Fairy shrimp  (Chirocephalus diaphanus)

Learn about the scientific name of this species and how it fits into the tree of life at Nature Navigator.

Description

The fairy shrimp is a beautiful, translucent crustacean, which lacks a carapace, and is considered to be rather primitive as it has a relatively large number of segments and the legs are not specialised (5). The body is elongated, and bears 11 pairs of legs fringed with bristles; the head curves downwards, and in males the second pair of antennae are modified 'claspers' for grabbing females during mating (6). Fairy shrimps swim around on their backs, propelled by the constantly moving legs (5).

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