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Cephalocarids: Cephalocarida

Cephalocarids And People

Cephalocarids are of scientific interest because they are thought to have features similar to the most ancient of crustaceans.

A CLASS IS BORN

In 1954, eight individuals of a new crustacean species were dredged up from the bottom of Long Island Sound. Their eyeless, horseshoe-shaped heads, long, slender bodies, similar midbody limbs, no rear segment appendages, and other features distinguished them from other groups of crustaceans. Dr. Howard Sanders of Yale University named the new class Cephalocarida from the Greek words kephale, meaning head, and karis, or shrimp. Cephalocarids are thought to be among the most primitive of all living crustaceans.

Additional topics

Animal Life ResourceMollusks, Crustaceans, and Related SpeciesCephalocarids: Cephalocarida - Physical Characteristics, Behavior And Reproduction, Cephalocarids And People, No Common Name (hutchinsoniella Macracantha): Species Account - GEOGRAPHIC RANGE, HABITAT, DIET, CONSERVATION STATUS