NEW LIFE DISCOVERED: Massive shrimp caught by Florida fisherman stumps scientists

Massive shrimp caught by Florida fisherman stumps scientists

• 5 DAYS AGO SEPTEMBER 06, 2014 10:25PM

From the murky depths ... the carnivorous, ambush predator feeds on fish and fellow crustaceans. Picture: Steve Bargeron/FWC/Facebook Source: Supplied

A FLORIDA fisherman got an unpleasant surprise when he reeled in his line to find he’d lured a monster from the deep.

Steve Bargeron was fishing from a Fort Pierce dock when he observed another man pull a gigantic shrimp-type creature, 45cm-long, from the water.

The creature, he says, was striking its own tail, so had to be grasped from the back like a lobster, and had eyes on stalks that moved independently of one another.

Mantis shrimp have on stalks that moved independently of one another. Picture: Steve Bargeron/FWC Source:Supplied

The Scaly-tailed Mantis Shrimp features sharp, spinous claws to catch prey and a series of spines on its tail Picture: Steve Bargeron/FWC Source: Supplied

Scientists think it may be some kind of mantis shrimp, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission write on their Facebook page, where they also posted Mr Bargeron’s photos.

Experts are leaning towards it being a Scaly-tailed Mantis Shrimp, which features sharp spinous claws used to catch prey and a series of spines on its tail. The carnivorous, ambush predator feeds on fish and fellow crustaceans and usually grows just to around 30cm in length.

Mantis shrimp destroys clam

Mantis shrimps (not a shrimp at all but a stomatopod) can be found on tidal flats and in seagrass beds in the western Atlantic Ocean - from Bermuda to the Gulf of Mexico, and Massachusetts to Brazil.

Scientists are reviewing photos of the catch to make a definitive identification, while the actual creature was released back to the water.