Crustaceans: What are, types, characteristics and examples

The crustaceans belong to the diverse group of The arthropodsthus characterized by having the body segmented and for having numerous articulated appendices. In general, the Marine crustaceans They are the most abundant, although there are also some species of fresh water crustaceans or sweetacuícolas, as well as terrestrial, although they do not present any special adaptation to this medium.

Crustacean animals are also one of the most characteristic groups within the Animals with shellbeing the shell of calcareous type crustaceans. It covers the head and part of the trunk, providing them with protection and it is common for the mute process to carry out during the development and growth stages. In some species of crustaceans, this shell is Bivalvo, protects the entire body of the organism and is called Concha.

In this other ecology article, you can meet +20 animals with shell.

The CLASSIFICATION OF CRUSTACEOS (Including both marine crustaceans, as well as the sweet and terrestrial), it is based on the grouping of this great diversity of crustaceans in 6 fundamental types or classes:

1. Gills (small species whose head has a laminar shape).
2. Remipedios (organisms that lack vision, inhabit deep caves of salt water).
3. Cephalocáridos (it only includes 10 species of crustaceans that inhabit exclusively in benthic zones).
4. Maxillopods (they are small, with reduced appendages and abdomen. Many are part of the zooplankton).
5. Ostrácodos (they have a bivalve shell that protects them. They are very small, microscopic sometimes).
6. Malacostraceos (it is the most numerous group, includes almost all the best known crustaceans, such as the group of decapods and those commonly known as Kril).

The main characteristics of crustacean animals are the following:

• The body of the crustaceans is divided into segments (between 16 and 20), with 3 distinct parts: head (cephalón), thorax (pereion) and abdomen (pleon).
• In the head they have 5 pairs of appendages, including 2 pairs of antennas, a pair of jaws and another 2 pairs of maxilas). The eyes of crustaceans can be simple or compounds.
• The thorax includes the different segments destined for locomotion, breathing, food and defense.
• As for the abdomen, it presents a variable number of appendices, normally shovel -shaped, employees to swim.
• The heart of crustaceans is usually long and tubular, with an arterial circulatory system.
• They breathe by gills or, through the wall of the body. In this other post you can see +40 animals that breathe by gills.
• They have various and surprising sensory organs that allow them to detect pressure variations, water currents, capture sounds, as well as chemiorreceptors and thermoreceptors.
• As for their diet, crustaceans can be predators, filtradres, or even scavengers.
• It highlights the surprising regeneration capacity that many crustaceans present.

How the crustaceans reproduce

There are so much Dioic crustaceans (with individuals of the male gender and female individuals), as well as Hermaphrodite crustaceansthat is, the same individual at the same time presents male and female reproductive bodies. Here you can learn everything about hermaphrodite animals: reproduction and examples.

Frequently, male individuals have specialized thorax appendices for the grip of females during fertilization, which is always external. Subsequently, the development of new individuals undergoes a metamorphosis process, through several stages, from Nauplius larvae to becoming adults.

The best -known crustaceans are usually those that we are used to seeing and consuming in markets and shops. Therefore, from the Regulation and Organization Fund of the Fishing Products and Marine Crops (FROM), in Spain they are commonly differentiated between short -body crustaceans and long -body crustaceans. These are some Examples of crustacean names:

• Short body crustaceans: Atlantic crab (Carcinus Maenas), sea ox (CANCER PAGURUS), Centol (Maja Squinado), Percebs (Cornucopia policipes) and nécoras (Necora puber).
• Long body crustaceans: prawns (Parapenaeus longirostris), shrimp (PALAEMON ELEGANS), prawns (PENAEUS KERATHURUS), Cigalas (Norvegicus Nephrops), lobsters (Palinurus elephas) and vogovantes (Homarus gammarus).

In these images you can see the different Crustacean species In the order of these lists.

If you want to read more articles similar to Crustaceans: What are, types, characteristics and exampleswe recommend that you enter our biodiversity category.