Moving fast like a bottle rocket, the snapping shrimp plays a major role in the intertidal keeping the food chain in order. The snapping shrimp has a big claw that makes a pop, snap, or crackling noise. With this big claw it stuns prey and protects itself from predators. Hearing the pop and crackle noise you know there is a snapping shrimp nearby.

-Cara Hasegawa

Just like a staple into a paper, the snapping shrimp viciously snaps its claw as it looks for its prey. As it finds prey, it crushes it by snapping it in half like a WWF wrestler slaughtering his opponent. The snapping shrimp uses its claw as its main recourse to survive. It uses it to protect itself from predators and to provide food. The snapping shrimp relies on this claw the most.

-Desiree Memea

Grasping at the small crab like a kid clinging to his teddy bear, the shrimp squeezes the life out of the crab. Snapping shrimp make snapping sounds with their claws to ward off any potential danger. If it doesn’t scare off other enemies, the shrimp may lose its home, its meal, or its life. Without the shrimp, many small crustaceans and fish would overrun the intertidal area. Also, if you look at its silhouette, the shrimp may resemble a Swiss Army knife.

-Chad Kikuchi

Snapping shrimp are like the surprising explosion of a firecracker because they are no bigger than a pinky finger. By clamping their claw, they can interrupt underwater listening stations. Their different colors allow them to survive in the delicate intertidal range and their big muscled claw helps by stunning predators and prey. The snapping shrimp is a food source for bigger creatures that are important food sources for humans.

-Ariel Kagawa