Odontodactylus scyllarus-Mantis shrimp weapon.

Here in Queenslands south east where we as a club carry out many collecting trips and at times we find a mantis or two.

Against most information on these killing machines,i have always found all species seen in our area to have a weapon of both club and spike.

I found a nice big one today and borrowed its weapon to show every one how deadly these creatures are for their size.

The spike part is actually more so a knife, the last part of the spike has a very sharp cerated edge blade to it, club,spike,knife,the mantis comes with a substantial arsenal in each arm!

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zhyr wrote:Someone needs to volunteer to get hit by it on camera so we can youtube it for club promotional material

Yes, I totally agree and I nominate you

Ouch!!!your up zhyr

The one that loaned its weapon to me was a whopper,it would chop off your finger

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zhyr wrote:...
I think miniGeoff should volunteer since he's over programming

Okay, I'll do it for...ONE MILLION DOLLARS! Wait!!! Maybe I should ask for more than a million dollars? A million dollars isn't exactly a lot of money these days. A million dollars can't get me a decent waterfront house where I can just pump the water directly into my 50 x 50 x 50 footer all round tank, with a 4ft DSB, and with half a dozen wobbies as clean up crew. Okay then, I'll do it for...One... Hundred... BILLION DOLLARS!

I have been hit by a 5inch angry male G.graphurus and I WOULD NOT recommend trying it....I didn't want to be hit he just managed to crack me one....and it was enough to do serious damage to my right hands pointer fingers middle joint, the dr's took 2 x-rays because they didn't understand the first one, or me telling them it was a 5inch shrimp....In the end there was extensive sever muscle tissue damage and a break, the break has healed in the past 6months but the muscle hasn't quite come back yet so I still cannot close my hand completely to make a fist.

Just admire them from a distance there not the worlds greatest predator for no reason....