Decapoda
Sign in to saveA decapod is a crustacean in the large order of Decapoda (from Ancient Greek δεκάς (dekás), meaning "ten", and πούς (poús), meaning "foot"), within the class Malacostraca, including crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, and prawns. Most decapods are scavengers. The order is estimated to contain nearly 15,000 extant species in around 2,700 genera, with around 3,300 fossil species. Nearly half of these species are crabs, with the shrimp (about 3,000 species) and Anomura including hermit crabs, king crabs, porcelain crabs, squat lobsters (about 2500 species) making up the bulk of the remainder. The
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Decapoda is a large order of crustaceans that includes crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, and prawns, named for their ten legs. With nearly 15,000 living species, decapods are among the most diverse and abundant crustaceans on Earth, and most play important roles as scavengers in their ecosystems.
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Article
6 sectionsContents
- Anatomy
- Evolution
- Classification
- See also
- References
- External links
A decapod is a crustacean in the large order of Decapoda (from Ancient Greek δεκάς (dekás), meaning "ten", and πούς (poús), meaning "foot"), within the class Malacostraca, including crabs, lobsters, crayfish, shrimp, and prawns. Most decapods are scavengers. The order is estimated to contain nearly 15,000 extant species in around 2,700 genera, with around 3,300 fossil species. Nearly half of these species are crabs, with the shrimp (about 3,000 species) and Anomura including hermit crabs, king crabs, porcelain crabs, squat lobsters (about 2500 species) making up the bulk of the remainder. The earliest fossils of the group date to the Devonian.
==Anatomy==