Did you know: The pistol shrimp's claw can generate bubbles that reach temperatures of up to 8,000 degrees
when a pistol shrimp snaps its claw, it can create bubbles that reach temperatures of up to 8,000 degrees Fahrenheit (4,427 degrees Celsius) due to a process called cavitation, making the bubble collapse extremely hot, almost as hot as the surface of the sun; this is used to stun prey with a powerful shockwave. Key points about the pistol shrimp's claw: Cavitation: The rapid closure of the claw creates a low-pressure area, causing water to vaporize and form bubbles which then collapse violently, generating extreme heat. Impact on prey: The intense heat from the collapsing bubble creates a shockwave that can stun or kill small prey. Speed of the snap: The claw snaps shut very quickly, propelling the bubble at high speeds. More on this ( because it's cool AF)
The bubble is filled with negative pressure, and when it collapses, it releases a massive amount of energy in the form of heat, light, and sound. The heat is so intense that it can stun or kill the shrimp's prey. Additional details The bubble's sound is louder than a speeding bullet, measuring in at 218 decibels. The bubble's heat is four times hotter than lava. The heat dissipates quickly, so there are no lasting effects for the shrimp, except for the prey it burns. The bubble's collapse can also produce sonoluminescence, a short flash of light.
Pistol shrimp are a few inches long, but their large claws can grow to half their body length. They are found in reefs and seagrass beds in tropical and temperate regions. They are one of the loudest animals in the ocean. Other facts The noise they make as a group has been known to mask the presence of submarines. Their large claws can deter predators looking to steal the shrimp's burrow. A larger claw also makes males more attractive to females. They can be kept in aquariums.
I'd be interested to know how they calculated those figures - the bubble's internal pressure and temperature could not be measured directly. The collapse shock pressure-level can be calculated from hydrophone recordings and knowing the distances from the shrimps: it may be very intense but of very low power, making its effective range very low. I wonder if they determined that range?
I had a go at examining the reported numbers more closely.
Obviously the temperature in the original research would be in ºC, and presumably the shock-pressure quoted in dB is referred to 1µPa and at 1 metre from sound source; normal for marine research. That is 26deciBels lower than the 0dB reference level for sound measurements in air (commonly quoted with its reference omitted).
192 dB re 1µPa represents a peak-peak pressure of 85Bar, if my sums are right, relatively to the surrounding water-pressure. Is that correct? I'm a but rusty with logarithm calculations so any physicists here, please do review my maths and verify or correct my calculation appropriately!
Was the report you quoted, from a science journalist simplifying the results for a general audience? That would account for the use of Fahrenheit albeit with its Celsius equivalent, and "huge amount of energy" comment, at least; and perhaps wrong deciBel scale..
Although the cavitation temperature peak may be extremely high the heat would be extremely tiny and very rapidly dissipated. It's hardly going to cook the shrimp's stunned prey! It was presumably calculated from the bubble diameter (hence volume) and water temperature, and treating the compression of the gas within it as adiabatic (instant); but over 4000ºC? How large is the bubble?
The gas would be water-vapour and atmospheric gas brought out of solution by the partial vacuum. Large cavitation bubbles such as can form on ships' propellors, do produce shocks severe enough in long-term cavitation to erode the propellor blades by their pin-point hammering action.
Summarising, shrimps prey on very small creatures and are small themselves, so although they might produce shock-waves intense enough to stun tiny creatures nearby, they cannot release a "huge amount of energy". They produce a burst of very low energy but at very high intensity; so very high power for a very short time. (Power has a time component.)
yeah I had one of those bad boys..form my bedroom I could hear him clearly snapping it was crazy. I had a watchman Gobi as well and it's so cool they will form a symbiotic relationship where the pistol shrimp will build them a home in the sand to live in but the shrimp has bad eyesight so the gobi stands guard while he's building and if there's a predator the gobi will run in to alert the pistol shrimp who will come out and take care of any intruders and when it's done they just live together in the nest it's interesting to watch.
