Mantis No Holds Barred Matches....

[Gonodactylus]

There are several situations that I know of where smashers and spearers interact. Above I mentioned the introduction of G. mutatus into Hawaii. As I said, many adult P. c have wounds from conflicts with G. m. However, I have also seen P.c. dragging back to their burrows smaller G. m. that they have killed.

In Moorea, we have studied Gonodactylellus childi and Raoulserenea pygmea, a smasher and a spearer that both live in cavities in rubble. G. c usually win if size matched, but if it is molting or smaller, they can be evicted by the spearer.

All things are relative and spearers can and do defeat or even prey on smaller smashers or individuals that are molting.

Roy

 

[Typo]

try putting him up against a nice sized snapping shrimp.

 

[Gonodactylus]

There was a Ph.D dissertation where this was done in Hawaii. In the open, stomatpods can out-flank a snapping shrimp and knock off its major chela. If the snapping shrimp is in a tight fitting cavity, they are very effective defending the entrance.

Roy