Gallery: Absurd Creature of the Week: Ferocious, Fearless Mantis Shrimp Is the Honey Badger of the Sea

  • Image may contain Animal Fish and Sea Life
    01

    L-sulcata-male-strike-Sept-5-2013-med

    This is what marine biologists call "a major bummer." *Image: Roy Caldwell*
  • Image may contain Water Animal Seafood Food Sea Life Lobster Ocean Outdoors Nature Sea Invertebrate and Aquatic
    02

    Os-female-striking-snail-b-med

    *Odontodactylus scyllarus*, known as the peacock mantis shrimp, smashing through a snail's shell. Mantis shrimp can strike so quickly that they momentarily heat the water around their clubs to the temperature of the sun's surface, kindly giving their pray a nice tan before consuming them. *Image: Roy Caldwell*
  • Image may contain Animal Seafood Lobster Food and Sea Life
    03

    Oscyllarueggscleaning

    *Odontodactylus scyllarus* female holding her eggs. The females of some mantis shrimp species will actually hand off a second clutch of eggs to their mates to carry, saying, "Here hold this for just a second." But the male is well aware he's stuck with them. *Image: Roy Caldwell*
  • Image may contain Animal Sea Life Invertebrate Clam and Seashell
    04

    Lsjuvenileeyes1crop

    Eyes of a *Lysiosquillina sulcata* juvenile looking out of burrow. Mantis shrimp eyes are so astonishingly complex and powerful that they can see things no other animal on Earth can. No, it's not dead people. *Image: Roy Caldwell*
  • Image may contain Animal Invertebrate and Insect
    05

    O-japonicus-male-swimming-May-20-2013-med

    *Odontodactylus japonicus* swimming. Mantis shrimp aren't actually shrimp, but they are indeed crustaceans. And as arthropods, they periodically shed their shells and grow new ones, lest their outfits go out of season. *Image: Roy Caldwell*
  • Image may contain Animal Seafood Lobster Food Sea Life Invertebrate and Plant
    06

    G-smithii-weird-3-med

    A nice shot of *Gonodactylus sp.* showing its heavily calcified smashers. Mantis shrimp strike with such force that they wear down these clubs, only to replace the armor when they molt. It's a bit like reloading a gun – a gun with, like, eyes and stuff. *Image: Roy Caldwell*
Read More
The Best Travel Mugs for Coffee That’s Going Places
These top picks from brands like Ember, Owala, and Hydro Flask are built to last, keeping your drinks hot and your mornings smooth.
Boutayna Chokrane
A Newly Discovered Trail of Cosmic Debris Illustrates How the End of the Solar System Could Look
A dying star 1,600 light-years from Earth is surrounded by two rings of gas and dust that astronomers believe are the remnants of the planetary bodies it once hosted.
Jorge Garay
Googlebooks Have Arrived. You Should Buy These Chromebooks Instead
While Google is heralding a new series of laptops called Googlebooks, Chromebooks are sticking around—for now. These are the ones to consider.
Luke Larsen
Spooky New Infostealer Malware Uses AI to ‘Autodox’ Victims
Named “Volta-Autodoxer,” the recently uncovered malware uses AI tools to collect troves of data about victims, from login credentials and credit card numbers to Discord sessions and UberEats receipts.
Lily Hay Newman
There’s a Completely New Type of Whisky. It’s French and Made in Concrete Eggs
The founders of Maison Lineti are, in a world first, making single malt whisky as if it were wine—and the spirit world is mighty impressed.
Jeremy White
Light Up Your Home Like Christmas With These Smart String Lights
Glow up your home indoors or out with these versatile, discounted, full color smart string lights. They’re WIRED-tested and 25 percent off right now.
Simon Hill
Power Outages Are No Match for This Fridge Battery
Backup by BioLite is designed to power your fridge when the grid goes down. It works, but protecting your ice cream doesn’t come cheap.
Christopher Null
Meta’s Muse Could Upend All Kinds of Businesses. It Hasn’t Yet
Companies have spent the past several weeks trying to reassure investors that Muse and other AI agents pose more of an opportunity than a threat.
Paresh Dave
An AI Agent Injected Drugs Into a Live Mouse’s Brain
A biotech startup let an agent choose a gene therapy and successfully inject the treatment, offering a startling glimpse of the future of research labs.
Emily Mullin
Get Bose QC Headphones at Their Lowest Price Ever
They’re a steal at over 40 percent off in multiple colors. Plus, other great Bose deals you should know about ahead of Black Friday.
Harry Rabinowitz
The Keurig Alta Brewer Can Do It All, With No Plastic Pods
This multifaceted home coffee brewer and its new AltaRounds will make you rethink everything you know about Keurig machines.
Louryn Strampe
Are Memories Transferable? Meet the Scientists Replicating an Infamous Study to Find Out
In the 1960’s, an odd experiment showed planarian worms could transfer memories by consuming each other. It was a sensational finding—that is until the worms stopped learning.
Claire L. Evans