Huge claw paralyses prey

A newly-discovered shrimp kills its prey with one single snap of its huge, pink claw.

Ahuge pink claw has caused a new species of pistol shrimp to be named after the Pink Floyd rock band, but the small animal can actually be much louder. The 5.5- cm-long shrimp uses its claw to produce a bubble, which quickly explodes with a very loud bang, causing a shock wave that paralyses the shrimp’s prey such as small fish and crabs. Subsequently, the shrimp can easily capture and eat the paralysed creatures. The bubble is produced in a claw cavity, in which the pressure could reach 80 kPa, whereas the lethal sound might reach 210 decibels – louder than the noise from a rocket launch. If more pistol shrimps hunt in the same area, the sound level can be so extreme that the sound waves interrupt underwater communication gear for ocean floor exploration, etc.

The Pink Floyd shrimp, which was discovered in 2017, lives on the ocean floor in dead corals and rocky landscapes off Panama’s Pacific coast. The habitat includes lots of hiding places, where the shrimp can wait for unsuspecting prey to swim by.