Crustaceans
Peacock mantis shrimp
Odontodactylus scyllarus
Low danger🌊 0–40 m📏 up to 18 cmIUCN status: Not evaluated
A reef crustacean able to strike with such speed and force that it can crack an aquarium's glass — one of the fastest movements in the animal kingdom.
🗺️ Geographic range
Coral reefs and sandy seafloors of the Indo-Pacific, from East Africa to Polynesia.
📊 Population
No global population estimate available; common on Indo-Pacific reefs, not evaluated by the IUCN.
Habitat
- Pacific Ocean · Coral reef · Epipelagic zone · Permanent
Behaviour
- Diet
- Smashes open the shells of crabs, molluscs and snails using its raptorial appendage.
- Hunting
- Ambushes near its burrow, striking within milliseconds.
- Reproduction
- Some species form stable pairs sharing the same burrow for years.
Physiology
- Anatomy
- A club-shaped raptorial appendage that works like an elastic-energy spring.
- Adaptations
- The strike releases so much energy it creates a cavitation bubble that produces a flash of light and a loud pop (sonoluminescence).
🔗 Web of marine life
Competitors
⚡ Its extraordinary abilities
- One of the fastest, most powerful strikes in the animal kingdom (acceleration comparable to a bullet)
- Unique vision able to perceive polarised light and ultraviolet
🏆 Records
The fastest strike known in a crustacean
Acceleration comparable to a .22 calibre bullet, measured in the laboratory.
Source: French National Museum of Natural History
If you cross paths with this animal…
Risk: Low for a careful diver, but its strike can cut skin or crack glass.
Behaviour: Does not target humans unless handled directly or cornered.
Advice: Never try to catch one bare-handed.
💡 Did you know?
- Nicknamed the "thumb splitter" by divers and aquarists.
- Its strike is so fast the surrounding water briefly vaporises, producing a flash of light.