''Nototropis falcatus'' is a species of

amphipod Amphipoda () is an order of malacostracan crustaceans with no carapace and generally with laterally compressed bodies. Amphipods () range in size from and are mostly detritivores or scavengers. There are more than 10,700 amphipod species cur ...

crustacean Crustaceans (from Latin meaning: "those with shells" or "crusted ones") are invertebrate animals that constitute one group of arthropods that are traditionally a part of the subphylum Crustacea (), a large, diverse group of mainly aquatic arthrop ...

. It is whitish in colour, with brown patches, and grows to a total length of around . It lives on soft sediment such as fine sand at depths of , from northern

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and the archipelago of Svalbard also form part of the Kingdom of ...

to the west coast of

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

, including the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Denmark, Norway, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, and France. A sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Se ...

, and as far south as the southern

Bay of Biscay The Bay of Biscay ( ) is a gulf of the northeast Atlantic Ocean located south of the Celtic Sea. It lies along the western coast of France from Point Penmarc'h to the Spanish border, and along the northern coast of Spain, extending westward ...

Description

''Nototropis falcatus'' has a laterally flattened body and grows to a length of about . It is whitish with patches of brown. The head has a small acute rostrum and wavy-edged lateral lobes. The compound eyes are large, especially so in the male. The first antenna of the female is about one third of the length of the body, and the second antenna is slightly longer than the first; the antennae of the male are longer than those of the female. The

pereon The anatomy of a decapod consists of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment – often called a somite – may possess one pair of appendages, although in various groups these ma ...

or thoracic segments are short while the

pleon The anatomy of a decapod consists of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment – often called a somite – may possess one pair of appendages, although in various groups these ma ...

or abdominal segments are long. The first three pleon segments are either smooth or have a small notch or tooth on the rear margin. The third

pereiopod The anatomy of a decapod consists of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment – often called a somite – may possess one pair of appendages, although in various groups these m ...

or thoracic leg is particularly stout and has a curved propodus (penultimate joint) and powerful

dactylus The dactylus is the tip region of the tentacular club of cephalopods and of the leg of some crustaceans (see arthropod leg). In cephalopods, the dactylus is narrow and often characterized by the asymmetrical placement of suckers (i.e., the vent ...

(claw); the fourth pereiopod is smaller; in males, these two legs have long, plumose

seta In biology, setae (; seta ; ) are any of a number of different bristle- or hair-like structures on living organisms. Animal setae Protostomes Depending partly on their form and function, protostome setae may be called macrotrichia, chaetae, ...

e (bristles). The basal segments of the first three

pleopod The anatomy of a decapod consists of 20 body segments grouped into two main body parts: the cephalothorax and the pleon (abdomen). Each segment – often called a somite – may possess one pair of appendages, although in various groups these m ...

s or abdominal legs are much enlarged. The abdomen ends in a short

telson The telson () is the hindmost division of the body of an arthropod. Depending on the definition, the telson is either considered to be the final segment (biology), segment of the arthropod body, or an additional division that is not a true segm ...

, cleft for three quarters of its length, which is flanked by

uropod Uropods are posterior appendages found on a wide variety of crustaceans. They typically have functions in locomotion. Definition Uropods are often defined as the appendages of the last body segment of a crustacean. An alternative definition sugge ...

s to form a tail fan.

Ecology

This amphipod can swim using its abdominal legs and orienting itself on its side and can also burrow in the soft substrate. It probably feeds by grazing on plant material and consuming

detritus In biology, detritus ( or ) is organic matter made up of the decomposition, decomposing remains of organisms and plants, and also of feces. Detritus usually hosts communities of microorganisms that colonize and decomposition, decompose (Reminera ...

References

External links

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World Register of Marine Species
{{Taxonbar , from1=Q4454233 , from2=Q46317740 Amphilochidea Crustaceans described in 1871 Amphipods of the Atlantic Ocean