- [Coyote] This episode is officially sponsored
by Fishing Clash.
Over the years,
there's been a looming question haunting
the "Brave Wilderness" YouTube channel comments section,
"Coyote, will you get punched by a Mantis Shrimp?"
That alien-looking creature right there,
is famous for having the fastest punch
in the animal kingdom.
And today, we're going to answer the question
as to whether or not it can blast a hole in a human hand.
The acceleration rate of a Mantis Shrimp strike
has been scientifically clocked around 50 miles per hour,
similar to the rate at which a 22-caliber bullet
leaves the barrel of a gun.
They use the strike to kill their prey,
an oceanic buffet line of crustaceans and fish.
To better understand what a prey species might experience
when impacted by that strike,
I'm going to bravely embrace the slap shot wrath of Stinger.
(dramatic music)
- [Speaker] Alright, Stinger, here we go buddy!
- [Coyote] Currently, the Columbus Blue Jackets
angry-looking insect,
holds the NHL mascot record for fastest slap shot,
scorching goals at 75 miles per hour.
To replicate a Mantis Shrimp prey species, such as crab,
I'll be armoring up in full goalie gear,
which, like a crab's protective exoskeleton,
will work to defend the soft insides of my body.
Don't ask me why, but I have a feeling that this
is still going to be painful.
Boom.
I feel like you should just punch me in the chest once,
so that I can just feel-
Oh, yeah. (Coyote laughs)
So just that impact is noticeable.
I feel like these pads have the least amount of protection
on the chest, strangely enough.
In the NHL, most players fire slap shots
between 80 and 100 miles per hour.
Stinger is capable of whipping consistent zingers
between 50 and 60 miles per hour,
which is pretty fast for a mascot.
So, how does that equate to impact force?
Well, for starters,
the equation to measure impact force looks like this,
where M is the mass of the body, the hockey puck.
V is the velocity or speed
at which the hockey puck is traveling.
And T is the time it takes to make impact.
Save your brain the mental math.
We ran the calculations,
and a hockey puck traveling 50 miles per hour
has an impact force of 5.24 newtons.
That might not seem like much, but trust me,
even with my exoskeleton padding,
if those pucks hit in the right spot,
they definitely hurt.
(hockey stick snaps) (goalie grunts)
(hockey stick snaps) (puck thumps)
You missed!
(hockey stick snaps) (puck thumps)
(goalie grunts)
Oh, it definitely knocked the wind out of me.
(hockey stick snaps) (puck thumps)
(goalie grunts)
That was the Mantis Shrimp shot, right in the chest.
(Coyote moans)
Oh man, that was a full-on impact.
Well, if I was a crab
I would definitely be dead at this point,
and the Mantis Shrimp would be feasting upon my remains.
- [Cameraperson] Okay, I think we're ready to film, Coyote.
- Yeah, yeah.
Just a minute.
- [Cameraperson] Dude, what are you doing?
- I'm about to catch a red belly catfish.
Redtail catfish. Check that out.
All right, Coyote Pack.
We are moments away from me
getting into the punch zone with the Mantis Shrimp.
For years, you guys have been asking me
to be punched by one of these tiny boxers,
so that we can answer the question:
is a Mantis Shrimp capable
of blasting a hole in the human hand?
And since this is an episode you guys have been requesting,
I wanted to give you all the chance
to catch your own Mantis Shrimp.
So I collaborated with one
of my favorite mobile games, Fishing Clash,
to design a Mantis Shrimp exactly like my little buddy here.
You better believe it.
We created an exclusive Mantis Shrimp for this game,
and it is catchable in the first level.
Between December 17th and December 31st,
Fishing Clash is free to download.
It's an adventure that takes you around the world
to fish for pretty much any species you can imagine.
The graphics are insanely realistic,
and you can catch what seems like
an endless variety of species.
That's cool.
You use this game, cast out your line.
You can pick different rods, different tackle.
Ooh, fish on, fish on! Nice.
13, 14.
It's all about trying to get the combo.
Amazing. And we got it.
Great catch.
(Coyote chuckles)
- Heck of a catch right there.
Now, if you can catch this tiny boxer,
you will receive a pack full of unique prizes,
made specifically for fans of Brave Wilderness,
a unique avatar, a badge, and a duel card,
which referred to our channel.
Ooh. And this is cool.
You can also join clans with your friends and families.
So, if you want to be a part of the Coyote Clan,
I'm in the game as Coyote Peterson.
Ooh, nice.
There we go.
Now, I'm totally hooked.
I've been playing it for a while now,
and I've learned that one of the best tactics
for catching bigger fish, is to upgrade your tackle,
based on the environment.
Just a little tip,
if you hope to land a monster-size sea creature.
Oh, oh. Reeling them in!
Combo! Nice.
Honestly, this is the most entertaining
mobile game I have ever played.
Download it today.
And with my gift code, MANTISSHRIMP,
get an awesome reward for free.
Oh, and it gets better.
You'll get one mythical lure card, 50 luck power-ups,
and 30 weight power-ups,
a combo that will most certainly
help you land a Mantis Shrimp,
and countless other fish species.
Now that you're ready
to catch the Mantis Shrimp in the game,
I think it's time for me
to get into the ring,
and go hand to hammer with this tiny boxer.
The Peacock Mantis Shrimp is a cunning predator,
and it's merciless strike is inflicted
using raptorial appendages.
These medieval-looking weapons come equipped
with a smasher and a spear, allowing the animal
to use one or both tools,
based on the victim it plans to eviscerate.
What's more impressive, is the shrimp's ability
to create a cavitation bubble,
formed when an object like the smasher club
of a Mantis Shrimp, moves through water
at an incredibly high speed.
Remember, our little crustacean friend's strike
has an acceleration rate 50 miles per hour.
When the bubble collapses under surrounding pressure,
it creates a burst of high-energy light, heat, and sound.
Basically, a catastrophic shockwave
that stuns or kills the shrimp's target.
So, what do you get when you combine
the smasher's lethal impact,
and an exploding cavitation bubble?
Nature's most deadly strike, also known as fatality.
Now, to test out the punch of the Mantis Shrimp,
in my opinion, there are two different ways
that this can go down.
A defensive punch, or a predatory punch
a defensive punch would work like this.
And it's the first thing we're going to try.
Imagine an eel investigating the underwater environment.
Now, Mantis Shrimp are incredibly territorial,
and if that eel sticks its nose
down into a Mantis Shrimp's hole, bow!
It's going to get a shot straight to the nose.
So, I'm going to turn my fingers, essentially,
into the nose of an eel,
trying not, oh look, he's coming right out at me.
All right.
It's definitely curious.
I'm just going to pretend
that I'm an eel, investigating around the rocks,
looking around in the sand.
Come in this direction.
Oh boy.
Okay. I think the Mantis Shrimp is definitely on to me.
I could see its eyes twitching,
the little antenna up front
beginning to sense that a possible predator's near.
Keep it there.
(dramatic music)
Okay. He's definitely investigating my fingers.
Oh, oh, oh.
He just hit me right in the tip of my fingernail.
Not very hard though.
Just a tiny little test punch.
By no means was that a full-on swing.
I'd call that investigative.
I think we have failed on the defensive punch tactic.
He just tickled the tips of my fingers,
and realized, this isn't going to eat me,
and this isn't something that I can eat.
So how are we going to, possibly,
then pull off a predatory punch?
Great question.
This Mantis Shrimp eats a variety of different prey items.
One, specifically, is known as a krill.
And with these strapped to my fingers, will it come out
and try to remove them off of my fingers, using its hammers?
And quite possibly its harpoon.
I have a feeling that if a punch is going to happen,
it's coming from the predatory approach.
Now, they have an incredible sense of smell,
and an incredible sense of sight.
And right now,
because we are attempting the predatory punch,
he seems to be pretty chill,
and just tucked down in the rocks.
Let me try to get my fingers.
Oh, there is the antenna.
Now sensing the shrimp.
Okay, something's happening.
Okay.
It's definitely going forward.
Grappling, but not-
Oh, he's grabbing them away from me.
No, no, no.
He's got one, shoot.
He did not punch.
He's just grabbing.
Oh.
This is the right idea, though.
Those little claws are so sharp.
He literally stole one of the shrimp off the lower fingers,
and now, he's got a mouthful of shrimp.
Come back in.
They are gluttonous though, and from previous feedings,
we know that he will take
more pieces of food than he normally needs,
just to stow them away under the sand.
And that's what they'll do.
Sometimes kill a crab, or bust open the shell of a clam,
and take the insides, and hide them,
and actually come back for them later on,
caching their food, and storing it for later.
Ding, ding, ding.
All right, guys.
I think the fight is over.
And while I hate to admit it,
I'm officially declaring myself the loser.
The Mantis Shrimp didn't win by knockout,
but it did win, by stealing the fight.
It tore the shrimp right off of my fingers,
and now, it's back in its corner, enjoying a meal.
So, what did we learn today?
Well, a Mantis Shrimp raised in captivity
doesn't seem to be as aggressive as we had hoped.
I was barely punched once, definitely didn't hurt.
Tickled with its claws, and without question,
did not feel the wrath of its harpoon.
Now, would a Mantis Shrimp in the wild
behave differently when defending its territory
could quite possibly be the case.
So, is the hype and the aggression level
of Mantis Shrimp all that it's built up to be,
or these creatures simply misunderstood,
beautiful, curious and charismatic?
I'm going to go with the latter in this instance,
but who knows?
Maybe at some point, there will be a rematch,
and I will get the chance
to ultimately get blasted by a Mantis Shrimp.
I'm Coyote Peterson.
Be brave.
Stay wild.
We'll see on the next adventure.
Catching a Mantis Shrimp in real life
would be a painfully bad idea,
but a good idea would be
trying to land one in Fishing Clash.
Remember, you have the chance
to meet the shrimp face-to-face, and get your prize
for a limited time, between December 17th and December 31st.
If you catch the shrimp,
you'll receive a unique avatar, badge,
and duel card made specially for the Coyote Pack.
Download Fishing Clash for free,
and use my gift code, MANTISSHRIMP,
to get some awesome power-ups to help play the game.
(growls, howls)