Nature is full of beauty and verdant wonder, but there’s a darker side. Just beyond the edge of the environment’s allure sits violence. Nature seems to love a good fight, and it doesn’t discriminate.

The mantis shrimp is a small sea creature with extraordinary abilities, from lightning-fast punches to seeing colors beyond human perception. Its claws strike with the speed of a bullet, making it one ...

Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about biodiversity and the hidden quirks of the natural world. At first glance, the mantis shrimp is an unassuming ...

Peacock mantis shrimp (Odontodactylus scyllarus) might be small, but thanks to a specialized limb, they pack a mighty punch. Their jabs are strong enough to crack the shells of other crustaceans, and ...

You probably wouldn’t want to step into a boxing ring with a mantis shrimp. Don’t let their small size fool you – these colourful crustaceans are among the mightiest fighters of the marine world.

Known for their powerful punch, mantis shrimp can smash a shell with the force of a .22 caliber bullet. Yet, amazingly, these tough critters remain intact despite the intense shockwaves created by ...

Despite their name, mantis shrimp are not true shrimp but a type of stomatopod: a relative of crabs and lobsters that has been on Earth for over 400 million years. There are more than 400 different ...

Mantis shrimp withstand repeated high-impact forces without structural damage. Researchers discovered the shrimp's clubs feature a protective pattern that controls how stress waves travel through its ...