WILD EVIDENCE
Case file 003March 27, 2017Nearly 1,000 m (3,280 ft)

A Deep-Sea Shrimp Was Filmed Eating a Dragonfish That Was Still Alive

Shrimp like this were thought to be scavengers. Nearly a kilometer down on a Pacific seamount, a NOAA robot found one on top of a living fish.

A red deep-sea shrimp stands on top of a long black dragonfish on pale sand
The shrimp on top of the dragonfish at Ufiata Seamount. Image: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Discovering the Deep: Exploring Remote Pacific MPAs.

Ufiata Seamount is an underwater mountain in the Tokelau Seamount Chain, in the Pacific Ocean. On March 27, 2017, during an expedition to survey remote marine protected areas, NOAA's remotely operated vehicle was working at a depth of nearly 1,000 meters when its cameras picked up a red shrimp sitting on top of a long black fish.

The fish was moving.

Close view of a red shrimp with long legs and antennae gripping a dark fish against a rock
The shrimp belongs to the genus Heterocarpus. Image: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Discovering the Deep: Exploring Remote Pacific MPAs.

What the camera recorded

  1. The shrimp is a caridean shrimp in the genus Heterocarpus. The fish is a midwater dragonfish, possibly a kind known as a stareater.
  2. The shrimp stays on top of the fish, holding it with its legs while it feeds.
  3. Over the course of the clip it eats several pieces of the fish's tissue and the contents of its stomach.
  4. The dragonfish is alive while this happens. Its body bends and straightens under the shrimp.
The black dragonfish curls into an S shape on the sand while the shrimp holds on
The dragonfish flexes while the shrimp feeds. Image: NOAA Ocean Exploration, Discovering the Deep: Exploring Remote Pacific MPAs.

Why scientists cared

Deep-sea shrimp of this kind were thought to be mainly scavengers, animals that eat what is already dead. Scientists had watched squat lobsters pick midwater fish out of the water and eat them, but according to NOAA they had never seen a shrimp eat a fish like this. NOAA released the clip under the title "Deepsea Battle: Featherweight Division."

What nobody knows yet

How the shrimp ended up with a live fish. A dragonfish is a midwater animal, not one that normally lies on the bottom. Either the shrimp caught it, or the fish was already hurt when it reached the seafloor and the shrimp got to it first. The camera arrived after that question had been settled.

How this was recorded

This dive was part of NOAA's 2017 expedition Discovering the Deep: Exploring Remote Pacific Marine Protected Areas. The remotely operated vehicle Deep Discoverer filmed the encounter while tethered to the NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer, and NOAA later included the clip in its collection of notable feeding events from its expeditions.

The record

Date
March 27, 2017
Location
Ufiata Seamount, Tokelau Seamount Chain, Pacific Ocean
Depth / setting
Nearly 1,000 m (3,280 ft)
Camera
ROV Deep Discoverer, NOAA Ship Okeanos Explorer
Animals
Caridean shrimp (Heterocarpus sp.); midwater dragonfish, possibly a stareater
Footage
NOAA Ocean Exploration, Discovering the Deep: Exploring Remote Pacific MPAs
Rights
Public domain (U.S. Government work)

Sources

Published 2026-11-15 · Corrections: contact@wildevidence.com

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