Speaking of Mantis Shrimp: are they really shrimp? Technically no. They belong to a different order called Stomatopods. But everyone calls them “shrimp.” And they deserve the hype. They have the fastest punch in the animal kingdom.
A Mantis Shrimp can strike with the speed of a .22 caliber bullet. That’s 50 miles per hour in a fraction of a second. It can break aquarium glass. It can crack a crab’s shell like a potato chip. Your local boxing gym called—they’re jealous.
And their eyes? Four times as complex as human eyes. They see polarized light. They see ten times more colors than you. To a Mantis Shrimp, your dinner plate looks like a psychedelic disco. That’s an animal you want on your team.
So, Are They Pets or Pests?
Millions of people keep shrimp as pets. The tiny “cherry shrimp” clean tanks and look like living candy. They are adorable. They wiggle their little legs. They’re basically aquatic kittens.
But in the wild? They are fierce cleaners. Some shrimp are “cleaner shrimp.” They set up cleaning stations on coral reefs. Fish swim up, and the shrimp eat parasites off their gills and mouths. It’s a spa, and the shrimp are the therapists.
Other shrimp are opportunists. They’ll eat dead fish, algae, and plankton. They’re the ocean’s garbage trucks. Not glamorous, but essential.
Mantis Shrimp
