distinguished from all other species of Alpheus by several features of the first and second chelipeds, frontal region, third maxilliped, and most readily by their conspicuous colour patterns. These attractive shrimps are regularly imported from Indonesia and Sri Lanka to Europe and Singapore, sometimes under the name "Alpheus strenuus".