The Shrimp With a Sun Inside Its Claw

This shrimp is far more dangerous than its size would ever suggest. In warm, shallow coastal seas lives a creature scarcely the length of a finger, one oversized claw cocked and held ready like a loaded spring, waiting for its moment.

Kamba huyu ni hatari zaidi kuliko ukubwa wake ungependekeza kamwe. Katika bahari za pwani zenye joto na kina kifupi anaishi kiumbe mwenye urefu usiozidi kidole, akiwa na gamba moja kubwa mno lililoshikiliwa tayari kama chemchemi iliyobanwa, likisubiri wakati wake.

When the shrimp snaps that claw shut, it happens with such velocity that the strike itself is almost beside the point. The motion creates a bubble in the surrounding water that collapses almost instantly, and for a mere fraction of a second, the interior of that collapsing bubble reaches a temperature approaching that of the sun's own surface. The sound alone exceeds the volume of a gunshot, loud enough on its own to stun or kill small fish nearby.

Kamba huyo anapofumba gamba hilo, hutokea kwa kasi kubwa kiasi kwamba pigo lenyewe karibu halina umuhimu. Mwendo huo hutengeneza povu ndani ya maji yanayolizunguka ambalo huporomoka karibu papo hapo, na kwa sehemu ndogo tu ya sekunde, ndani ya povu hilo linaloporomoka hufikia joto linalokaribia lile la uso wa jua wenyewe. Sauti pekee inazidi ukubwa wa mlio wa bunduki, ikiwa na nguvu ya kutosha kuwazimisha au kuwaua samaki wadogo walio karibu.

Nothing about the shrimp itself grows hot in the process. The heat and the sound both originate in the bubble, and both vanish again before either could be felt by anything nearby. Divers working near coral reefs often hear the snap of that claw before they spot a single shrimp among the coral.

Hakuna kitu ndani ya kamba mwenyewe kinachopata joto katika mchakato huo. Joto na sauti vyote hutokea ndani ya povu hilo, na vyote hutoweka tena kabla havijahisiwa na kitu chochote cha karibu. Wapiga mbizi wanaofanya kazi karibu na miamba ya matumbawe mara nyingi husikia mlio wa gamba hilo kabla ya kumwona hata kamba mmoja miongoni mwa matumbawe.