A new study has revealed that peacock mantis shrimp have mobile eyes that can maintain balance in the face of any motion and see in opposite directions.

What Is Special About The Peacock Mantis Shrimp's Eyes?

There are more than 450 known species of mantis shrimp, but one stands out for its very unique eyes. The peacock mantis shrimp can move its eyes independently in three different ways: up and down, side to side, and rolling around their eye sockets. In fact, the peacock mantis shrimp's eyes can perch on the end of its stalks.

This was discovered by biologist Ilse Daly at the University of Bristol in Britain. The research was published on May 2 in the journal Proceedings of the Royal Society B.

"Their eyes are constantly in motion, up, down, side-to-side," Daly said.

As odd as it seems, the peacock mantis shrimp can move one eye horizontally while positioning the other eye on its side. This type of mobility provides the peacock mantis shrimp with an incredible advantage to see in multiple directions at once.

Most animals need to stay focused in one direction to prevent blurriness. These animals can do this without any type of gaze stabilization. If the peacock mantis shrimp's eyes are in opposite directions, it still knows which way is up.

"It would be like you tipping your head on its side, then back to normal and all angles in between all while trying to follow the motion of a target," Daly said.

The eyes on the mantis shrimp are composed in a unique way. It has four times the photoreceptor cells that a mammal has. These animals boasts 16 versions of color-receptive cones in the eyes, whereas humans only have three. It also has a trio of pseudo-pupils stacked on top of one another.

"This is unprecedented in the animal kingdom," Daly said.

How Did Researchers Discover This?

To discover this information, researchers placed the shrimp in a tank within a drum to simulate a tunnel. They spun the drum and recorded the shrimp's actions on high-speed cameras. Although most animals would attempt to stabilize their gaze in this scenario, the shrimp did the opposite of that. Daly said that this experiment showcased that these animals can maintain their vision within a changing environment.

As for the reason the peacock mantis shrimp have such unique eyes, Daly said that there would have to be more research to determine an answer.