The Life of CrustaceaCalman, W. T. (William Thomas)
Science
The Life of Crustacea
Calman, W. T. (William Thomas)
Crustacea
The fifth order of the Peracarida, the AMPHIPODA, is also a very large
one. The "Sand-hoppers," which are very common on sandy coasts, belong
to this order, as do also a very large number of other forms found in
the sea and in fresh water, which have no popular names. A common
species is _Gammarus pulex_, sometimes called the "Fresh-water Shrimp,"
which is found everywhere in streams and ditches. Several closely allied
species, such as _G. locusta_ (Fig. 21), are found in the sea. The body
is flattened from side to side, and the abdomen is generally bent upon
itself. There is no carapace, but, as in the Isopods, the first thoracic
somite is fused with the head. The eyes are sessile on the sides of the
head. The antennules have a small inner branch, and the antenna have no
exopodites. The thoracic limbs, of which the first pair form
maxillipeds, have no exopodites, and are partly hidden by a row of
shield-like plates along the sides of the thorax. These plates are
formed by the enlarged and flattened basal segments of the limbs
themselves, and on the inner side they carry a series of oval plates,
which are the gills. The abdominal appendages are divided into two
sets: the first three pairs have each two slender, many-jointed
branches, and are used in swimming; the last three pairs are short,
stiff, and directed backwards, and are used in pushing the animal
through mud or among water-weeds. In many Amphipods, such as the
Sand-hoppers, the last three pairs of abdominal limbs are used in
jumping by sudden backward strokes of the abdomen.
[Illustration: FIG. 22--TWO SPECIES OF CAPRELLIDÆ. (From Lankester's
"Treatise on Zoology," after Sars.)
A, _Phtisica marina_, a species which retains the fourth and fifth pairs
of thoracic limbs (_prp´_, _prp´´_); B, _Caprella linearis_, in which
these limbs are represented only by the gills (_br_). (Enlarged.) _a´_,
Antennule; _a´´_, antenna; _abd_, vestigial abdomen; _gn_, gnathopods;
_m_, brood-pouch; IV, V, fourth and fifth thoracic somites]
[Illustration: FIG. 23--_Paracyamus boopis_, THE WHALE-LOUSE OF THE
HUMPBACK WHALE. (From Lankester's "Treatise on Zoology," after Sars.)
A, Male, dorsal view, enlarged; B, the maxillipeds detached and further
enlarged. _a´_, Antennule; _a´´_, antenna; _abd_, vestigial abdomen;
_br_, gills; _gn_, gnathopods; IV, V, fourth and fifth thoracic somites]
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