Mantis Shrimp

Scientific Classification

KINGDOM: Animalia

CLADE: Euarthropoda

SUBPHYLUM: Crustacea

CLASS: Malacostraca

SUBCLASS: Hoplocarida

ORDER: Stomatopoda

Conservation Status

Vividly colored Peacock Mantis Shrimp on a black sandy seabed

Mantis shrimps can reach up from 4-15 inches depending on the species.

With over 450 subspeces of mantis shrimps around the world, their coloring can differ from shades of brown to vivid rainbow colors.

Mantis shrimps have the most complex eyes of all critters. Each eye of mantis shrimps contains 12 photoreceptors that allow them to see colors that humans don’t even have names for. To put this in perspective, human eyes typically contain only three types of photoreceptors for seeing green, red, and blue.

The mantis shrimp uses its amazing eyesight to detect prey and predators. They have something called trinocular vision, which allows them to see one object using three parts of the eye. The mantis shrimp takes in all visual information at once without processing it allowing them to react to their environment as quickly as possible.

Mantis shrimps can usually be found in tropical and subtropical waters in the Pacific and Indian Oceans.

All mantis shrimp species fall into the offense categories of either a spearer or smasher. Spearer mantis shrimps have a spiny attachment that kills soft-bodied prey like fish. The smashers, however, are quite extraordinary. Their strike is 50 times faster than the blink of an eye, accelerating faster than a .22-caliber bullet. Even if the smashing mantis shrimp misses its hard-bodied target, it still does some major damage by boiling the water around prey.

Some species of mantis shrimps are monogamous; an odd behavior in crustaceans. After mantis shrimps mate and their eggs are fertilized, females will lay two sets of eggs, one for her and one for the father to care for until they hatch. Depending on the species, the females will either lay their eggs in burrows or carry them in their forelimbs until they hatch! After hatching, the larvae can take days to months to mature into adults.