Hermit crab opossum shrimp
Heteromysis harpaxoides
These distinctive opossum shrimp have a bright red and white carapace, making them easily identifiable. They live as pairs inside the shells inhabited by hermit crabs. Often the male and female pair will be accompanied by numerous juveniles.
Morphology
Male Heteromysis harpaxoides have enlarged fore limbs which are adapted for grasping and are probably used in feeding, in females these are reduced in size. Females carry eggs in the pouch-like marsupium underneath the body, hence the common name of opossum shrimp. This group also has a pair of structures called statocysts in the tail fan which are used for balance and orientation.
Evolution
The opossum shrimp aren't closely related to the true shrimp, but are more closely allied with the shrimp-like Euphausiacea (krill) and other crustacean groups like isopods (slaters).
Method of reproduction
Sexual
Habitat
Marine
Heteromysis harpaxoides is a shallow water species and is found living commensally in the shells inhabited by large hermit crabs of the genus Dardanus.
Distribution
Northern Australia
Life Cycle
Females brood the eggs in the marsupium and hatch as juveniles.
Kingdom: | Animalia |
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Phylum: | Arthropoda |
Subphylum: | Crustacea |
Class: | Malacostraca |
Subclass: | Eumalacostraca |
Superorder: | Peracarida |
Order: | Mysidacea |
Suborder: | Mysida |
Family: | Mysidae |
Subfamily: | Mysinae |
Genus: | Heteromysis |
Species: | harpaxoides |
Name Published Year: | 1980 |
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Scientific Name Authorship: | Bacescu & Bruce |
Commercial Impact: | None |
Conservation Assessment: | Least Concern |
Cite this page
Western Australian Museum Collections https://museum.wa.gov.au/online-collections/names/heteromysis-harpaxoides
Accessed 20 Aug 2024
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