How This Shrimp Got The Name Pistol Shrimp?

Pistol Shrimp what a guy lets talk about this little shrimp.

Did you know  is a shrimp so powerful it can kill its prey with a bubble. Thats correct a bubble.

Lets take a deeper look. This shrimp is profesionaly known (scientifically) as Alpheidae.

They come from a family of around 1,119 species within 38 or more genera. They are more commonly known to us as snapping shrimp because of the huge pinsser on one of its claws.

However this shrimp has picked up another monika as its become feard in the warm tropical seas where its from.

Why Do We know It As PISTOL SHRIMP. 

Thats right pistol shrimp shoots bubbles at 70mph evaparating water these bubbles reach 8000 degrees & pop the sound reaches 210 decebells this shrimp  uses its overgrown claw like a pistol.

Pistol Shimp

Shooting Bubbles

Shooting bubbles so fast how fast well over 70 miles an hour so pretty fast. If that want enough to deal with these bubbles are now 8000 degrees. Almost as hot as the sun and apparantly three times as hot as laver.

Fun Fact 

Shooting Bubbles & Pistols

Did you know when two of these amazing shrimp meet they duel?. You heard right just like the old wild west at high noon.

The little snappers pace away from each other turn and shoot. Even tho they have amazing aim no shrimp ever gets hurt it’s just practice.

How Loud Of A Pop

As they pop threres not much louder on earth think galatasaray and welcome to hell. Those footie fans brok a world record at around 140 decibells and pink floyd had a similar outcome.

Niether were as loud as this tiny little shrimp at a whoping 210 decibels.

How Powerful & Why Is It Called Pistol Shrimp?

So we know this shrimp uses its claw arm like a pistol but let’s have a look at how it works and how powerful is this arm!.

Firstly this enlarged pincer/claw only grows on one arm it can be on either side tho. So could be left or right-handed.

How The Pistol Works

On the end of the arm is its claw which splits into two pieces. When old pistol wants to load it opens the top part of the claw allowing water in.

The water enters a chamber within the top part of the claw. Once ready the shrimp clamps the two sides of the claw together.

This plunges the water out of the chamber. The speed and force of this mechanism ie the pinching of the claw.

Forces the water out so fast as said earlier upwards of 70 miles an hour. The speed also creates bubbles.

These bubbles are not your everyday run-of-the-mill bubbles. Oh no these are bubbles travelling at 70 miles an hour.

Fast enough to kill the shrimp’s prey. Fun fact when the bubbles pop they make a snap sound like rice crispies.

This is why we also call them SNAPPING SHRIMP.

RE-Grow RE-Load

As said earlier in this post pistol has his pistol on one arm or the other. Although if he gets his arm or claws injured.

The other arm starts to grow a new pistol claw. Now that’s awesome. As it gives them a head start they wouldn’t survive long without this remarkable weapon!.

Could They Have Two Pistols?

This begs the question could old pistol Pete the shrimp have two pistols if one grew on the other while his other was chopped off.

 Well yes, I haven’t seen it with my own eyes but I haven’t NOT seen it either and if they are capable of regrowing limbs and while this is happening they are able to turn the other arm into a cannon then YES I think they can indeed end up with two guns!

Disappointedly It turns out they can not grow two cannons at the same time so no pistol shrimps don’t have two pistols!.

Sonar Blocking Transmissions

These shrimp have the ability so it seems of blocking or interfering with sonar as we found out during the second world war.

When in their large colonies they make a hell of a racket and the noise stopped submarines from talking to each other and also stopped them from even correctly locating each other.

This almost cost the Allies the war but they sorted things out in other ways as we now know.

Did Pistol Shrimp Affect The Second World War?

Yes and here’s how.

Once the Allies realised what these shrimp could do they hid their subs inside the shrimp colonies cloaking their signal so they couldn’t be spotted.

What Is The Most Powerful Shrimp?

A question that seems to come up is what’s the most powerful shrimp this is because of the reputation of the mantis shrimp?.

In combat close up the mantis wins it’s just bigger and designed to hit hard. At a distance, the pistol has a shot and will win as it’s more accurate.

Some Amazing Facts

What Would A Pistol Shrimp Do To A Human?

Not much damage no chance of even breaking skin let’s be honest. The shrimps about an inch long whereas the mantis are 10 inches puts a bit of perspective on things.

That being said pistol shrimp can be annoying to some as they are loud the snap and pop as we know can be 210 decibels. 

How Hot Hotter Than The Sun?

As unbelievable as it sounds this little shrimp does really produce bubbles nearing 8000 degrees!. So yes indeed those bubbles when fired are almost as hot as the surface of the sun!

Three times as hot as burning laver and probably the hottest thing on earth.

Is The Pistol Shrimp The Deadliest Animal?

Not sure we can say that the pistol shrimp. Is the deadliest animal creature on earth but its ability surely puts it up there.

Putting into perspective its size at around an inch is there even a smaller fish. Compared to the power it processes. I would have to say it’s right up there as one of the deadliest animals on earth.