buried deep, waits for prey
- Size
- Length: 6–10 cm
- Lifespan
- 3–5 years
- Diet
- Carnivorous. Preys on polychaete worms and small crustaceans using claws.
- Habitat
- Soft bottoms in coastal and offshore waters. Twenty to one hundred metres.
- Range
- East coast South Island, New Zealand. Offshore deep soft-sediment areas.
- Endemism
- Endemic
- Main Threats
- Bottom trawling and bycatch. Destroys burrows and catches individuals.
- Population
- Common in deep soft-sediment areas. Robust but slow recovery from damage.
- Conservation Status
- data_deficient
- Human Risk
- caution
- Handling Note
- burrowing predator with sharp raptorial claws
- Conservation Note
- Marine crustacean outside the scope of current NZTCS terrestrial and freshwater assessments.
- Te Ao Māori
- Deep-sea stomatopods are rarely seen by the public. Their existence is known mostly through scientific trawls. They represent the hidden complexity of the offshore ecosystem, playing a role in nutrient cycling and prey regulation.
The carapace is smooth and elongated. The 'wings' refer to the broad, flattened telson and uropods at the rear, which aid in rapid backward escape movements. It is not a flyer. It is a swimmer of last resort. The Winged mantis shrimp prefers to stay buried.
It inhabits muddy and sandy substrates. Depths range from twenty to one hundred metres. The environment is dark and quiet. Pressure is high. The shrimp is adapted to low-light conditions. Its eyes are sensitive to movement.
Prey includes polychaete worms and small crustaceans. It uses its raptorial claws to grasp and crush. The claws are less specialised than those of smasher species. They are generalist tools. They work well enough.
Found off the east coast of the South Island. The cold waters support a rich benthic community. The shrimp is part of this web. It is eaten by larger fish and octopuses. It eats the small. It is eaten by the large.
Threats include bottom fishing. Trawls drag across the seabed. Burrows are destroyed. Individuals are caught as bycatch. The population is robust but localised impacts occur. Recovery is slow in deep water.