Get To Know A Mantis Shrimp With Super Powered Blow That Can Split Your Thumb

The researchers are eyeing a mantis shrimp that has powerful appendages that can split your thumb with its blow. It can also crack a pane of stock aquarium glass.

The fishermen call these crustaceans "thumb-splitters." Probably, because at least one man has had a finger surgically removed when a mantis shrimp hit.

The mantis shrimp or also known as stomatopod is a marine crustacean that grows to around 10 centimeters (3.9 in) in length. Some of the species can grow up to 18 cm (15 in). There was this largest shrimp that was caught in the Indian River that was 46 cm (18 in) in size. The species of mantis shrimp numbered to more than 450 with varieties of colors from brown to vivid colors.

How the mantis shrimp checks itself before it wrecks itself.https://t.co/llIl64PvpS pic.twitter.com/iHFODTKwqr

— The Mary Sue (@TheMarySue) June 1, 2016

The marine biologists divide the mantis shrimp into two categories, namely the "spearers" and the "smashers." The smashers use their fist-like appendages to crack the shells of their food. On the other hand, the spearers pierce with a strike of a pointed claw. The researchers are studying the smashers' dactyl clubs that can break out any object even the hard ones.

A mantis shrimp can make a blow with the acceleration of a .22-caliber bullet. It is about 50 times faster than a human eye can blink. The low-pressure bubble left at the time of blow collapses upon itself in a gust of light and heat is estimated to be about 8,500 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Washington Post.

The researchers are intrigued on how the mantis shrimp can deliver such a powerful blow and not destroy its club. A study was conducted by David Kisalius, a materials scientist at the University of California, Riverside. The findings showed that the dactyl club of the mantis shrimp is the most electron-dense region of the stomatopod exoskeleton. This is about up to five times as thick as its adjacent appendages. Its dactyl club has a rare herringbone structure within the outer layer, which allows the fist to withstand the force of a strike. It is also the key for the shrimp to smash the prey with such force.