Neither shrimp nor mantids, Mantis Shrimp get their name purely from
their physical resemblance to terrestrial praying mantis and aquatic shrimp.
 Growing to 40cm, Lysiosquillina maculata is the largest of all stomatopods.
Its powerful claws kill prey by spearing, stunning or dismemberment.

Because of the relative ease this crustacean has in mutilating small appendages,
our favorite PhD candidate who corralled this crustacean can
attest to a Mantis Shrimp's other common name ... "Thumb Splitter"
Good 'grab' Johnny Tsunami!