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Cephalocarids: Cephalocarida

No Common Name (hutchinsoniella Macracantha): Species Account



Physical characteristics: The head and midbody segments are wider than the abdomen or tail section. Some pairs of limbs are reduced in size and resemble small rounded projections.


Geographic range: This species is found along the coast of the United States from Long Island to Virginia and eastward on the continental slope.


Habitat: Hutchinsoniella macracantha live in the muck that settles on the sea bottom.


Diet: They eat bits of plant and animal materials.

Hutchinsoniella macracantha live in the muck that settles on the sea bottom. (Illustration by John Megahan. Reproduced by permission.)

Behavior and reproduction: Hutchinsoniella macracantha are usually found on or just below the surface of the sea bottom. The larva molts 19 times before reaching adulthood.


Hutchinsoniella macracantha and people: This species is not known to impact humans or their activities.


Conservation status: This species is not considered threatened or endangered. ∎


FOR MORE INFORMATION

Books:

Hessler, R. R. Cephalocarida: Living Fossil Without a Fossil Record. In Living Fossils. N. Eldredge and S. M. Stanley, eds. New York: Springer Verlag, 1984.

Schram, F. Crustacea. Oxford, U.K.: Oxford University Press, 1986.


Periodicals:

Sanders, H. L. "The Cephalocarida, a New Subclass of Crustacea from Long Island Sound." Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 41 (1955): 61-66.


Web sites:

Brachypods (Cephalocarida). http://www.crustacea.net/crustace/www/brachyp.htm (accessed on January 21, 2005).

Introduction to the Cephalocarida. http://www.ucmp.berkeley.edu/arthropoda/crustacea/cephalocarida.html (accessed on January 21, 2005).

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