DETAILS
- Discipline
NH: ZOOLOGY: INVERTEBRATES: CRUSTACEANS (CRABS, LOBSTER, SHRIMP, WOODLICE)
- Scientific Name
Lepidurus apus
- Common Name
Tadpole Shrimp
- Place Collected
Central Europe, (place collected)
- Form
wet preserved
- Dimensions
overall: 105 mm x 37 mm x 37 mm 88 g
- Description
-
This tadpole shrimp (Lepidurus apus) is a small crustacean mainly found in seasonal freshwater pools across Europe and North Africa.
Tadpole shrimps, or Notostraca or Triops as they are also known, are primitive crustaceans whose basic anatomy has not changed in over 200 million years. They have three eyes, a flattened shield covering the head and legs and a long tail. They can survive periods of drought by laying eggs which can cope with being dried out completely. When the rains come the eggs hatch and the shrimp grow very quickly so they can reproduce before the pool disappears again.
This specimen was collected in Central Europe, preserved in spirits and mounted on a clear glass background. - ID Number
Z.2007.69.1
- Location
In storage
- Terms