Panulirus guttatus, the spotted spiny lobster or Guinea chick lobster, is a species of spiny lobster that lives on shallow rocky reefs in the tropical West Atlantic and Caribbean Sea.

Description Panulirus guttatus has a pair of compound eyes on flexible stalks, long thick spiny antennae, six pairs of small appendages around the mouth and five pairs of walking legs which are not tipped by large claws. The antennular plate bears two large, widely separated spines. The maximum length of this spiny lobster is about 20 cm (8 in) but a more normal length is 15 cm (6 in). The body color is purplish-black, heavily marked with conspicuous round white spots. The main leg segments are dark and spotted with white, but the penultimate leg segments have dark, longitudinal stripes on a pale background.

Distribution and habitat Panulirus guttatus is native to the tropical western Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea but it also extends into the Gulf of Mexico. Its range extends from Bermuda, the Bahamas, southern Florida and the West Indies, to Curaçao, Bonaire, Los Roques and Suriname. It is found on rocky reefs in shallow water, at depths down to about 23 metres (75 ft), often hiding in crevices or under large coral heads. During the daylight hours they are in the coral reefs and while at nighttime the animals move away from the protective sites to feed on food along the ocean floor.