1 Thumb Splinter Shrimp Are Washing Ashore in Delaware
Last week Delaware Seashore State Park shared a video of “thumb splinters” washing ashore many of the state’s beaches, including Dewey Beach and Delaware Seashore State Park. Keep reading to learn more and see the video.
2 The Mantis Shrimp Are “Aggressive”
Per USA Today, the mantis shrimp are aggressive crustaceans that can easily injure a human or pet – and they look pretty scary too! According to the Chesapeake Bay Program, the species has “a pair of long, jackknife claws that resemble a praying mantis,” which they use “to spear or slice through prey with a quick, slashing motion.“ae0fcc31ae342fd3a1346ebb1f342fcb
3 They Strike in “Less Than 8 Milliseconds”
“The strike velocity of a mantis shrimp’s large, powerful claws is one of the fastest movements of any animal on earth,” their profile on the Chesapeake Bay Program website says. “It takes a mantis shrimp less than 8 milliseconds to strike, which is about 50 times faster than the blink of a human eye.”
4 They Grow Up to 10 Inches Long
According to the University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, adult western Atlantic mantis shrimp grow to be about 8 to 10 inches long and can be found as far north as Cape Cod and south to the Gulf of Mexico.
5 They Come From “Off Shore”
“I saw them on the beach this morning! They were a little freaky to tell the truth. Never saw them before and they were far away from the water. Birds weren’t eating them. Where did they come from?” commented a local on Instagram. “Usually off shore,” responded the State Park. “If we get a strong NE wind sometimes we see this. They may also live in between the rocks of the inlet jetties.”
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