Odontodactylus scyllarus

Odontodactylus scyllarus, commonly known as the peacock mantis shrimp, harlequin mantis shrimp, painted mantis shrimp, clown mantis shrimp or rainbow mantis shrimp, is a large stomatopod native to the epipelagic seabed across the Indo-Pacific, ranging from Guam to East Africa.[1]

Odontodactylus scyllarus
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Subphylum: Crustacea
Class: Malacostraca
Order: Stomatopoda
Family: Odontodactylidae
Genus: Odontodactylus
Species:
O. scyllarus
Binomial name
Odontodactylus scyllarus

In the marine aquarium trade, it is both prized for its attractiveness and considered by others to be a dangerous pest.

Description

O. scyllarus is one of the larger, more colourful mantis shrimps commonly seen, ranging in size from 3 to 18 cm (1.2 to 7.1 in).[1] They are primarily green with orange legs and leopard-like spots on the anterior carapace.[1]

Their ability to see circularly polarised light has led to studies to determine if the mechanisms by which their eyes operate can be replicated for use in reading CDs and similar optical storage devices.[2][3]

Ecology

Odontodactylus scyllarus is a burrower, constructing U-shaped holes in the loose substrate near the bases of coral reefs in water ranging from 3 to 40 metres (9.8 to 131.2 ft) deep.[1]

O. scyllarus is a smasher, with club-shaped raptorial appendages.[1] An agile and active predator, it prefers gastropods, crustaceans and bivalves,[1] and will repeatedly deliver blunt force to the exoskeleton of its prey until it can gain access to the underlying soft tissue for consumption. It is reported to have a "punch" of over 50 miles per hour (80 km/h), the fastest recorded punch of any living animal. The acceleration is similar to that in a .22 LR bullet fired from a handgun (accelerations of over 100,000 m/s2 or 330,000 ft/s2, and speeds of over 20 m/s or 66 ft/s), with each strike packing 1,500 N (340 lbf) of force.[4] In addition, the surface of its hammer-claw is made up of extremely dense hydroxyapatite, laminated in a manner which is highly resistant to fracturing, and can break ordinary glass tanks. Its composition is being investigated for potential bionic use in material engineering.[5][6]

Aquaria

Some saltwater aquarists keep peacock mantis shrimp in captivity.[7] The peacock mantis is especially colourful and desired in the trade.

While some aquarists value peacock shrimp, others consider them harmful pests because they are voracious predators that will eat other desirable inhabitants in the tank. Some of the largest specimens can break aquarium glass by striking it, and can do further damage by burrowing in live rock. Live rock with mantis shrimp burrows is considered useful by some in the marine aquarium trade and is often collected. It is not uncommon for a piece of live rock to convey a live mantis shrimp in an aquarium. Once inside the tank, they may feed on fish, shrimps and other inhabitants. They are notoriously difficult to re-catch once established in a well-stocked tank,[8] and there are accounts of them breaking glass tanks and damaging coral, when they wish to make a home within it.[9]

References
  1. Roy Caldwell. "Species: Odontodactylus scyllarus". Roy's List of Stomatopods for the Aquarium. Retrieved July 18, 2006.
  2. John Roach (June 27, 2011). "Shrimp eyes inspire optical tech". MSNBC. Archived from the original on June 30, 2011. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
  3. Yi-Jun Jen; Akhlesh Lakhtakia; Ching-Wei Yu; Chia-Feng Lin; Meng-Jie Lin; Shih-Hao Wang; Jyun-Rong Lai (2011). "Biologically inspired achromatic waveplates for visible light". Nature Communications. 2: 363. Bibcode:2011NatCo...2..363J. doi:10.1038/ncomms1358. PMID 21694711.
  4. Patek, S. N.; Caldwell, R. L. (October 2005). "Extreme impact and cavitation forces of a biological hammer: strike forces of the peacock mantis shrimp Odontodactylus scyllarus" (PDF). Journal of Experimental Biology. 208 (Pt 19): 3655–64. doi:10.1242/jeb.01831. PMID 16169943. S2CID 312009.
  5. Sarah Everts (2012). "How a peacock shrimp packs a punch: layered structure is behind animal's resilient club". Chemical & Engineering News. 90 (24): 6. Archived from the original on 2012-06-11.
  6. James C. Weaver; Garrett W. Milliron; Ali Miserez; Kenneth Evans-Lutterodt; Steven Herrera; Isaias Gallana; William J. Mershon; Brook Swanson; Pablo Zavattieri; Elaine DiMasi; David Kisailus (2012). "The stomatopod dactyl club: a formidable damage-tolerant biological hammer". Science. 336 (6086): 1275–1280. Bibcode:2012Sci...336.1275W. doi:10.1126/science.1218764. PMID 22679090. S2CID 8509385.
  7. Fatheree, James (2008). "A Load of Learnin' About Mantis Shrimps". Reefkeeping.
  8. Nick Dakin (2004). The Marine Aquarium. London: Andromeda. ISBN 978-1-902389-67-7.
  9. April Holladay (September 1, 2006). "Shrimp spring into shattering action". USA Today.
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