Fisherman Pulls Monstrous Nightmare Shrimp Out Of Ocean

[RockaFowler]

Yeah - I'm scared. This was caught off the Ft Pierce inlet, where I fish all the time. I'm freaking out.

http://theconcourse.deadspin.com/fisherman-pulls-monstrous-nightmare-shrimp-out-of-ocean-1630965735/+Tom_Ley



Try to see how long you can stare at this gigantic monster shrimp before becoming wildly uncomfortable and convinced that something totally just crawled across the back of your neck. What if I told you that its eyes are on stalks and can move independently from each other?

This foul beast was plucked from the depths by a fisherman named Steve Bargeron, who then sent pictures to the The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission. The Commission posted the photos on its Facebook page, which is how we got here, with you sobbing under your desk.


Oh yeah and this was caught about 2 miles from the Nuclear Power Plant. Just sayin'!

[shenmue]

1. Eeeek

[FSogol]

2. Are we back to the idea that radiation makes things grow big with no other adverse effects?

Did they throw the poor guy back in the ocean or onto the grille?

[VScott]

20. In movies you don't eat radioactive shrimp...

radioactive shrimp eat you...

[beam me up scottie]

38. !

Saving those for later, thanks!

[RedCappedBandit]

3. That's a mantish shrimp?

Geez. Wouldn't want to be swimming with one of those nearby.

[sharp_stick]

4. You'd need a gallon of cocktail sauce

for that thing.

[hlthe2b]

6. My thoughts exactly-- We're gonna need a bigger boat...of cocktail sauce!

[GeorgeGist]

7. or butter

[get the red out]

37. My husband would see that

And ask if we had garlic and butter in the house? Or maybe a vat of that shrimp boil stuff.

[RockaFowler]

5. This picture is so scary

A little background here


The inlet is on one side and the beach is directly on the other side. People could be swimming with this thing ALREADY. I'm never swimming there again!

[NCTraveler]

31. Ft. Pierce Inlet is known for Bull Sharks.

While I wouldn't put my hand near this shrimp, the inlet there is surrounded by pretty aggressive marine life. I mean things that would eat this shrimp and call it an appetizer.

[Downwinder]

8. Wikipedia link on mantis shrimp.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mantis_shrimp

[hifiguy]

9. What's next?

This, mayhap?

[packman]

13. Damn, you beat me to it

Mr. Burns would be happy.

[JaneyVee]

10. Oh hell no!

[aikoaiko]

11. We're going to need a bigger boat.

[Orrex]

12. Now that's a jumbo shrimp!

Paging George Carlin...

[edhopper]

14. I think this shrimp is smaller than the picture makes it look

The photo makes it look like it's 3 feet long, but it is probably under a foot ( the normal size for a mantis shrimp)

The photo uses forced perspective, similar to the technique used in the 50 Foot Woman movie in the poster above.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forced_perspective

[RockaFowler]

15. The picture is the right perspective

It's 18 inches long
http://www.wptv.com/news/region-st-lucie-county/fort-pierce/mantis-shrimp-pulled-from-the-water-in-fort-pierce

That's what makes this so scary!!

[edhopper]

21. That's the upper limit to

a mantis shrimp. It might be a little smaller, have to see it measured.
But ther photo makes it look over 3 feet long if you take the hand as about 6 inches from bottom to top of thumb.
Forced perspective, as I said.

And yes, it is still scary.

[alarimer]

26. Normally we seem them in the 4-5 inch range.

I've never seen one (and I've done a lot of marine fisheries work) that big.

[edhopper]

28. On Wikipedia

it has the upper limit at 15-16 inches.

The photo clearly makes it look way bigger.

It's a big one, just not as big as the photo makes it look.

[packman]

16. This is what's scary

The guys in the video on the site posted are in awe of the speed and ferocity of a small Mantis shrimp. One turns to the other and says, after a bait fish is speared thru the eye by the shrimp, says, "Can you imagine if that was 6 feet long?". Well, shit....

it looks like the one in the photo is about 4 feet long. How big do these things get?

Does Red Lobster know about this?

[Arkansas Granny]

17. So, how much butter and garlic would we need to make scampi?

[Glassunion]

18. The only link you'll ever need to learn all the awesome that is the Mantis Shrimp.

http://theoatmeal.com/comics/mantis_shrimp

[hifiguy]

24. Very cool!

Thanks for that entertaining link!

[surrealAmerican]

25. Thanks for that.

[backscatter712]

19. Damn! Mantis shrimp can hurt you with their claws!

They can snap their claws so fast they pop like gunshots

Some subspecies have spearing claws that skewer crabs, as mentioned earlier.

And some have "thumping" claws that smack prey like a hammer.

IIRC, fishermen and divers call these critters "thumbsplitters" - the little ones can snap their claws hard enough to split you right open. I'd hate to see what a claw snap from this monster can do...

[Xyzse]

22. Mmmmm... Tempura.

[randome]

23. That's nothin'.

[hr][font color="blue"][center]“If you're not committed to anything, you're just taking up space.”
Gregory Peck, Mirage (1965)[/center][/font][hr]

[Arcanetrance]

27. The old ones have awoken

[NuclearDem]

29. He may look like a watery wimp...

When in fact he's a bloody-thirsty shrimp.

[NCTraveler]

30. It is some type of Mantis.

Might take them a little to identify by picture as there are 100's of kinds of Mantis. They aren't all that uncommon in the Florida waters. They are often caught around the Sunshine Skyway Bridge. They are also caught up and down the east coast as this one was. Divers are way more familiar with them than fisherman as they aren't an everyday catch. Not easy hooking one of the little fellas and more often than not they are brought up "snagged". They use the power in their tail to knock out their prey and that is what leaves them tail hooked.

[Nye Bevan]

32. This thread has made me hungry (nt)

[NCTraveler]

33. Also want to give the fisherperson props.

Photo your great catch and throw it back. As a Fisherperson, I know it can be difficult to throw an interesting catch back. I always do but that doesn't mean it is a simple decision. That can be seen by the number of interesting marine life caught each year and killed to be shown off. Good job here.

[Eleanors38]

35. Yep. Eat it or toss it back.

[Eleanors38]

34. If it ain't been found, it be found in Florida.

[Marrah_G]

36. That freaks me out a bit

[MineralMan]

39. Looks like lunch to me.

Yum! Mantis shrimp are delicious.